Every day we see many of the world’s most famous and popular skin care products being advertised on TV; on billboards; on the sides of buses and trains and in fashion magazines. We see sports stars and famous movie celebrities appearing in many of these ads, and many of us are easily convinced to follow suit.
One of my favorite publicity stunts is the frequent use of “Before” and “After” photos. You know the ones where a real (Before) photo of a celebrity or star is taken before spending three or four hours with a professional makeup artist to prepare them for the “After” photo. Actually, I’m not sure why they bother with makeup artists because the photos are touched up afterwards anyway.
A very good friend of mine does web design, and believe me; he can make me look 30 years younger than I am in just a few minutes. I love Photoshop, but sadly I’m useless when it comes to using it myself. Anyway, I promised to give you some facts, so let’s get started.
FACT No.1 – Image manipulation
The BBC recently published an article about two ads banned by the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority. Both ads were for anti-aging skin care products and both featured extremely famous celebrities. Editing and retouching images is mostly accepted, but in these two cases it was beyond a joke.
Oh, and by the way, both products are from two of the biggest brands on the planet. If you’re skeptical, just do a Google search and see for yourself. Now you must be wondering why these companies would have to rely on misleading image manipulation if their products are or are as good as they say they are.
FACT No.2 – Chemical Free Sunscreen
If you’ve been using an expensive “chemical-free” sunscreen, I’m sorry to tell you this, but virtually every sunscreen on the planet contains zinc oxide and/or titanium dioxide, both of which are chemicals. If you see any of these mentioned in the ingredient list, I’m afraid you’ve been misled.
FACT No.3 – Balanced pH
Have you noticed how many skin care manufacturers use the term “pH balanced” on their products? They do this to imply that their products are superior to other products; that their products are gentler and less likely to cause skin irritation. In fact, almost all commercially available skin care products have a pH level that is 100% compatible with your hair and skin.
FACT No.4 – Increases collagen
You’ll see collagen mentioned in countless cosmetics these days, and manufacturers have gone to great lengths to convince consumers of the importance of collagen for skin. Unfortunately, your body has to make its own collagen because it is a scientific fact that this substance cannot penetrate your skin.
Also, if there was a skin care product capable of increasing the amount of collagen in the skin, the authorities would pull it off the shelves because they would consider it a misbranded drug.
In this article I have only mentioned and discussed four deceptive practices that are disturbingly common throughout the cosmetics industry. Unfortunately, many more common marketing tricks are used to increase sales.
Remember, you can fool people without telling a single lie because it’s not what you say, but how you say it that counts. I can tell you that my product is “pH balanced” because the pH is within acceptable parameters; I can tell you my product is “collagen-enriched” because it is, but I’m not required to tell you that none of it makes any difference. I have not lied; I have simply allowed you to fool yourself by my choice of words, and what those words imply.