Tuesday, May 10, 2005

Are we stupid?

In the past, we see a lot of mobile phone advertisements in the papers. Nowadays, when we flip through the papers, there are a godzillion ads for slimming centres. Most of them are simply hilarious to me. Some of the agencies seem to think that we, as consumers, are brainless. We see a pretty girl, we think we can be that pretty girl, then we buy. Let's see some of the tricks they use in an attempt to cajole women into getting slimming treatments.

The use of already slim celebrities
We see near-aneroxic celebrities being used to endorse certain slimming products. Lo and behold! The celebrity would actually be someone who loves to eat, not exercise and simply not get fat! Wow! Because of XXX slimming product, she could eat all she wants and not gain an ounce! The difference before using the product and after using it is astounding! She's smiling after eating those pills! It must be good!

Quick! We have to buy it!

The horrible, photoshopless "Before" pics

The "Before" images invariably will have women sitting on chairs in slouched positions. Very strangely, these are usually celebrities whom we have always known to have immaculate postures. Which person can avoid slight "layers" in the stomach while seaten? Then, the "Before" photos have them wearing clothes that are too small, to show off their fats because the cloth clings to the bulges formed, in the first place, by the ill-fitting clothes. Of course, make-up is a sin for these images, let alone Photoshopping.

The flawless, poreless "After" pics
Women in the "After" images are always impeccable, with full make-up, wearing glamourous dresses.

Their postures are something we can learn! Will be great for taking photographs. Firstly, the hands must be on the hips so the flab in the upper arms will not be so obvious. Then one leg must be in front of the other, slightly bent, so we can look taller. These "After" photos will also be photoshopped so the girls in them look like they do not have pores. No fats and no pores! OMG! We so have to sign a treatment program with the slimming centre! Can slim down and smooth out simultaneously!

The disclaimer
Have you noticed how the ads always have a * somewhere in the large print?

If we follow this *, we will come to a chunk of words at the bottom that are hardly legible. Then magnifying these words by a couple thousand times, we have:

So there is some kind of contradiction here. First you claim, then you tell people it is actually not so with a disclaimer in minuscule print. Maybe only the lucky one out of a million can lost 10kg in a single session. Alas! That someone will not be you if you do not stick to a carrot-and-pea diet or a 3-hour daily exercise regime.

The ones with incredible measurement techniques
Ever seen one of those where the woman will proclaimed to have lost 0.x cm? As if we don't know she can suck in her stomach, or tighten the measuring tape to take a smaller measurement.

With such a technique, anyone can lost 0.x cm in a day.

I'm sorry if this post burst the bubbles of marketers out there. More new tricks? ^-^

13 comments:

dweam said...

hey i was just commenting to myself that there seems to be a truckload of slimming commercials too. wanted to do a post on it but you beat me to it. dang. hahaha..

jllt said...

Haha... Not like a godzillion people read my blog. They won't know you did it after me... Muahahaha...

Great minds think alike!

NoPro said...

Yar. those that work usually require you to lose an organ or two. ala slim 10.

jllt said...

That's a pretty interesting way to lose weight.

Adrian said...

There's only one enjoyable way to lose weight. Have lots of sex.

Anonymous said...

but in singapore if you wanna get anywhere in life you have got to be slim. i spent years resisting the "Slim Movement" then caved in cos I see my career as impt.

jllt said...

adrian: You're offering the treatment?

anonymous: Hmm.. Depends on the kind of job you are eyeing? Think getting clothes is a bitch for bigger girls though.

Ivan said...

Aiyah, slimming centres are a conspiracy by MediaCorp to help give their actresses an extra source of income... If no sponsorship then how to live a lavish lifestyle?

jllt said...

No wonder some of those cannot-make-it actresses get endorsement deals from slimming centres. It's a conspiracy!

bearicia said...

guess another treatment on the rise is hair treatment.. more and more hair growth and what-have-you hair treatment programs are popping up endorsing a lot of "popular" mediacorp stars... one of them even thank the centre blatantly at star awards previously

jllt said...

Yes! And they are usually celebrities who have no need for the product!

dweam said...

hee. never mind lah. i got no inspiration to write. LAZY! need to find pictures oso. muahaha..

jllt said...

Hahaha... No need pics for all blogs ma... Just that I nothing better to do... And was feeling creative.