Already a member?
Welcome to Brazen Careerist!
Emily Ma is using Brazen Careerist to share ideas. Join now to become a member and start networking with Emily Ma and other professionals just like you. Learn more.
Brazen careerist
Where ambitious young professionals connect and grow
Email
Print
While they're hardly a new phenomenon, weight loss advertisements seem ubiquitous these days. I can't load a new web page without seeing images of bulging guts and toned abs placed in side-by-side comparisons. And while I'm all for health and wellness, an animation of a rapidly shrinking then expanding stomach (with stretch marks, I might add) is not the type of thing I want to want to watch over and over again. It's just not pretty.
In addition to making me queasy, many of these ads are completely untruthful. Take the ad below. Not only did this woman lose 12 pounds in 2 weeks, she also went from black to white! Imagine, a weight loss regimen that also involves changing your race. How...politically incorrect.
And it's not just the internet that's being taken over by weight loss advertisements. Billboards in the real world feature obesity PSAs that are a bit disconcerting. I had to stand next to a 5 foot tall rendering of this ad while waiting for the bus yesterday:
Am I just incredibly insensitive? Forgive me, but staring at this image makes me uncomfortable. Which...I suppose is the point of the ad in the first place. Sigh. Marketing gods, you have been proven correct yet again.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the spectrum, you get ads that feature people like this:
Egads! This is a real person from a real weight loss site. This picture is all kinds of wrong! Between the orange spray tan, the bolted on breasts, and strange Hulk-like stomach, I don't know where to begin. Is it that she's too thin? Too muscular for her body weight? I can't decide. All I know is that I'm very, very disturbed.
Update: As I finish this entry, a Nutrisystems commercial just came on the television. I rest my case. The market is completely saturated. If I have to hear Dan Marino say "Real food for real guys!" one more time, I'm going start chucking Krispy Kremes at the screen.
For more timely, relevant, and engaging articles,
subscribe to Brazen Careerist.
- The Anti-Stalker’s Guide for Converting Online Contact into Real World Collaboration
- Why You Might Be Better Off Without a Job After College
- A New Kind of Business Mover and Shaker
- How To Find a Writing Partner Who Can Help You Achieve Your Goals and Make More Money
- Continuing Education: Extending Learning Beyond Your Campus Years
Comments
04.15.09
These are bad, yes, but I find the "Smiling Bob" commercials even more disturbing.
09.14.09
Most of the weight loss ads actually feature bodybuilders who go through their bulking and cutting seasons. Bodybuilders are paid pretty big amounts to gain a lot of weight fast and then lose if using supplements and working out. The supplement shown in the ads is just a placeholder as the same bodybuilder works across different products and ad campaigns. However, these fat loss ads do sell to singles looking to improve their dating life
03.05.10
Great article with excellent idea! I appreciate your post. Thanks so much and let keep on sharing your stuffs.mikimoto pearl necklace|lace wedding dresses
Got Something To Say?
Got Something To Say?
Not a Member? Brazen Careerist is a career management tool for next-generation professionals. Set up a free account today to comment on this post and start sharing your ideas. Learn more.
Login to view your networks!
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
