When it comes to selling, some people will use gimmicks to get people interested. Sometimes, these are fairly entertaining, like playing an intense commercial on TV only to be selling something not as intense, such as a camera.
Other times, these gimmicks are actually tricks, using enticing pricing, misleading wording, or even unclear graphics to convince people to buy something they may not even need.
People have, for the most part, wised up when it comes to these gimmicks, but everyone has that one trick they still fall for, and it never gets any less annoying when we do fall victim to them.
Wondering what gimmicks people still fall for, Redditor cCringleberried asked:
"What is a marketing gimmick/misleading fact that people still fall for?"
It Looks So Real!
"Reddit ads that look like posts. Every few months I accidentally click on one."
– drblah1
"I read this and thought “haha, what fool falls for those, lol?!” Only to go and click one on the “post” that was directly below this one in my feed…"
– eeeeeeeeem
Pay To Save
"Megachurch "pastors". For just a $20 donation your soul can be saved."
– OmegaMountain
"Just 10% of your salary and gates of heaven shall open wide for you and your loved ones"
– I-Am-Programmer
"Ironic considering that kind of "pay to win" spirituality is why their denominations even exist."
– Scraw
It's Essential!
"Essential Oils."
""Essential" here is simply an archaic term for scented, or having essence. It doesn't mean necessary, required, or important. It's all marketing BS."
– _JackStraw_
"I remember the first time I saw someone point this out and I was very confused. Do people actually think essential oils are essential instead of having the essence of?"
– LittleMlem
Healthy?
"“Low sugar” / “low salt” / “low fat”. It’s misleading as sh*t and people fall for it daily. Perfect example: Tic Tacs, they can be labeled as sugar-free because anything with less than 5 grams of sugar is considered “sugar-free” by the food-feds. Your standard Tic Tac weighs about 1/2 grams and is essentially a nugget of flavored sugar."
"Edited for tic tac weight accuracy also this is in America."
– Rusty_is_a_good_boy
"The funniest version of this is “fat-free” cooking oil. It’s literally ALL fat, they can just say it’s fat-free because the serving size is so small."
– ARACHN0_C0MMUNISM
Spending Less...Kind Of
"It's kind of amazing how easily you can entice people to buy something by just subtracting a tiny amount of money from the sale price. Like charging $1.95 or even $1.99 for a product instead of a full $2.00, for example."
– Prank_Owl
"The number of customers I've heard say "It's only $9.""
"No, it's marked $9.98. That means it's $10."
"Fun fact: Unless it's changed since I escaped, whether the price ends in .90, .95, .98, etc. at Walmart tells youwhether it's clearance, new, rollback, old stock we'd like to get rid of but isn't being clearenced, etc."
"Less fun fact: I don't remember which is what, and that knowledge doesn't do you any good other than trivia."
– DirkBabypunch
"This is a common misconception, it's not about making the price appear smaller, it's about humans subconsciously finding the number 9 more enticing."
"Studies have shown that even if items are priced higher than an identical item, including the number 9 in the price makes them more likely to be purchased than the cheaper label."
"Marketing research is one hell of a rabbit hole to go down and realise just how engineered everything is to appeal subconsciously."
– AmbitiousPlank
Gotta Grab The Phone!
"Call in the next five minutes and we'll double everything!"
"It does not matter when you call."
– Chuckleyan
Natural Is Not Always Good
"Things made with "all natural" ingredients is pretty much meaningless. It's not a regulated term"
– TheRealOcsiban
"Arsenic is fairly natural, so are lead and asbestos..."
– HeelyTheGreat
Bigger Is Better, Right?
"Introducing a medium size option that's only a few cents less than the large to persuade you to get the large."
– Cott_killz
Does It Really Go Away?
"“Hurry while supplies last!”"
“"Offer ends soon!”"
– Actuaryba
Vote For Me And I Will...
"Any political campaign ad. They are all lies. Why must all ads be attack ads? How about you tell me why I should vote for you and not why I should vote against the other person?"
– Ok-Bed6343
"Can you imagine what it would be like if they were thirty second clips of actual policy? A dream."
"I love how you phrased it. Don’t tell me why to vote against the other guy. Tell me why to vote for you."
– Deleted User
Eventually, we’ll wise up to these tricks as well. But then…there will be others.
