The Del Boy tricks used to sell beauty products
PRESTIGE cosmetic and beauty brands are resorting to Del Boy-style tactics to sell their products, according to consumer watchdogs.
Which? surveyed brands like John Frieda, Garnier, Nivea and Lab Series to examine ‘packaging tricks’.
It pointed to the fact John Frieda labels its bottles with ‘London, Paris, New York’ in what appears to be an attempt to impress customers. Fans of Only Fools and Horses will recognise the similarity with the motto on Del Boy Trotter’s three-wheeler, which read ‘New York, Paris, Peckham’.
Which? said that as well as this ‘posh packaging’, big brands were also guilty of using baffling ‘science’ jargon and marketing mumbo-jumbo to make the public part with their cash.
It asked marketing and psychology experts to identify tricks of the trade commonly used by cosmetic and beauty brands to boost their upmarket credentials.
The tricks include celebrity endorsements – hair products have featured everyone from Holly Willoughby to Jennifer Aniston over the year. The Which? report said: ‘These shouldn’t work but they do. Our experts say we’re more likely to trust people than claims, especially people who are well liked and respected.’
Another ruse is repeating a word so many times it sticks. Which? singled out Dove’s Intensive Repair Shampoo for repeating the word ‘repair’ on its packaging five times.
Putting toiletries in unnecessary extra packaging such as a box makes it seem more expensive and using ‘Paris, New York, London’ on a label infers luxury which may not be there, said Which? For cheap own-label brands, the easiest trick is to copycat major labels and bring out lookalike products.
It pointed out that Aldi’s Abbot and Broome handwash looks like posh Baylis and Harding handwash, which is turn looks like the even more expensive, but better known, Molton Brown handwash. Making products specifically ‘for men’ or ‘for women’ and using certain colours – blue for men, pink for women – helps too, even in these enlightened times.
Head & Shoulders for men has a picture of a man on a bicycle on the label. This makes men think it is a more macho product so they buy it.
But perhaps the most obvious trick – even though so many fall for it – is using buzzwords and jargon to baffle consumers, with examples ranging from ‘rapid diffusion’ to ‘micro peptides’ on Garnier’s Miracle Cream.
Most people have no idea what they mean yet, to some, it enhances a brand’s credibility, said Which?
The editor of Which?, Richard Headland, said: ‘Even if you feel like you’re a savvy shopper, chances are you’ve been influenced by some of the clever marketing tricks used by big brands on a recent shopping trip. While some seem obvious when you think about them, these tactics are surprisingly effective when shoppers are pushed for time and faced with enormous choice.’