Annoying Infomercial Practices

We’ve all seen at least one or two infomercials and many more commercials that use the same tactics in a shorter format. There’s one practice that far too many of these advertisements share: the stupid customer.

What is the stupid customer? It’s the person who can’t do the simplest of tasks. You see them at the beginning of the program, doing something easy like cracking an egg or opening a jar. Or maybe it’s hanging a picture straight or tightening a screw. Whatever it is, the person’s incompetence is evident. This person just can’t do it right. She gives up in frustration after a lame attempt to do a task that even our children could probably do.

Of course, the miracle infomercial product is going to solve this problem in little or no time! It’s not really the product itself that’s the problem. Some of them are probably quite usable or helpful items. And the selling technique obviously works or it wouldn’t continue to be used over and over (and over).

But it’s still annoying and I wish producers and writers would find another way to explain their product’s benefits. Something that doesn’t make the target audience look like bumbling idiots.

What about you? What tactics really get on your nerves and make you want to vow never to buy that product?

image: Zuma Press

(I should note that Billy Mays is actually not one of the pitch men that I’m referring to. The pieces I’ve seen him in just demonstrate the product instead of showing a blithering idiot trying to complete a task. This wasn’t directed at his type of pitching – I just found his picture and thought it would make a good accompaniment to the post.)