Fear Marketing Cosmetics

Many brands use fear marketing to sell their beauty products. If you want to make big money in the beauty industry, fear marketing might be the strategy for you. Of course, you'll have to discard any ethics or compunction to fully take advantage. Otherwise you should focus on your product's actual benefits.

[@oksanawalker3027]

Simply brilliant and truthful description of many people approach to our life and science. Love it

[@skingoop3563]

Loved the video! It is SO true about the lack of ethics by people selling 'all natural' and/or 'chemical free' stuff.

[@EmA-gb9cv]

Great as usual! Great fan of the Beauty brains podcast

[@mariondove1]

Excellent! Why am I just seeing this now???

[@JenSpice]

I actually had a customer admonish her child who was interested in my products tell her child in a loud voice how my soap was 'the icky soap'. I never did get an explanation or apology. Fear marketing is just nuts.

[@LittleBlueHenSoap]

Aww that's awful what a horrid thing to say! I bet your soaps are lovely. x

[@melissacarey4934]

Love and truly appreciate the sarcasm! Background graphics are excellent. Lol-the clown! Thanks. Worth noting...There are indeed those very simple, effective products not widely available simply because they are not profitable for big business. I was part of the ginormous cosmetics industry for many years. Disgusted by the greed and deceit factors, I started making my own basic formulations. Ended up selling them with the promise to myself to never overcharge, overstate, manipulate or misguide users. I prefer respect to cashflow. Not making me fabulously wealthy in a hurry, but it's rewarding; my clients are happy and I earn a fair wage. Thanks again for your refreshing, humorous commentary. -Melissa

[@CosmeticChemist]

Thanks for the comments. I don't generally find that the big cosmetic industry is any more greedy and deceitful than the small cosmetic industry. I know many chemists & marketing people that work at big corporations and they are good people. I also know small time cosmetic makers who don't test their products for safety and exaggerate their marketing with promises that can't possibly be true. There are both good and bad actors in the cosmetic industry. Ultimately, the products are good so consumers can find working products without spending too much.

[@ramraman73]

I will opt for Option B. Positive marketing works, but is just takes time and hard work. Negative marketing is not sustainable. Definitely can see sales coming in, but eventually you will not have repeat customer. All natural cosmetics ingredients do not deliver result as fast as synthetic. Paula choice is a great example of selling cosmetics product by educating the consumer to have healthy relationships with the cosmetics ingredients. I'm a formulator and a brand owner.

[@Microformulations]

Great video. We see these marketing falsehoods ingrained into our clients. Fortunately, for the most part, they are open to be educated.

[@wonniek.3536]

Amazing video!! Big fan of yours, Perry!! This should be mandatory viewing tbh lmao.

[@CosmeticChemist]

Thanks!

[@LittleBlueHenSoap]

I agree with some of this. The independent cosmetic businesses are popping up like mushrooms, I'm a 7 year old one hehe. But there is so much scaremongering. Some folk are more sensitive to products and ingredients but they aren't all man made. That natural = good and synthetic = bad really irks me too. There are so many natural ingredients that are pretty terrifying! Then the ones who say "lye" soaps are bad, (I'm thinking Jan and the rude woman who called her soap "icky"). Don't get me started on preservatives... !!! I'm constantly learning things, I never step out of my knowledge boundaries when speaking to customers and I aim to be progressive and ethical as possible in my work. But marketing wise, the big corporate businesses are also guilty of fear mongering people: "You're getting old, you aren't beautiful enough, you aren't slim enough, that's not popular, be prettier, be sexier or you are unpopular." Look at the image advertising! So in those terms, kettle calling pot black in that department.

[@PerryRomanowski]

I agree that big corporate marketing is bad also. They are also embracing some of the fear marketing strategy because they see that it works (sulfate free, paraben free, phthalate free). I see the claims you listed as a bit different than fear marketing. That's more like "anxiety marketing" which is pretty standard in most industries. I don't think it is good, but it is not meant to make people be afraid of a competitor's product for no good reason.

[@chrisr9764]

This was great. Too funny. :)

[@l.bridges9990]

Brilliant. Thank you, Perry.

[@thebeautyeconomist5700]

Thanks for the video! There is so much misinformation in the cosmetics market. I am writing this from a perspective of simple consumer with not scientific background. I really did not know what I was buying. Some months ago I decided to investigate my skincare decisions and googled "how to take care of complexion?" or something similar. And of course the information I came across first was the type you describe in the video. It took me another few months to figure out how to get to somewhat more scientific evidence. But even based on the same scientific evidence different scientists come to different conclusions. So I still don't understand why in Europe, where I live my products are formulated now without parabens and in US and Asia they seem to be fine. Really complecated world for us consumers. So please keep doing your work as not only cosmetic chemists are reading and watching you :-)

[@CosmeticChemist]

Thanks for the comments. It is tough for consumers to figure out what is real and what's not. There are a number of fake experts out there and also some legitimate scientists who are either misinformed, misguided or willfully ignorant of toxicology. Always keep in mind that when someone benefits from you purchasing a product based on what they are saying, their information may not be quite reliable. As far as regulations go, parabens are not banned in the EU. In fact, most of them can be used in the same way they can be used in the US. The reason to not use them is strictly a marketing one. That's how effect fear marketing has been. You might also be interested in my other site thebeautybrains.com

[@thebeautyeconomist5700]

@@CosmeticChemist Thanks a lot for the Beauty Brains recommendation. I have just gone through 4 or 5 of your podcasts. They are brilliant :-)

[@mirzsajid5331]

Hi sir please tell me making volume 20 cream bace

[@vitvit1972]

Thank you Perry!

[@mariondove7845]

Thanks Perry