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Child Item

Engineering a ''Need''

chillin117

Solutions for problems that don't exist, The latest...
Little girl ''Mum, This washing machine stinks''
Mum comes to the rescue with a smile and a bottle of Dettol Washing Machine Cleaner. !
I remember the likes of Armitage Shanks throwing millions at a ''Need'' The Bidet's never caught on
Same happened to the moist toilet paper people, Dead in the water (pardon the pun)
Anyone any more ?

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Sapphire

Laois_Man wrote: »

Reminds me of the time the wife sent me to Tesco to get baby wipes. Unknowingly. I arrived back with a pack of vagina wipes. I was like, I was wondering why the cashier was looking at me funny. ...this was the aha moment.....and why the **** does such a thing even exist? And are there penis wipes too?

Maybe the tagline should on the packaging have given it away; "For those intimate moments"

Aha!

Feeding into the myth that normal women's intimate areas should smell like synthetic cloying floral fragrance instead of normal. Same myth that is resulting in some women getting ovarian cancer from decades of use of baby powder where its not supposed to go.

It's damn near impossible to buy sanitary towels or panty liners that are not scented, and they are starting to do it with tampons too. Ridiculous. You might as well wear a sign that tells people you are on your period because the smell of the sanitary wear will tell everyone anyway.

smash

Sapphire wrote: »

Same myth that is resulting in some women getting ovarian cancer from decades of use of baby powder where its not supposed to go.

So baby powder causes cancer now?

borderlinemeath

Stigura wrote: »

So much around contemporary Dog ownership comes to mind.

Or am I thinking of " Engineering a Profit " ?

Depends on what areas of "ownership" you are getting at. Regular grooming for some dogs means a bath in the sea, for others it's a trip to the groomers every 6 weeks at €50 a pop. The dog food industry is huge, with words like "complete" "nutritional" and "hypoallergenic" bandied about to add confidence to products, even though we are told by vets and dog food companies to feed nothing but dry over processed food, yet as humans we know that too much processed food is bad for us.

That said, dogs need walking, feeding and human companionship. If you can't provide all 3 then sometimes you need to employ a dog walker or a day care. Leaving the dog to rot in the garden is a cruel option. Years ago there was usually Mammy or sometimes Daddy at home looking after the kids so the dog had company, nowadays the kids are out the door to creche, parents are out to work so a dog can be left for 12 hours without even a word said to it. There's a reason dogs end up in rescues with "behavioural" issues, they don't have enough human interaction, enough training or enough exercise because the humans don't have the time or the inclination after working a 40hr week plus commute.

ScumLord

borderlinemeath wrote: »

There's a reason dogs end up in rescues with "behavioural" issues,

Or people buying working dogs and then being confused when the dog wants to do stuff all the time. Most small dogs were breed over centuries, maybe even millennia to be fearless vermin eradicators, that would attack anything on site no matter how big or small it was. Now people get these dogs and think there's something wrong with them.

Or people buying small dogs that have Syringomyelia, another side effect of the pedigree dog industry.

Too many people buy dogs because they think they'll look good in that corner of the room.

deandean

Irish Water.
They started a new company, moved all the existing CoCo water employees into it, took on a load of new employees, and spent an absolute fortune in a P.R. campaign telling us why the new company is needed.
It wasn't needed.

tea and coffee

smash wrote: »

So baby powder causes cancer now?

Allegedly so http://www.bloomberg.com/features/2016-baby-powder-cancer-lawsuits/

BizzyC

My favourite was the adds for the hands free soap dispenser, because soap dispensers are the most bacteria covered thing in your house apparently..... kinda just ignored the fact that immediately after touching them you'd be washing your hands with soap...

tea and coffee

Bottled water.
Energy drinks.
Protein bars/powder/whey etc for people who don't do sports/ fitness as a career.

Realt Dearg Sec

tea and coffee wrote: »

Allegedly so http://www.bloomberg.com/features/2016-baby-powder-cancer-lawsuits/

There again, tea and coffee cause cancer.

And cure it.

And so does everything else.

riclad

Condoms are used to prevent sti ,s ,
not just to avoid getting pregnant .
Go to a website on a phone,
it says download our app,
I Don,t need a 1000 apps on my phone for each website i might see once a month.
Most ads are for things you dont need ,luxury items ,
x brand of jeans etc
Buy a new laptop ,there,ll be at least 5 useless demo programs on it you don,t need .
There,s at least 5 apps on my phone i never use ,that cant be uninstalled .
I,ve never seen one ad on youtube that was for anything i wanted to buy .

eviltwin

Most products aimed at parents to be. Babies don't need much beyond food, clothes and nappies. All these additional must haves are just money rackets

Sleepy

I'm not sure if it's because I'm getting older, because I'm exposed to so much less television advertising in the modern era of streaming / downloading media content / series link with the ability to fast forward the ads or a mix of both but I'm certainly finding I want less and less "stuff". Having things that have no utility around the house actually irritates the hell out of me now.

smash

Sleepy wrote: »

Having things that have no utility around the house actually irritates the hell out of me now.

That's what your man drawer is for. And when it gets too packed, take a 2nd drawer.

um7y1h83ge06nx

Sleepy wrote: »

I'm not sure if it's because I'm getting older, because I'm exposed to so much less television advertising in the modern era of streaming / downloading media content / series link with the ability to fast forward the ads or a mix of both but I'm certainly finding I want less and less "stuff". Having things that have no utility around the house actually irritates the hell out of me now.

I feel the same. I want less things but those things I want I prefer to do research and get something decent that will last, rather than something more throw-away.

I often pause TV when a programme starts, do some small task around the house and then start watching 10 minutes later. That way I get some cleaning done and can then fast forward through the ads when they appear.

I find the whole marketing around shaving hilarious, all very cool and macho and the more blades and lube strips the better. Myself, I have a good quality DE razor and brush. A bigger outlay initially but cheaper in the long run as DE blades are dirt cheap and shaving soap last so long.

eeguy

Lorelei Nice Story wrote: »

I find the whole marketing around shaving hilarious, all very cool and macho and the more blades and lube strips the better. Myself, I have a good quality DE razor and brush. A bigger outlay initially but cheaper in the long run as DE blades are dirt cheap and shaving soap last so long.

Advertising to men is actually hilarious, especially beauty products.

Men don't have the same level of body issues as women, so everything has to be marketed as "cool" and "hi-tech".

Shampoo and face creams sold by footballers, razors and deodorant that will make you irresistible to women:rolleyes::rolleyes:.

I do love the caffeine shampoo ad with the line "German engineering for your hair"
What the hell does that even mean??

Sleepy

smash wrote: »

That's what your man drawer is for. And when it gets too packed, take a 2nd drawer.

5 years ago, I'd have agreed.

Now I'd just sort through the "useful stuff" drawer and dump 2/3rds of it once a year or so!

Gyalist

Pet sunscreen

What a ridiculous idea! Your pet instinctively knows to find shade when it's too hot and sunny.

Noel Coward my have written that only "Mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun" but the advertising and marketing industries seem determined to persuade the rest of the world into thinking that sunscreen is essential for your dog.

kierank01

this is a piss take:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUv7NQelex0

but as far as I can tell, this is not:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/man-sells-british-fresh-air-to-wealthy-chinese-elite-for-80-a-jar-a6857461.html

http://www.aethaer.com/

smash

Sleepy wrote: »

5 years ago, I'd have agreed.

Now I'd just sort through the "useful stuff" drawer and dump 2/3rds of it once a year or so!

Some day you might need the key to the shed you owned 10 years ago!

chillin117

http://www.aethaer.com/ Flashy website just selling air !

Capt'n Midnight

Too Incompetent to Operate a Blanket

many of these products were invented specifically for the elderly and physically disabled, people who legitimately could have problems with some of these tasks. The Snuggie, for instance, was originally meant for wheelchair users who often have problems regulating their body temperature - the design allows for the upper body and legs to both be fully covered without a corner getting caught in a wheel and without fabric bunching up in the back, which can cause bedsores. The "being too incompetent to use it" factor usually arises when the item is marketed to a general audience and it becomes necessary to convince able-bodied people that they can't live without these products. Thus the actors playing the part of the incompetent are smiling young people who clearly have no physical or mental disorders whatsoever.

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/TooIncompetentToOperateABlanket/Advertising

Realt Dearg Sec

Capt'n Midnight wrote: »

Too Incompetent to Operate a Blanket

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/TooIncompetentToOperateABlanket/Advertising

Reminds me if this collection of gifs from infomercials showing people making a hames of everyday tasks. Pretty crude example of advertisers creating a need where none exists.

Also hilarious...

http://m.imgur.com/gallery/YET5a

Wanderer78

thank god i ignore advertisements

chillin117

Apparently Female ''dribbling'' or urinary Incontinence is now rampant with the launch of ''Always'' disposable knickers with elasticated legs ! Sweet Jesus...

Esel

chillin117 wrote: »

Apparently Female ''dribbling'' or urinary Incontinence is now rampant with the launch of ''Always'' disposable knickers with elasticated legs ! Sweet Jesus...

George Best was great at dribbling. Some say he had rubber legs. Maybe there is an opening there for some entrepreneur?

valoren

The 'need' to remove the biofilm that develops on your teeth.
This biofilm is harmless but it was used by vendors of toothpaste as the reason why people needed their product.
When brushing teeth was introduced, it didn't really take off as much as the manufacturers had hoped for.
It wasn't in every house in America as they wanted it to be.

The realised that they needed to create a reason for people to brush their teeth.
So they marketed toothpaste as necessity to removed this 'Nasty' biofilm on people's teeth.
They succeeded because they created a habit loop;

created a trigger - you wake up and can feel this film on your teeth.
which lead to a routine - you brush your teeth with toothpaste to remove the film.
which leads to a reward - when you run your tongue along your teeth, the biofilm is gone, your teeth are clean.

It's similar to Febreze. It was designed by Procter & Gamble where they designed it to remove odours.
The product was successful in removing the odour but sales flat lined. Users couldn't smell anything after using Febreze.
A product that did it's job brilliantly just wasn't selling.
When the R&D team made the product scented, that's when it's popularity exploded, it makes a billion dollars at a clip annually today. People had a need to know that something was clean. They could only know that when they could smell that it was 'clean'.

Fuzzytrooper

B.A._Baracus wrote: »

Another aspect of Apple is their macs. Designers and coders have been 'sold' on the idea that if you are serious about your profession you need a mac... even tho both pc and mac have programs to achieve the same result. Oh no, skill and experience isn't important... it's what platform you use

Like seals clapping for fish to be honest.

I would VERY much dispute this. I am a coder and in my experience 99% of devs use windows and or linux based systems. Literally the only dev I know that perfers Macs is or at least was an Apple app developer.

I am quite the Microsoft fanboy primarily due to Visual Studio and the .Net technology stack. Approx half my work is in C# and Xaml.

DanMurphy

Old Time Remedies c 1930s Ireland (quoting an old guy I once knew, so don't blame Dan Murphy if it doesn't work)

'There's nowt skin disorder what cannot be cured using copious amounts of hot, runny calf-scutter applied liberally to the affected area.'

'Good for Gout too; simply stand and soak the bare feet in a hot, fresh calf patty in the field, shifting your weight from one foot, to the other, thus making sure the warm, soothing liquid bubbles up between the toes. Stay there till the scutter turns cold.'

'For men afflicted by pre-mature baldness, forget the effin' expensive chemist shop, pansy cures, and fancy potions ; try the calf - scutter, BUT it MUST be straight from the source, (or as near to the source as possible?)'

'For the cursed razor-rash, a light application before bed is sufficient, letting the healing 'semi-liquid' solidify on the face overnight when it can safely be peeled off like a face-mask come morning.'

ScumLord

I wonder is there something to calf scutter, if he went to India he'd hear the exact same things, they use cow dung as a cure all too. Maybe there's something in the bacteria? Although I think the Indians dry and cure the dung into a powder.

quickbeam

valoren wrote: »

The 'need' to remove the biofilm that develops on your teeth.
This biofilm is harmless but it was used by vendors of toothpaste as the reason why people needed their product.
When brushing teeth was introduced, it didn't really take off as much as the manufacturers had hoped for.
It wasn't in every house in America as they wanted it to be.

The realised that they needed to create a reason for people to brush their teeth.
So they marketed toothpaste as necessity to removed this 'Nasty' biofilm on people's teeth.
They succeeded because they created a habit loop;

created a trigger - you wake up and can feel this film on your teeth.
which lead to a routine - you brush your teeth with toothpaste to remove the film.
which leads to a reward - when you run your tongue along your teeth, the biofilm is gone, your teeth are clean.

I'd agree that the toothpaste manufacturers engineered the "need" for teeth to be white when they're naturally an ivory colour. Also, nothing worse than seeing people whose front teeth are all bright white, and back teeth, which you can see when they smile, are normal-ivory coloured. Or inventing halitosis to sell mouth-wash.

But this "biofilm" you talk of - is that not just plaque? At least if Wikipedia is any indication. Are you saying plaque is actually good or harmless, to have on your teeth? If so, that's a new one on me....