Beauty Companies Using Ugly Tactics
Posted by Deborah Read on Thursday 28 July 2011 in Health and Beauty
Beauty company L'Oreal has been fined for airbrushing photographs in order to make their adverts more glossy and appealing. Watchdogs found that the images were therefore misleading and stopped them from being used. This is not the first time L'Oreal have had adverts pulled. An advert for mascara featuring Penelope Cruz was pulled as it emerged that she wore fake eyelashes in the advert and therefore the effects were not just the mascara. So why do beauty companies use airbrushing for their images? The beauty industry is a very glamorous one, its models need to be flawless in order to attract consumers. Pictures of influential and powerful women are often used and these women need to look their best. L'Oreal did argue that the images used were touched up, but that the products could achieve the results they promised. Glossy magazines are famous for using air brushing and touch up techniques in order to make celebrities and models look thinner, prettier and altogether better. Consumers are bombarded by these images daily. Whilst most consumers know that images are airbrushed, do they realise that adverts are too? When it comes to adverts, it pays to read the small print. In many mascara adverts for many different beauty brands found in magazines, there is small print stating that 'lash enhancers' were also used. This small print is often tucked almost into the spine of the magazine so many consumers do not check it. The other thing is not to believe what you're looking at. Most images are airbrushed nowadays, it's a simple fact of life. Find beauty products which work for you and stick with them, and take advertising campaigns with a pinch of salt. Get Beauty vouchers here! What do you think about air brushed images? Send us your thoughts!
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