I’ve been hip deep in boxes today and contemplating my poo flinging activities and have come to the realization that I’m not alone in my distaste of the marketing of Juice Plus or supplements pertaining to the fitness/weight loss industry. There are disillusioned JuicePlus customers and others out there that are so unimpressed with the whole sham that they’ve set up a dedicated blog. It’s called www.juiceplusresearch.blogspot.com . Suggest that if you want to find out more about the product you check out this link and then make up your mind.
I’ve been thinking about why the marketing of such supplements irritates me and it really touches on the fact that such companies and people are exploiting the fact that many people are searching for hope, especially when it comes to their health, weight control and overall vitality. If it were as simple as “eat less and exercise more”, nobody would ever have a problem with their weight for a start.
Yet, the health and fitness industry, which should be aimed at improving the consumer’s quality of life is driven by blatant greed, misrepresentation and false illusion. It seems that any opportunity to self promote and make money is way more important than really helping anyone.
Examples of such exploitation include Terry White Chemist’s Tony Ferguson Program. In fact, I disagree so vehemently with the principles of it that I refuse to work in a Terry White Pharmacy. The same goes for the smaller pharmacy meal replacement programs – if I’ve ever been asked, my ethics have always won – I explain how these programs work and the pros and the cons and then let the consumer choice – but it is really buyer beware. I’m proud to have talked many would be customers out of the diet shake merry go round towards more fruit and vegetables and lean protein.
In the supplement industry I hate it when bloggers who have sponsorships continually try to pimp the company’s supplements. Even worse when they use their children as marketing tools, the latest one I read being “my toddler loves my X brand protein shakes” – firstly the not so subtle marketing is extremely irritating and secondly, what is a child doing having a protein shake in the first place and then attributing the child’s size to the supplementation?!? By all means, irritate me senseless with your own pimping, but once you start using your children to further your own interests and line your pockets – such blatant exploitation leaves me feeling sick to the stomach. Of course, this is my opinion and not all will agree with it but it’s worth thinking about how you market your product to your consumers. I highly doubt now that I will ever purchase Next Generation Supplements as a result of the incessant “marketing” from the West.
The unfortunate thing is that there are certain supplements out there that can be really beneficial for all sorts of health conditions. The difficulty is in being able to find reliable information without bias. It’s worth looking for a health professional that has no bias towards a supplement company. It’s similar to finding an independent financial advisor who does not receive commissions for selling certain financial products.
I’m going to be splitting this blog into two shortly – one to share personal anecdotes and the second one to provide reliable health and fitness info without bias – and to fling poo with a slingshot where indicated.
