It’s always easier to sell a product that fits into our current culture.
That’s one of the first lessons of marketing, says Joel Goldhar, a professor at IIT’s graduate school of business.
It’s also a perfect explanation of why we are such a great market for fad diets and weight-loss products.
Even though fat-free foods and other get-thin-quick products of the past didn’t make us a lean nation, we’re still willing to believe that new diets and new diet products will come through on their promises.
Today, it’s almost impossible to miss the attention on obesity. Every week seems to bring news that we’re getting fatter and fatter.
This month, the government issued an alarm that obesity may overtake tobacco as a leading cause of preventable death in the U.S. Almost 130 million people–or 64 percent of us–are overweight or obese, according to government statistics.
We know we have a problem, and we want to fix it. We know that nutritionists recommend a balanced diet and exercise to lose weight.
But it’s hard to find time in our busy schedules to cook healthy meals and commit to regular workouts. That’s where some of these weight-loss strategies come in.
Low-sugar, low-carb, low-calorie, low-fat–buying products that advertise this way fills an emotional need in us, Goldhar says. Purchasing these foods makes us feel like we’re doing something good for ourselves.
It also fits into our culture’s desire for a quick fix. We want what the magazines promise us–the ability to “LOSE 10 POUNDS FAST!” and to have the weight come off “WITHOUT EXERCISING!”
Another selling point for these products is that they make choosing what to eat easier.
There’s a lot of confusion lately about what’s good for you–should you be following the glycemic index, eliminating all carbohydrates from your diet or following the FDA pyramid? If you’re counting carbs, should you count net carbs or total carbs? What about sugar substitutes?
It’s just so much easier to buy the products that come right out and say they’re good for us.
