Spotting Unrealistic Advertising

Spotting Unrealistic Advertising

• Definition of unrealistic advertising:
• Unrealistic Ads: Serious Statistics!
• The danger of unrealistic ads.
• The most common methods of unrealistic advertisements.
• How to detect unrealistic ads?

Definition of unrealistic advertising:

Advertisements are the most important and prominent link in a world characterized by extreme acceleration and easy access to various products and services, starting from traditional advertisements, whether television or spread in the streets, to the torrent of advertisements that flow through various social media, to which everyone is exposed without stopping.

Because advertisements often promise to provide a product or service that makes life easier in achieving what the recipient desires, distinguishing between the real and the unrealistic has become a necessary need to protect everyone (the consumer, companies, the economic sector, and the economy in general), especially since the level at which advertisements are presented has become characterized by progress in terms of image, promises, and the use of psychological manipulation methods that make any advertisement, no matter what it is, an ideal advertisement, and even creates the perception among those who receive it that it represents an opportunity that can never be missed.

Unrealistic advertising is defined as: marketing information or visual content about a product or service that is misleading and unrealistic, and is presented under inaccurate claims, whether in terms of appearance or actual function, with false promises, whether in words or using fictitious practical examples, so that the consumer is then driven to either purchase or use, which is followed by habit and addiction that causes accumulated losses.

Unrealistic Ads: Serious Statistics!

Ad fraud remains a major challenge for the digital advertising industry, costing advertisers billions of dollars each year.

According to Statista, the estimated cost of digital ad fraud worldwide will rise from $84 billion to approximately $172 billion between 2023 and 2028.

JUNIPER Research confirms that the expected amount for 2028 contains important facts, most notably that the amount of money spent on fake ads in 2028 will represent 23% of the overall advertising volume, an increase from the number of fake ads in 2023, when they reached 22% of total advertising spending in general.

Also, the JUNIPER report confirms that North America will be the most exposed to fake ads in 2028 at 42%, followed by the Far East and China at 20%, followed by Western Europe at 17%, while Africa and the Middle East will represent 3%.

The danger of unrealistic ads:

Fake, misleading or unreal ads are not only a danger to the recipient, but they may expose the advertisers themselves to many problems, which cast their negative shadows on the national economy on the one hand, and the failure to deliver the real ad to the beneficiary and the loss of the real opportunity to achieve real benefits or profits.

The danger of exposure to such ad’s increases, either due to clicking on them directly by the user, or indirectly through viral programs or clicking by mistake, which later prompts the user to avoid exposure to any ad, and even to doubt a future ad even if it is real. Thus, the danger that these ads may entail will lead to things that may happen according to the following sequence:

The most common methods of unrealistic advertisements:

Unrealistic advertisements are designed in a professional manner that seeks to attract the recipient's attention and convince him of the necessity and importance of what the advertisement offers and even create a need that the recipient did not think of before watching the advertisement.

And knowing the most prominent methods adopted by the designers of these advertisements can contribute to sparing the recipient the largest amount of these advertisements that everyone is exposed to daily.

1. The exaggeration formula:

Advertisers often talk about what they offer in an exaggerated manner, using "guaranteed results", "immediate transformation" or "100% effective", and these phrases are often used without providing any scientific evidence, and direct practical evidence is sufficient, for people whose claims cannot be verified as a result of their use of the advertisement content (see the article Fake Gurus vs. Real Experts in Financial Markets).

2. Using exaggerated visuals:

Unrealistic ads are characterized by an exaggerated visual image with an interest in its details that aim to distort reality or present it in a way that exceeds what it actually presents, such as using a price pattern for a specific asset in an optimal way, or a very rapid change in the performance of the price of an asset according to the analysis presented in the visual ad.

3. Intended storytelling:

Although successful ads are characterized by short duration, some ads, specifically those related to success stories and wealth, may be presented in the form of long visual content that displays a success story that contains a dramatic line with the aim of manipulating the psyche and thinking, and adopting the need to try this is what the ad offers driven by emotions, and these ads even avoid talking about everything that the listener does not want to hear, such as promises of permanent profits and always avoiding losses (see the article Why Losses Are Part of the Journey).

4. Fake comparisons:

Some unrealistic advertisers resort to making unrealistic comparisons between what they offer and what competitors offer, by fabricating their own success stories compared to the failure stories of those who used competitors’ products, without any substantial or official evidence, but rather using actors who review what they lost with competitors or present their experience of success with the entity that issued the Unrealistic advertisement.

5. Emotional manipulation:

One of the most prominent features of unrealistic advertising is the use of words that manipulate the recipient's feelings, creating a feeling of insecurity if he does not use the content of the advertisement, or imagining comfort and success if he uses this product. Often, the link between what the misleading advertisement offers and the ability to achieve personal success and endless happiness is used or even referring to the scarcity or limited period of the advertisement content to create what is called "fear of missing out (FOMO)".

6. Using unilateral points of view:

Some advertisements may resort to using scientific bodies, but to prove the point of view of the advertisement and the benefits it presents, without presenting other points of view as an attempt at dialogue.

In fact, some advertisements may not discuss any risk, such as using: An official statistical body in a certain country indicates that trading does not involve any losses at the beginning of the year, without completing the talk of that body or explaining its point of view.

7. Not paying attention to necessary words/phrases:

Many fake ads do not focus on necessary words in their ads, such as: This company is licensed in some countries and not in many countries, and even assuming that these phrases are written, they are written in very small font, or they are scrolled through very quickly.

8. Dealing with consumer reviews:

Some advertisers show great interest in showing reviews of ads in a way that exaggerates what they offer, while some advertisers deal with negative reviews in a completely unprofessional manner, either in terms of response or neglect.

How to detect unrealistic ads?

After learning about the concept of fake or unrealistic advertising and reviewing the most famous methods used in presenting fake advertising, the most famous and common methods will be reviewed in quickly detecting these ads and protecting oneself and money from falling victim to them.

1. Check the advertising channel:

There are many channels used to display an advertisement, especially with the multiplicity of social media, but using traditional means such as public advertisements on TV stations or well-known and famous official websites, is somewhat of a reason to build trust in the advertisement, while advertisements via social media still need more care to verify the party presenting that advertisement, such as reviewing the advertised page and reviewing its information, reviewing its contents and reviews, what is written in the comments on its posts, and the party behind that page or group.

2. Monitor advertising errors:

Regardless of the advertisements that are presented professionally, fake advertisers may neglect some errors, such as spelling errors, or the absence of a clear trademark, or not displaying the advertiser's information in a complete and clear manner.

3. Make sure the advertisement is licensed:

Some advertisements are related to a service or product that requires obtaining licenses from official authorities, which must be clear in terms of the clear and complete name of the license, the date of this license, and the full name of the licensing party (name, place, and jurisdiction).

4. Make a realistic comparison:

Some ads promise quick wealth and life change without any effort, by using the product without any training, or without incurring any losses, or through simple training that is not expensive at all compared to the returns it achieves, so making initial comparisons between promises and results may help avoid risks.

5. Keep personal information:

Some ads may request personal information, such as full name, profession, salary, email, or social media account, without this request having a clear justification or reason, which may represent a sign of skepticism about the content of the ad.

6. Check the content of the ad before subscribing:

Some ads offer the ability to review the advertiser's services and products through a website, but carefully examining the site and reviewing the products, and ensuring that this site has official licenses and professional content in reviewing what it offers is a matter of utmost importance, to ensure the seriousness of the advertiser, and sometimes the communication and contact team for this site is examined, and sometimes it is recommended to actually contact and know the advertiser's professionalism and the accuracy of his information.

7. Visit the advertiser's location:

Visiting the headquarters of the company that advertises is very important for the consumer. There is no harm in making the visit and holding meetings that range from simple to in-depth, depending on the goals, personality and size of each consumer.

8. Ask the licensing and responsible authorities:

Some advertisements relate to products that require financial or legal licenses, so after being exposed to this type of advertisement, it is preferable to contact or communicate with the licensing authorities to verify the truth of what the advertiser indicated in his advertisement.

9. Read the terms and conditions carefully:

The terms and conditions are the charter of dealing between the advertiser and the recipient of the advertisement, so be sure to read and understand them, and ask about anything that is not clear to you regarding those terms or conditions.

Conclusion:

It is clear from the above how important it is to identify misleading or fake advertising for the consumer, real companies and the national economy, given the waste of money these advertisements represent for real advertisements, and the waste of recipients' money that fake advertisements display, which consequently results in losses for the state in general.

This article is very important for everyone, as many advertisements aim to make money and obtain profits regardless of the content they provide, whether it is real or fake, or even if this service is provided through licensed and responsible methods, or fraudulently in providing it in a way that does not allow the opportunity to pursue them financially or legally.