Sunday, October 26, 2008

Bendaroos and Retractable Awnings...

Just a few of the items my five year old son thinks we need to purchase after viewing these products on  TV infomercials.


He is really fascinated by bendaroo's.



"Guess what mom? You can turn an ordinary bottle into a fashion model."

Living in the desert heat we have two built in covered porches in the backyard. Regardless of this, my son is convinced we need a retractable awning- the big seller for him:

"Mom, it opens and closes in under 60 seconds"



I don't really want my kids watching a lot of TV, but it is fascinating how influential and convincing these commercials can be even to the smallest viewer, who technically isn't really even a consumer yet. These ads are featured on kids cartoon programming... funny to hear him parrot the information, but also a little scary. 

Seriously, there is something really wrong about being mesmerized late at night by an ad to buy something that you don't really need that will soon be discounted at a drugstore (as seen on TV) and later be readily available at garage sales far and wide.

I guess the real question is how to responsibly introduce children to concepts of money and responsible spending in this crazy economic time. I hope to be a good role model and use these moments as learning opportunities to discuss money and what it means to spend responsibly for our family.

I remember buying an Ab Roller in the nineties which promised fabulous results and a firm stomach. I used it a few times and when it was taking up too much space later gave it to Goodwill.

Have you ever bought something from an infomercial? Did you use it? Did it live up to your expectations? Leave me a comment and let me know!  

6 comments:

Momisodes said...

Whatever you do....Don't let him watch the PANCAKE PUFF pan infomercial!

My toddler made it 2 seconds into the commercial and asked for one. Even I'm considering it!!!

Anonymous said...

I AGREE - these commercials should not be played during children's programs.

The one thing I did buy thru an infomerical was the
Shark cordless vac which I really like.

I now go online and put in the product name and reviews. This has prevented quite a few purchases
when I thought something was too good to be true.

If I do see something interesting, I wait for it to come to my local Target. Therefore, if it doesn't meet the hype, I just take it back to Target.

Anonymous said...

Have you ever bought something from an infomercial?

Nope.

I've found the quickest cure for my kids is to simply say: Sure, you can have that, as long as you pay for it yourself.

That seems to pretty much separate the wheat from the chaff.

With respect to those commercials, we started telling the kids at an early age the exact truth about the products. Then when grandma sent the BloPens for Christmas (they worked for 12 minutes) that reinforced the message.

BTW, Happy Birthday (Saturday)

Elle said...

ok - well proactive really did help me and my skin a few years back - but other than that I never believe infomercials. But because of Proactive's success - I am always watching the comercials thinking - "could this be the other one true thing on these shows - maybe it is as good as proactive?"
But I have never bought one to find out!

Genny said...

I don't think I've ever bought anything from an infomercial, but I admit being "captivated" by a few now and then. LOL.

Anonymous said...

I think infomercials can be either viable or bogus. There are many that would sell the consumer pure junk.

There are also several examples of wonderful products that come from infomercials: BareEscentuals makeup, ProActiv, Philosophy Skin Care --just to name a few.

Granted, I did not order any of these from watching the infomercials alone. They are also carried at brick and mortar shops of solid reputation.

This being said, take each one individually and with a grain of salt. Do research before buying and pick and choose wisely. If it seems too good to be true- a lot of times that's the case!