One thing in cosmetic advertising that gets consumers and reporters every time is the claim about “our studies show…”.

“Our studies show” is a major attention-getting technique used in cosmetic advertising and press releases. Studies are great and vital to understanding how skin works and what helps skin work better, but not all studies are created equal and one study is not definitive of anything, and a study paid for by the company selling the product is ALWAYS circumspect. It’s not that the study may not be valid, but the bias is present from the beginning and that must always be taken into consideration. Though if it was really a valid study it would appear in a science journal of some kind but that is almost NEVER the case.

More to the point, any legitimate research would include the negative studies as well or compare other products from other lines (not just the one paying from the company paying for the study). No one has even seen a cosmetic company tell you about the studies they did where the product tested didn’t work or if other products from other companies worked as well. From my perspective that would be even more fascinating information but it will be a cold day in hell before that kind of data is ever offered up by a cosmetics company.

There are lots of great examples of how media hype can generate tremendous interest in (and resulting sales of) a product. It reminds me of the frenzy after ads for StriVectin-SD appeared in Parade magazine, with the tag line “Better than Botox!” Beauty chat rooms were quick to crown this serum as an anti-aging powerhouse, simply on the basis of media attention alone. It’s not that this serum isn’t worth purchasing, but I wouldn’t recommend anyone consider it over tretinoin or several other serums whose formulas outpace this one.

And don’t get me started on how the “studies” are designed to create the results they are going after.

Think about it, even the cosmetic companies bragging about their studies don’t believe their own claims or they wouldn’t be selling dozens of other products making the same promises about getting rid of wrinkles. If the one they launched worked what are all the others for?