I remember the exact moment in my childhood when I realized, while reading a flyer, that nobody would ever spend money

solely to tell me they wanted to give me something for nothing. It's a much more vivid memory than the (related) parental Santa talk.

Yep, "up to and more" is one of the heinously misleading/dishonest phrases that just totally pisses me off.

brilliant!

convinced that the skill employed in advertising approaches that of politicians.

exceeds; politicians employ marketing and image consultant professionals.

always enjoyed "the more you spend, the more you save"

::Plurk Frontpage Promotion::

nailed it right on the nose

Perhaps you need to watch "extreme couponing" That said, our local stores don't allow any of that.

Reminds me of all those people who drive from Toronto to Buffalo to buy cheap stuff made in China...

...and then have to pay duty coming back into Canada.

"There is no <product> more effective than ours"... and three companies claiming that for the same basic product.

well, duh. They are all selling the same underlying formula with different bottles and food coloring on the surface.

the axes should be reversed in the third panel.

jjacek doesn't understand how marketers "work" (you want *logic*?)

But this is a logical analysis of marketing. The analysis should be logical, even if the subject isn't.

Are you not aware of this, m3g4n3kun? I learned that (with different words) in MBA school.

Or, to put it a different way, why do some products increase sales when you raise the price?

But, to be fair, they manipulate them for the agency fee. The client gets the potential commercial gain.