With the high number of people trying hard to lose weight, said miracle working solutions sell incredibly well. Ab Circle Pro has to refund $25 million to consumers after FTC ruled it used deceptive advertising to sell it abdominal-exercise device.
When selling a weight loss device the key words must be easy and fast. Not many sellers admit that losing weight is actually challenging and takes a lot of work. It’s not the sort of advertising that sells. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ruled out that Ab Circle Pro marketers used deceptive advertising into convincing consumers into buying their abdominal-exercise device.
According to the Ab Circle Pro advertising, all you had to do to “melt inches and pounds” was to work out on the device just three minutes a day. “You can either do 30 minutes of abs and cardio or just three minutes a day. The choice is yours” reads one of the infomercials for the Ab Circle Pro.
The device enjoyed the endorsement of fitness celebrity Jennifer Nicole Lee. The fitness star says she managed to lose 80 pounds by using the Ab Circle Pro and she got crowned Ms. Bikini diva “all thanks to” it. She claimed that by using the abdominal exercise device she went from mom of two to fitness model.
The deceptive advertising campaign ran from Marc 2009 to May 2010 on TV, in stores, print ads and online. The Ab Circle Pro abdominal exercise device sold between $200 and $250 in infomercials and even steeper at other retailers. The ads told consumers three minutes on the Ab Circle Pro each day was equal to 100 sit-ups and would result in shedding 10 pounds in two weeks.
The device’s marketers have agreed to settle with the FTC and refund consumers between $15 million and $25 million in sales, based on how many buyers want their money back.
“Just three minutes a day won’t make you thin” argued the FTC. “Weight loss is hard work, and telling consumers otherwise is deceptive” said David Vladeck with the FTC consumer protection bureau.
“The FTC reminds marketers that they should think twice before promising a silver-bullet solution to a health problem – whether it involves losing weight or curing cancer” added David Vladeck, FTC director.
