Updated every Monday!   Subscribe to free weekly newsletter.

The Next Miracle Health Food: Cinnamon?

To listen to the spice company, McCormick, you would think that cinnamon was the next great health food:

“Did you know that this ancient spice taken from the inner bark of tropical trees is an antioxidant powerhouse? Cinnamon has one of the highest antioxidant levels of any spice – and even more than many foods. You’ll find as many antioxidants in 1 teaspoon of cinnamon as a full cup of pomegranate juice or ½ cup of blueberries.” — McCormick website

Wow, sounds impressive… until you begin to think about it.

*MOUSE PRINT: From the cinnamon nutrition label on McCormick’s website…

This is a good example of a company hyping a nutritional benefit that has no practical significance because of the small amount of cinnamon that is actually in a typical portion of most foods flavored with the spice.

Share this story:

 

ADV
Updated every Monday!   Subscribe to free weekly newsletter.

Spirit Airlines: They Believe in Full Disclosure?

Spirit Airlines advertised a $1 airfare sale a few months back. One dollar for a one-way flight? Two dollars roundtrip? Impossible!

Of course, the little asterisk indicates that taxes and fees are additional. How much extra? You have to look in three places on their website to find all the extra costs, which we consolidated in the chart below.

*MOUSE PRINT:

The quoted fare does not include the following taxes and fees that may apply to your air travel:

– September 11th Security Fee: A September 11th Security Fee of $2.50 applies per enplanement originating at a U.S. airport up to $10 per roundtrip.
– Domestic Segment Tax: A segment tax of $3.70 per U.S. domestic flight segment (a flight segment is defined as one takeoff and landing).
– Passenger Facility Charges (PFC): Up to $18 per round trip per passenger in local airport charges.
– Passenger Usage Fee: Passenger Usage Fee of $8 per traveling customer per one way travel applies to all reservations with the exception of those bookings created directly at Spirit Airlines’ airport locations.
– To view and obtain these fares you must be logged in as a member of the Spirit Airlines $9 Fare Club — if not already enrolled, please go to www.spiritair.com for details on how to become a member of the Spirit Airlines $9 Fare Club. [Membership costs $39.95]
– Overhead carry-on luggage checked at the gate: $45

So how much could a $2 roundtrip fare wind up costing, assuming non-stop flights in both directions, with one carry-on and no checked luggage? If you add up everything listed above, including the $9 club membership fee, the total is a whopping $178.35 for what was advertised as a $1 fare each way!

It seems if any company really believed in full disclosure, they would not advertise come-on fares that bear no relationship to the actual charges the customer will face.

Share this story:

 

ADV
Updated every Monday!   Subscribe to free weekly newsletter.

Don’t Let the Juxtaposition of Deals Fool You – Part 2

Last week, we demonstrated how two claims placed side-by-side — “four times faster Internet” and a $35 monthly price tag — had nothing to do with one another.

This week, we look at an offer from Sleepy’s:

Wow, pay a little as $99 for a mattress, and when you buy the set, you get a free HDTV.

Not so fast.

*MOUSE PRINT:

According to a salesperson contacted at a local Sleepy’s store, you cannot get the free TV with the advertised $99 mattress even if a boxspring is purchased with it. The fine print in the ad limits the offer to queen and king-size models of certain brands only, and apparently not including sale items.

Retailers and regulators literally and figuratively need to a draw a line when adjacent offers have nothing to do with one another.

Share this story:

 

ADV