Cosmetics advertising works by using several different techniques that encourage its target market to buy specific cosmetics and skincare products. The effectiveness of the advertising typically depends on convincing people that the product being advertised actually can improve their appearance and that they, the audience, are in need of appearance enhancement. Depending on regulations regarding advertising claims in the jurisdiction where the advertising is featured, the cosmetics manufacturers and their advertising producers may use several methods to persuade individuals to make a purchase. These can include "angel dusting" and medical claims, as well as promises of general lifestyle enhancement.
Many people are acutely aware that their personal appearance can have a significant effect on how they are regarded and treated by others. Advertising can play on these concerns by encouraging the target market to be concerned about signs of aging or making themselves more attractive to the opposite sex. For example, some cosmetics campaigns may emphasize the ability of a product to reduce wrinkles, giving users a more youthful appearance. In a time of high unemployment, in which older workers may be concerned about age discrimination, this type of advertising can be very effective.
Some cosmetics companies formulate their products in a way that can actually enhance the effectiveness of advertising. One well-known technique is called angel dusting. Unscrupulous cosmetics manufacturers will add a tiny amount of a well-known, and perhaps even effective, cosmetic ingredient to a product so that the ingredient name can be used in advertising campaigns. The fact that the ingredient is completely ineffective is not mentioned to potential consumers of the product. It is then left to the consumer to determine the actual concentration of the ingredient and the efficacy of the cosmetic.
Another effective component of cosmetics advertising is the blurring of distinctions between cosmetics and pharmaceutical drugs. The term cosmeceutical has been used to describe products that can have both medical and cosmetic benefits. The trouble is that, in some jurisdictions, the term is not regulated and may be used in advertising to make a product seem like a legitimate healthcare treatment when it has not undergone the same type of rigorous testing normally required of pharmaceuticals if they are to be sold to customers. Advertising may further confuse the issue by making references to clinical studies, including testimonials from doctors, and in some cases even using photographs or videos of doctors or actors and models dressed like doctors in the advertising.