10 Best Training Bracelet

Best Training Bracelet in 2023

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But Power Balance Holograms Do Really Improve My Balance!

Power Balance wristbands promise to promote balance, strength, and flexibility. When and how did holograms become so effective at "optimizing the body's natural energy flow?"

The weirdest thing isn't that Power Balance wristbands don't really work. All it takes is common sense to realize that a holographic sticker cannot improve your balance, strength, and flexibility. (If it were that simple, wouldn't we all be professional athletes?) The most peculiar thing is that the ACCC, a prominent authority of the Australian government, found it necessary to warn consumers about this product. Shouldn't most individuals just know that the whole concept of Power Balance does not make any logical sense?

Why anyone would believe them

The answer is simple: in modern society, we do not look to scientific evidence or research studies to make decisions about purchasing things like Power Balance wristbands. Despite the fact that there is no scientific evidence to support the efficacy of these wristbands, they have flown off of the shelves at just under $30 retail each! Power Balance has relied on a highly effective viral marketing strategy to expose the masses to the Power Balance product and its big promises, says Opinion Change Blog. Consumers, eager to stay up-to-date with the latest fad, quickly jumped on board.

Power Balance has also appealed to one of consumers' greatest weaknesses: celebrity testimonials. NBA player Shaquille O'Neal reports on the Power Balance website, "I don't really do a lot of testimonials, but this [Power Balance] really works!" This (presumably paid) testimonial also comes with a video to make it that much more believable. Shaq's praises are also accompanied by those of paddleboarder Ekolu Kalama, baseball player Scott Kazmir, hockey player Teemu Selanne, and F1 driver Rubens Barichello. Power Balance wants us to believe that if it worked for these athletes, it must work for us too!

Despite the progress of making education available to the masses in the past centuries, we still do not always use our minds when buying the latest fads, especially if our favorite cultural icons are buying them too!

But what about the people who were really helped?

Through their popularity, Power Balance has gained quite a number of believers who genuinely think that they observe the reported effects. While a Power Balance marketing team might argue that these effects come from the hologram redirecting the flow of human energy, it is actually a demonstration of the power of the human mind. Known scientifically as the placebo effect, this phenomenon occurs when patients report and exhibit improvement when they think they are being treated even though they are really not. Normally, these patients are given an inert sugar pill. A recent Time magazine article has even alleged that this placebo effect occurs even when patients know that they are being given a fake drug. This complex effect of thinking may explain why many perceive that their Power Balance holograms give them improved balance, even though their common sense tells them otherwise. They hear of the anecdotes and the celebrity testimonials, and their mind fills in the rest.

Power Balance's success -- albeit surprising -- speaks to the nature of human consumerism. Even in our modern era in which we have achieved scientific milestones, we are still immune to the power of viral marketing that we perpetuate through the unavoidable placebo effect.

Ultimately, we must begin to learn to apply our sophisticated ability to think to our instincts as consumers. Only then can we avoid being the gullible owners of Power Balance wristbands. Only then can we truly be smart shoppers.

Sources:

Nathan Mawby, "Power wristbands banned and refunds ordered by ACCC," Herald Sun.

Jesus Diaz, "PowerBalance Admits Their Wristbands Are a Scam," Gizmodo.

Commonwealth of Australia, "Australian Competition amp; Consumer Commission," Commonwealth of Australia.

Nicola Martin, "Marketing the Placebo Effect: A Power Balance Example," Opinion Change Blog.

Maia Szalavitz, "Placebos Work Even If You Know They're Fake: But How?" Time Magazine.