Infomercials have come of age, a rapid-growth industry that claims to have weeded out the snake-oil salesmen and been left with... well, perhaps snake charmers.
The overriding theme of the recent National Infomercial Marketing Association convention was "respect" and "integrity." Industry analysts tossed out statistics that suggest infomercials are poised to become a $1 billion-a-year business."We don't have to apologize for existing anymore," said Helene Blake, executive director of NIMA. "We've worked very hard to raise the level of integrity in this industry. We understand that it behooves us to make sure the consumer is not deceived."
The so-called infomercial is a 30-minute television commercial disguised as a talk show, documentary or feature profile that hypes a given convenience device, cosmetic paint, diet-exercise regimen, fitness gizmo, educational program, spiritual guidance mechanism, fashion accessory or food preparation system.
At any given moment - particularly on a weekend morning - as many as a dozen infomercials could be airing simultaneously, all told, 175 different ones this year.
And the new riff is that infomercials have gone legitimate, chock full of genuine stars like Cher, Dionne Warwick and John Tesh, and boasting advanced production values that cost anywhere from $100,000 to $500,000 to put together.
Infomercials even have developed to the point that they have their own awards show. The second annual Infomercial Awards presented honors in a dozen categories, including Best Female Presenter, Best Documercial (infomercial in a documentary format), Best Storymercial (in a fictional format) and Infomercial of the Year.
Indeed, things have changed a lot in the four years since infomercials formed their very own marketing body.
Those who have helped make the infomercial industry boom seem to understand their potential if the pitch contains the elements of subtlety and profundity. Viewers have responded to many of the pitches like... well, like they aren't even commercials.
While long-form TV advertising was common in the 1950s and early '60s and has been around in some form (such as evangelical pitches) throughout television history, there was roughly a 20-year gap for infomercials between the Kennedy and Reagan administrations.
Infomercials virtually vanished because of intense regulation, only to be reborn in 1984 riding the coattails of President Reagan's deregulatory guidelines. Now, they flourish as never before.
While an element of overhype will probably never leave the youthful infomercial industry, Mike Levey, who hosts and produces "Amazing Discoveries," insists that many of the growing pains are behind it.
"Two or three years ago, we were still trying to find a different name for what we did," Levey said. "Instead of `infomercial,' we were trying to call it a `program-length advertisement' or something.
"Now we're proud to say we're in the infomercial business. It's a name that's even respected these days on Wall Street."
There have been bad days, for the industry, however. According to the Federal Trade Commission, recent actions against infomercial producers have included:
- National Media Corp. agreed in March to pay $275,000 stemming from charges that they made unsubstantiated claims for a number of products, including Crystal Powers, which claimed to be a cure for breast cancer.
- The Federal Trade Commission ruled in April that Del Dotto's Cash Flow System ads, which ran several years ago, contained misleading statements and that David Del Dotto Enterprises failed to deliver promised merchandise or refunds.
- Levey agreed to pay $275,000 in April for having, several years ago, made misleading claims about EuroTrym Diet Patch, the Foliplexx baldness cure, an impotence cure called Y-Bron and the Magic Wand hand-held kitchen mixer.
- Synchronal Corp. agreed in June to pay $3.5 million for misleading claims about the baldness remedy Omexin and cellulite cure called the Anushka Body Contouring Program.
But no one at the convention wanted to dwell on the negatives. Helping move the infomercial from laugh-o-matic sideshow to proven sales tool was the decision to upgrade the production values from the old Ginsu Knife and baldness remedy days. Even the famed Ron Popeil, chairman of Ronco Inc. and the man who gave the world spray-on hair, has gone the slick route.
Another element was the formation of a marketing body that helped organize the business and guard against product deception - even if it's scary to think that the current infomercial crop has survived anything resembling a quality-control process.
"We're aware that any company or individual who advertises a bogus product can get us all shut down," NIMA's Blake said.
Third has been the sudden interest in infomercials by such corporate entities as Estee Lauder, Revlon and high-profile names like Ross Perot (who can forget his prime-time, statistic-laden presidential campaign spots last year?) and Barry Diller, whose purchase of the QVC shopping network was seen as helping the entire business of Direct Response Television.
What this all means for TV viewers is a more sophisticated pitch that's long on entertainment and celebrity endorsement and short on hard-sell.
And while only one of every 10 infomercials produced even makes it onto the air - and only 15 percent of those make money - it's an advertising reality that consumers had better get used to. With 500 channels said to be around the corner, Susan Powter is liable to get her own network.
Scary?
"I don't see why it should be," said Ray Manzella, a Los Angeles-based personal manager who specializes in infomercial packaging.
"This is good, solid television. Sure, it's trying to sell you something, and there remains something of a sleaze factor. But when you see a Diller getting involved, you know that infomercials have arrived."