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Evil Marketing Techniques That Businesses Don't Want You To Know (44 New Pics)
CuriositiesSEP 26, 2025

Evil Marketing Techniques That Businesses Don't Want You To Know (44 New Pics)

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It is estimated that in 2021 an average person might be exposed to as many as 10,000 ads per day. It seems like a lot, but when you think about it, ads bombard us on social media, TV, billboards, and even inside our fortune cookies. We get so used to them that we don't even notice.
One would like to think that marketing and advertising should bridge the gap between the seller and the buyer; make people trust the product and encourage them to use it. But their words often sound too good to be true. And they often are. If you see a big sign yelling “Everything's 30% off”, it might be designed to make you miss the small line at the bottom where it says that the offer applies to a handful of selected items only. Congratulations, you've just encountered false marketing.
This time, we will check out a few 'sometimes ridiculous, other times alarming and infuriating' marketing techniques that evil businesses use to take advantage of us and manipulate customers into buying more stuff. Continue scrolling and see these examples for yourself!
After you're done reading, don't forget to check out this previous Bored Panda post with 30 pictures that companies do not want you to see.

#1 New Cereal Box Is 11% Taller With 1.6% Less Cereal

Boxes of Very Berry Cheerios cereal displayed on a store shelf, highlighting marketing techniques and product labeling.
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#2 Man, That's Really Cheap... Oh

People walking on busy city sidewalk and close-up of public parking sign with cost highlighted, showing evil marketing techniques.
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#3 Packaging For These Markers

Set of colorful Faber-Castell markers and coloring books displayed on a store shelf with price tags visible.
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#4 I Have An Ad In My Fortune Cookie

Fortune cookie with a hidden marketing message promoting TaxAct, illustrating evil marketing techniques used by businesses.
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#5 Bought A Chicken Pot Pie Thinking It Was The Size Of The Outer Tin Before Cutting Into It And Seeing This Monstrosity

Partially eaten homemade chicken pot pie with vegetables in a foil baking dish showing misleading portion size marketing technique.
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#6 So Basically Every Price

Red starburst sign with text 99 cents or less and up, illustrating evil marketing techniques that confuse customers.
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#7 Imagine Cleaning A Fan So Well That You Uncover 2 New Blades

Before and after images of an industrial fan, illustrating a visual example of evil marketing techniques in business promotion.
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#8 That Would Explain Why My Ankle Hurts

Orange Ultra Fite kickball with black text, textured surface, and inflation instructions for 4-6 lbs pressure.
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#9 By Opening The Envelope For The License Agreement, You Agree To It

Close-up of a Ferrari label with a warning notice, illustrating deceptive branding as an evil marketing technique.
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#10 Walmart Employee Here. We Were Given These Shirts Today. Walmart Profits Billions Off Of This Pandemic, Then Compares Their Sacrifice To WW2 Veterans

Blue shirt with black graphic showing scientists, doctors, nurses raising a flag, highlighting deceptive marketing techniques.
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#11 This “Dual” Camera Smartphone Doesn’t Have Two Functioning Cameras

Close-up of hand removing gold phone back cover exposing internal components and SIM card slot illustrating evil marketing techniques.
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#12 False Advertising Should Be A Felony

Tweet screenshot showing a user complaining about deceptive marketing tactics offering $50 flights that don’t actually exist.
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#13 Went In For The $1.99 Lunch Special. Sorry Sir, That Says $7.99 Lunch Special

Handwritten lunch special sign on a tree at roadside illustrating evil marketing techniques in business pricing tactics.
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#14 The Mixed Signals Of This Shoe Sale Advertisement

Close-up of $10 off discount ad on athletic shoes with fine print exclusion showing evil marketing techniques in business promotions.
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#15 Unremovable Ads On My $2,500 Samsung Smart TV

TV interface showing sponsored ad for Angry Birds movie and TV Plus app, illustrating evil marketing techniques in digital media.
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#16 My Mother Recently Passed Away. This Morning I Thought I Got An Email From Her. Nope, Just A Spam Tabloid Naming Their Contact "Mom"

Email contact screen showing a message from Mom with a Newser story, related to evil marketing techniques and business secrets.
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#17 This Packaging. Was Wondering Why It Ran Out So Quickly

Skincare product bottle with pump dispenser on a speckled countertop demonstrating evil marketing techniques.
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#18 Walgreens Replaced Their Freezer Window Panels With Screens That Constantly Flash/Move And Don't Even Accurately Represent What's Inside The Fridge

Freezer doors in a grocery store displaying various ice cream and meal options with illuminated marketing displays.
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#19 This Post Card Is Made To Look Like It’s From The Dealership. It’s Printed To Look Like The Information Is Smudged So That You Will Call Them

Fake motor vehicle services notification letter warning of high-risk conditions, illustrating evil marketing techniques used by businesses.
It’s a third-party warrantee company.
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#20 This "Avocado" Oil

Bottle labeled as all natural avocado oil containing mostly canola oil, highlighting deceptive marketing techniques in product labeling.
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Asli Akalin
Asli AkalinBoredPanda Staff