Immuderm – not the answer to this 50-something’s prayer

Living as I do, not too far from the middle of nowhere, the arrival of the mail, courtesy of our wonderful postwoman, is one of the day’s highlights. However, despite the anticipation, it’s usually pretty predictable: circulars urging me to enrol on a distance learning accountancy course (moi?); solar panel, double glazing and patio promotional flyers, and the inevitable bills. But today there was something different. A hand-written envelope addressed to me – even including the initial of my middle name – all the way from Santa Ana in sunny California. So, probably from someone who knew me well but I couldn’t quite place the writing.

And inside the envelope, a full-page newspaper article extolling the virtues of a product called Immuderm. Across the top of the page, someone had written my first name, followed by the words ‘Get this, It works, J’

But I don’t know a J in Santa Ana, or anywhere else in California come to that.

So what is this Immuderm? Well, according to the article, it’s yet another miracle cure for wrinkles. (I know, I know.) Thankfully, even though the big 60 is beckoning, I’ve never been too worried about wrinkles – bring ‘em on I say. The sign of a life lived.

But it did set me wondering about Immuderm (which, not surprisingly, turns out to be the usual motley collection of chemicals - with a few ‘natural’ ingredients chucked in for good measure) and its sales methods. A quick Google search gave me the answers. And thanks to helpful postings on someone else’s blog, http://greencolander.blogspot.com/2005/12/mystery-letter.html I found out the facts behind Immuderm’s marketing tactics.

Well, quelle surprise, it turns out that this is a well-worn direct mail ploy. Immuderm ‘articles’ and ‘handwritten’ notes have been turning up in mailboxes across the USA and Canada and are now unsettling little old ladies in the UK. I had visions of hundreds of impoverished Mexican immigrants, cooped up in sweatshop sheds painstakingly copying endless lists of names and addresses, although that personal handwritten touch is allegedly courtesy of a machine.

So thanks Immuderm but no thanks; I’ll stick with the laughter lines, ignore the ads and keep reading the blogs instead. Knowledge, as they say, is power.

Comments

[ANNETTTE]

I just received this newspaper clipping in the mail on Friday, August 31, 2007 in Canada. I was freaked out for a while and then decided to search it out on the internet, thank you so much for this site as it now ends the mystery as to who sent it.

[60goingon16]

Yes Annette, your reaction was much like mine. Hopefully, the more of us who post something about this marketing scam, the better. Glad it helped.

[l8joy57]

Well, ladies, I dutifully received my clipping from 'J' within 6 months of my 50th bday... I've decided that after 50, we receive the wrinkle scams (of which I am now the proud recipient of some 8-10)... Before 50, I was the target of every weight loss product direct mail campaign ever launched, I believe. I think they've decided our bodies are a lost cause after 50... that now we must be more worried about our lined and sagging faces! Thanks for this resource... I guess 'J' will live without my business and I'll be living without her (or his!) miracle cream. I wonder if 'J' sells that same I received the news ad for promoting the beauty and growth of large, lovely, firm breasts... 10 year ago, of course...

[gwyn]

I am so thankful for this page. I got the same paper clipping in the mail.
I really appreciate all the comments about the product.
I am over 70 years old now and I guess everyone would like just play on older women.
Because wrinkled skin is not not a pretty site. When you don't feel that old, but you look old. Then when you have a husband that did not age along with you and has smooth beautiful skin.
Thanks for letting me save some money on more creams that do not work.

[ERG]

I'm astounded! I got the news clipping today and immediately "blamed" a friend of mine for believing in such hype. Thank you so much for this posting. It was spot on down to the signing of "j" handwritten! Amazing!

[Janette]

Thank you for this blog as I received a strange email from a distant family member in New York thanking me for the info on Immuderm. I am a J living in California. Huntington Beach though! I emailed her back saying I never wrote her. In the meanwhile I was so curious about it I scanned the internet and found your blog. Immediately I was able to see what the scam was and tell her. Thank you.

[Robin Richesson]

Hi, I got this newspaper clipping too, with a real handwritten note. I went to the internet and found a canadian forum that detailed women getting these in 2005, and 2006, and then found this blog too. I live in Long Beach, CA, just down the street from the address listed in the article, and I think I might just drive by there and see whose home, and give them back their article! Really annoying.

[Anonymous]

Received handwritten mail with no return address, postmarked May 6, 2008 from Santa Ana, California. Contents was a folded, undated newspaper page containing an article or advertisement apparently from a "Weekly Journal."
The upper left-hand corner of the newspaper page contained a handwritten note, addressed to the recipient of the mail, with the following text:

[name withheld],
Get it
It works!

J

This matter is being referred to the United States Postal Inspection Service.
If you have received this mail, report it as an instance of mail fraud (I suggest the category of Medical Quackery) to the United States Postal Inspection Service (Google it to obtain the link).

[TAMARA]

YEP, I GOT THE SAME NEWSPAPER ARTICLE, SIGNED J AND EVERYTHING ELSE. I ALMOST BIT, BUT DIDN'T THANKS TO ALL OF YOUR BLOGS. I SO CAN'T STAND THESE SCAM MAIL CAMPAIGNS.....
THANKS AGAIN

[Pam]

I too received the newspaper article, the handwritten note.

I have a friend whose 1st name is JoBeth, travels to CA all the time, into the latest beauty products, and the handwriting almost identical. I thought this is strange, she normally would have put a heart or wrote luv ya on the note.

Thank Goodness, I Thought I would research first and found this blog - I Could not beleive I almost fell for this.......My credir card was out on the desk!

[Bob]

"Who sent me this?" asked my good friend and landlady of near ninety as she showed me a very personalized ad for what appeared to be a miracle salve she thought she might buy. I suggested she wait until I did a little research on the internet. And I hit the jackpot: Thank you '60GoingOn16' and other sites like yours. You saved her a lot of money for a lot of nothing: Knowledge is power! Here's hoping this kind of sly advertising will soon become useless though the continued and relentless exposure it is receiving via the internet, and specifically by sites like "60GoingOn16": Keep up the good work, and thanks again for helping to save her from spending a lot of money for a lot of nothing.

[Chris Oakey]

My newspaper was from the financial section of the Weekly Journal and had all the mutual fund tables on the reverse side. It was also dated Thurs. May 8, 2008. This seemed so genuine.

I was about to buy and went to the web site but checked a comparison site first and didn't see this product. That made me hesitate and then I found your site and that cinched it! Thank you for being there and I just want to add my voice as well.

[Stacy]

Got one of these in the mail today too. Wracked my brain trying to figure out who I knew in CA. Very annoyed by the clipping and want to know how this person got my address. Just turned 30 BTW so it's not just the older ladies being targeted.

[Kim Gundy]

Well, I actually purchased some today with 2 other girls, so I'll let you know how it works.

[60 Going On 16]

Well, let's hope you haven't wasted your money, Kim, because it's not cheap! If Immuderm really is as miraculous as the makers claim, one wonders why they have to resort to such questionable marketing methods. As to the contents, potential purchasers might want to take a look at this first:
http://www.theperformanceleader.com/immuderm-review

I'm not alone in questioning the marketing methods: Immuderm came in for a good deal of criticism on Martin Lewis's excellent Money Saving Expert website:
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=296346

Me? I'll stick with good old Boots' Protect and Perfect, endorsed by scientists in a paper published by the British Journal of Dermatology - and a much cheaper option!

[fayebee]

I got one in the mail today and like most, I was stumped as to who might have sent it and wondered whether to be insulted or thankful. Thanks to Google I found this and other articles basically letting me know that it's a scam. Thanks for posting your experiences. I've thrown the article away.

[Lina]

I got this mailing 6 times (in Canada), and ignored it as, I have only male friends with the initial J, and none would dare make a comment to me about my appearance. I was curious recently about mailing so did a search and found your posting. I was amused by the comment that it was sent to people over 50... Um... I've been receiving the mailing since I was 24!!! Apparently their marketing intel is not great!

Thanks for posting this info.

[Danette]

Just this week, July of 2008, I received the exact newspaper clipping/article and was actually going to purchase this "wonder" cream until I searched further to discover the scam. Wow...Sounds like this has been going around for years now.

[Maryanne C.]

Pleased to discover your site. I also received the newspaper with "Get it it works! J

69 going on 70. I've earned every one of my character lines and don't intend on giving any one of them up.

I hope others investigate this fraud before jumping into the quicksand.

[60 Going On 16]

Comments on this post are now closed.

Thank you all for your feedback. Always good to be aware of how these things are being marketed, irrespective of whether they work or not. But, just remember, ageing is part of the normal and natural human condition and nothing you get out of a bottle (or via a surgeon's knife) can, in the end, change that. Try to cheat nature and sooner or later she will come back with a vengeance. And who wants to end up looking like Dorian Gray's picture in the attic? It's what we do with our lives that matters; not what we put on our faces.

To find out more go to:
http://www.theperformanceleader.com/immuderm-review or
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=296346