Bark Off – A Marketing Review
Don’t you hate it when your dog or a neighbor’s dog keeps barking?
Isn’t it pretty annoying?
Don’t you wish that there was some magical way of making the barking stop, like through some kind of a wacky invention?
Well, get ready for some good news! There’s this relatively new product called Bark Off, and according to the TV commercials, it can make your dog stop barking! Hooray!
An older, longer TV informercial for Bark Off. The current TV commercial at least manages to use different breeds of dogs, and not just the same one over and over again.
Let’s take a look at the TV commercial for Bark Off and see if it looks like a good product or more like a scam.Like virtually all products in informercials, no matter how cheesy the commercial may be, the advertisers always try to present a real problem and what they want you to believe as the ideal solution.
This is one giant house of cards, and before the slightest gust of wind knocks it down they’ll have you filling out the online order form.
As it’s mentioned above, the video clip in this article is for a slightly older commercial for the product. The main difference is that in this version the same dog is used over and over again in each example, where in the current TV commercial a few different dogs are used. As different as they are, the dogs all perform exactly the same when under the supposed influence of the Bark Off device. The final price and offer of a second unit for free are the same.
I’d have to say that the biggest problem with this commercial is that the dog gives away the secret.
Want to know the secret? Do you? Have you been a good boy? Who’s a good boy? Are you ready for a treat? Are you? Are you? Want to go for a walk? Wanna go outside? Do you?
Oh, wait a sec. I got carried away there for a moment. Sorry.
Anyway, the secret, if you must know, is that the Bark Off is most likely never turned on and used in the commercial.
And how do we come to that conclusion?
Like I said, the answer is with the dog.
Watch the dog carefully. The dog is looking off-camera the whole time. A trainer tells the dog when to start barking and when to stop. At one point the dog even lies down. I don’t believe that Bark Off implies that it’ll teach your dog to lay down and remain calm. Its selling point is that it supposedly teaches your dog to stop barking without you doing any effort. The dog lies down at the visual command of the trainer. Just watch the dog’s face throughout the commercial and see if he’s really responding to the Bark Off or to a trainer off to the side of the stage.
In fact, at no point does the dog even look at the Bark Off device. At one moment the dog apparently decides to start barking just for the hell of it, and next all of a sudden the dog decides to stop barking. It’s magic!
I do have to wonder about one thing though.
Do any of the people in the commercial even want to have a pet dog?
I know that these simpletons are paid actors, but the commercial implies that these are “average” people in common situations with barking dogs. At no point do we see anybody try talking let alone looking at the dog, trying to get the dog to stop barking. No, these people all go for the easy route — an electronic device that does the parenting / dog training for them.
People need to remember that dogs are social animals, whether you have one or a few of them. Many of them hate being left alone. They naturally want to be with people and other dogs for companionship.
Barking is the most common way of a dog trying to communicate, whether it’s to get your attention or get somebody else’s attention. They bark for a wide variety of reasons. Some dogs bark like crazy at everything, while others take it easy and could care less if a robber is busy unplugging your TV and DVD player. Just don’t hurt them and they’ll be fine.
But most dogs can be trained through positive reassurance and consistent reminder/reprimand for bad behavior. They can hear your voice and understand a larger vocabulary than most people believe. Many of them are smart too, and if you’re not careful, they’ll wait until you’re gone or out of sight before misbehaving again. You can write books analyzing the intelligence of dogs and how to train them properly.
The bottom line is that dogs can be trained without physical abuse, much like a small child. It all depends on how well you, the owner, can work with the animal. It’ll test your patience and creativity for dealing with problems and finding acceptable solutions. If you have a bad dog, chances are likely that you failed somewhere during its training.
When your five-year-old child misbehaves or makes an annoying noise, what do you do about it? Dealing with disruptive dogs isn’t much different. You are the one in control, and it’s your responsibility to teach your child and train your dog in the best way possible. Good judgment is a key factor there.
So where does Bark Off come into play?
The commercial implies that Bark Off is the best solution when it comes to making your dog stop barking. The advertisers want you to believe that all other options, from talking to the dog to using dog whistles and shock collars, don’t work. Oddly enough, like some other infomercials, they don’t even show the people trying to use other methods. The retards just sit there and look at each other until somebody turns on the Bark Off. Nobody lifts a finger except to turn on the device.
Does Bark Off really work?
That’s the bottom line.
I honestly don’t know. My allergies prevent me from having a dog or being around one for long periods of time. None of my friends with dogs have this product.
But if it does work as advertised, then I’m sure without a doubt that people will buy the product. We’re living in a different age with people looking for easier solutions to their problems. If they believe that turning on an electronic device will stop a dog from barking, then they’re going to give it a try.
Out of curiosity, I’d love to know the range of the product. If you have Bark Off activated in the living room, will it still work if the dog is barking at something in the kitchen? What if the dog is outside? What is its effective range?
Bark Off is part of the company Telebrands out of New Jersey. According to the Better Business Bureau, despite having an A- rating, Telebrands has had over 1,140 complaints within the past 36 months. Take note that they do sell a lot of products through TV advertisements, so it’s not like over one thousand people were complaining specifically about Bark Off. What that high number does tell you is that a lot of people are unhappy enough about the Telebrands products to complain to the BBB.
The ordering process for Bark Off is very similar to other TV infomercials. The product’s landing page does a shoddy job selling the product and mainly consists of the TV commercial and an order form. The ultimate goal is to get your credit card information, and putting too many words or distractions on the screen may distract you from ordering the product.
Take note that you’re buying two of the Bark Off units even if you only wanted one of them. It’s $10 + $6.99 S&H + an additional $6.99 S&H for the “free” unit, bringing the total cost to $23.98. You can send it back if you have a problem and want a refund, but you’ll only be getting the $10 back, not the $13.98 you’re paying for S&H. Take the cost of return shipping out of the $10, and it may not be worth it going through the hassle of getting a refund.
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For more information about Bark Off, please visit the company’s website.
RellimZone.com is not affiliated with Bark Off.
Stops our 2 labs from barking at rabbits and people at the door (continuous barking).
My only problem is I found out by accident that I can hear it too. My husband cannot, but I sure can.