subject: Sex and Advertisements [print this page] Sex and Advertisements Sex and Advertisements
Have an attractive woman on a billboard to sell products as varied as underwear, beer, food or entertainment products (films, music etc) - some call it sexism, others simply see this as a powerful marketing tool. Why do marketeers persist on using seductive women in marketing - does it work?
Lets look at some examples from the recent past
1) Yves Saint Laurent - perfume:
Depicted is a ghostly white nude female in a very seductive and provocative posture. This is acceptable publicity in France where such posters can be seen on bus stops or metro lines - liberty of expression. The same commercial is banned in the UK. Does the notion of sexism and acceptable nudity vary from country to country. In countries such as France or Switzerland, the nude female form is not sexist in itself, rather the degradation and depictions of violence towards women which is questionable. Naked women have always been dubbed as porno chic in France without any negative connotation.
2) Dolce & Gabbana - perfume:
This depicts a woman pinned down by a bare chested man with three others awaiting. This publicity is more provocative than (1) above and has connotations with a group scene. As daring as it is, Dolce & Gabbana tend to follow the same marketing principle of borderline shocking marketing
3) Astra beer - beer
Posters with big breasted women - even though the link with beer seems a little far fetched, these advertisements seem not to cause a scandal in Germany were Astra beer is commercialized. Tolerant target audience or lax legislation?
I could continue going on with more examples (endless supply), however it is clear that if you want to sell, whatever... place a seductive woman on your poster and the customers will come! This is part of a broader marketing strategy coined Shockvertising.
