Sex In Advertising: How Much Is There?

Sex In Advertising2how Much Sex Is In Advertisinga Deliberation Of

Sex In Advertising2how Much Sex Is In Advertisinga Deliberation Of

SEX IN ADVERTISING 2 How much sex is in advertising? A deliberation of advertising and sex demands the explanation of terminology at the inception. Sexuality, gender, sex and sexism usually lack specificity and clarity in everyday language. Nevertheless, scientific researchers and scholars limit the usage and meaning of such terms so as to be able to understand and discuss the complex issues they encompass. Over time, erotic images have increased in advertisements.

Some of the earliest instances of sex and selling are the early advertising cards seen in the 19th-century tobacco companies especially on the packages of cigarettes (Reichert, 2006). Today, there is great attraction when it comes to advertising which includes sex. Whenever the ideology of advertising is raised today, sex is usually the appeal which comes out first (Fowles, 1998). The use of sex in commercial advertisements can be dated back 60 years ago when this beautiful young female led the first windproof lighter and a new way of advertising later emerged called The Pinup Girl. The beautiful and young girl was advertising everything from laundry soap to lighters.

In our era, we can say that sex advertising is a major area of ethical concern but little is known about the norms for its use or the effects. The advertisers using sexual appeals have not only grown widely throughout the USA but also in the other parts of the world. However, advertisers have not clearly understood the line between effective and offensive advertising (Saunders, 2015). Ann Klein’s company’s adverts are a good example of some of the striking ads carried in the mainstream media. This company’s advertisements have attracted more negative letters leading to a huge amount of attention.

The company’s Vice President has been seen defending the organization saying there is a fine line between doing something new, interesting, and different and angering the customers with offensive ads which are likely to destroy their commercial intention. One of the ads by Ann Klein depicts a man kissing a woman and later unbuttoning her shirt, leaving an unfinished claim that can be viewed as sexual. The combination of sex and the unfinished claim is used to attract the viewers’ attention (Schrank, n.d). According to Fowles’ (1998) basic appeals, advertisements appeal to the need for sex. The main reason there is much sex in many advertisements is the simple reason that people usually like viewing the opposite sex in sexual ways.

It is human nature that both women and men have a great affinity for sex. From an advertising perspective, if an image of sex is put in someone's mind and that person has an attitude of liking sex, then there is a greater chance that the product will make the consumer feel better. This is likely to cause the individual to go out and buy the particular product based on the advertisement they saw. Advertisers typically play with people's senses, often appealing to the most sexual things in the world, such as sex itself (Sex sells, 2010). An example of this is the Calvin Klein commercial advertising underwear.

Regarding the extent of sexual imagery in adverts, it is known to work better in men than women, since female figures are often presented to appeal to male viewers. The Black Velvet liquor advertisement displays an attractive woman in a tight outfit, with the slogan “Feel the Velvet.” The figure does not have a horizontal appeal like the “Fly me” campaign in the National Airlines. The more sexualized or nudity-revealing the figure in the advertisement, the more attraction it has visually. However, nudity in advertising has been shown to reduce brand recall; some people remember the product because they feel indignant or shocked by the ad, which is not the typical response advertisers aim for (Sex sells, 2010).

Most advertisers argue that explicit sexual content is rare and often relies on suggestion rather than overt imagery. Based on analysis by the Mass Advertising social forecast, only about two percent of ads contain explicit sexual motives. Furthermore, some media outlets, like Playboy, tend to shy away from sexual appeals, with less than five percent of their ads directly involving sex in their messaging. Advertisers often claim that the presence of sex in ads depends on the definition and context (Reichert, 2015). In conclusion, modern advertising heavily depends on sex appeal, with an increasing prevalence across industries, especially those dealing with beauty and fashion products.

The widespread presence of sexual content in advertising is generally accepted in society; most viewers do not react negatively but instead continue with their lives, often desensitized to such images. Nonetheless, a segment of the population is influenced by sexual advertisements, and societal norms appear to be gradually shifting to accept or even expect sexual themes in marketing. Nearly every product now has at least one advertisement associated with sex in some way, highlighting its effectiveness as a marketing tool (Reichert, 2012). The ethical implications and potential for overexposure remain subjects of ongoing debate among scholars and practitioners.

References

• Fowles, J. (1998). Advertising's fifteen basic appeals. Journal of Advertising Research, 38(4), 31-40.
• Reichert, T. (2012). Sex in consumer culture: The erotic content of media and marketing. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
• Reichert, T., & Lambiase, J. (2006). Sex in consumer culture: The erotic content of media and marketing. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
• Reichert, T., Childers, C. C., & Reid, L. N. (2012). How sex in advertising varies by product category: An analysis of three decades of visual sexual imagery in magazine advertising. Journal of Current Issues & Research in Advertising, 33(1), 1-17.
• Saunders, D. (2015). Best ads: Sex in advertising. London: Batsford.
• Schrank, J. (n.d). The language of advertising claims. Retrieved from [source details].
• Sex sells - but with more brands using cheap thrills in ads, how much longer can it endure as a selling point?. (2010). Marketing Week, 24-27.
• Additional scholarly references focusing on advertising ethics, consumer responses, and historical trends in sex in advertising.