18.8.06 Sex doesn’t sell
Heidi Dangelmeier’s team at 3iYing knows a thing or two about marketing to girls, so much so that the entire firm is built around it. In its latest ‘Girl Improved’ column (referred by Ypulse), the 3iYing team criticizes the sexual imagery in campaigns such as those for Abercrombie & Fitch (which could never stay away from it):
from a girl’s perspective the erotica in marketing is excessive, dirty, uninformative, and most importantly, a huge turnoff. I don’t believe it signals a change in values, but with the push of the sex-sells message in marketing going to extremes (we have heard conservatives go on about music videos already), it was bound to hit a mainstream nerve, sighing, ‘Enough is enough.’ I’m too young to remember the forces that brought forth Ms. magazine, and watching The Mary Tyler Moore Show is hardly going to educate me on what had happened in the early 1970s. But there may well be parallels. My only knowledge is from some feminist legal theory readings we had to do in my first year of law school. The 3iYing team suggests that the raunch be cut, since modern girls and young women are far more sophisticated and empowered, and hardly want to be seen as a means to sex. Years ago, I said the same thing about marketing to young people in general: the stereotype is BS, and that talking down only serves to increase cynicism. If you want people to respect you, talk to them like human beings. Therefore, some of these rules at 3iYing might apply to both sexes. Its conclusion, that while sex has its place, mental intrigue and authenticity are more compelling. Sounds right to me. Posted by Jack Yan, 22:58 Comments:
I agree, Jack. I don't think the BusinessWeek piece suggests a swing to conservative values -- just a change in the way girls value themselves. As you say, "...modern girls and young women are far more sophisticated and empowered, and hardly want to be seen as a means to sex."
Great post...and thanks for the write-up on a great topic. # posted by Ann Handley: 8/23/2006 01:51:00 PM
This reminds me of the uproar that's swirling around the Saw III posters. People are complaining that they're too sexual. Maybe I haven't seen all of them yet but I didn't notice anything at all over the top about them.
Thank you, Ann. I always maintained, especially during the early days of Lucire, that the minute companies stopped talking down to women, the more quickly their sales would improve.
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Nicole, I haven’t seen the Saw III posters, but I’ll have a hunt round for them. Links to this post:
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