Pamela Parra

Composition and Rethoric

Enrique Wong

April 30^th, 2010

Is Sex a Good Marketing Strategy?

It is clear that sex is a “good” strategy that companies and specially marketers use in order to increase the sell of the product. “The use of sexually suggestive images to sell just about everything really emphasizes the point that sex is a merchandiser's best friend”. (inventorspot). In the XXI century eroticism has gained prominence, but goes further, covering issues such as exhibitionism, sexual symbols, naked women, provocation, etc; that does not stop at showing scenes instead it is broken all established rules and certain moral principles.

Sex is a good issue that marketers use for increase the incomes such as AXE that uses sex as a marketing strategy and has made all the advertising campaigns with women who show their sensuality, and also they suggest that if you have sexual relations you're cool; it’s true that this strategy increase the incomes of the company that’s why the majority of men uses this product, not only because of the attributes of the product, but also because of the sexist thinking that this type of ads have been created. But at what cost they do this? They don’t think about the future of society; this means that tomorrow everyone will have to have sex to be cool or maybe to be accepted in a job or in a social group? Now we are facing a high percentage of early sexual activity.

Well this is not just a “good” strategy to improve sales but this is also an excellent strategy to increase young pregnant women, more deaths from venereal diseases, abandoned children, abortions, among other causes of early sexual activity that commercials have encouraged. It can display data, in Ecuador “The average number of children in the younger generation is even higher: 5.5 young mothers, especially in the ages between 19 and 24 years”. And “There are an increased number of deaths from HIV / AIDS in men between 15 and 29 years”. (Senplades) “10% of women between 15 and 24 years who had a pregnancy before the
15 years, said it ended in abortion” (CNNA) All of these are consequently to the loss of values and the ban influence that have brought the commercials.

Advertising often show women as sensual and as sexy, but the reality is that the image of the woman appears simply as an ornament or a medium for product promotion, and always serves as erotic seduction. So, first attracts the eye of the male spectator, later transferring his attention to the real object, which is the brand or product advertised. It uses a woman (his entire body, eyes, lips, eyes) for a best-selling products by calling public attention. So women have become, from a person to be an object to become a sex object.

In conclusion, we are saturated with commercials and especially with messages that are full of sex, trying to use sex as an strategy to sell. Actually, sex is a tactic used by marketers to sell more products and have succeeded, but at what cost? This will be an expensive cost such as seeing more women treated as sex objects, a society without values full of single mothers with unplanned children, seeing more abandoned children, with more STDs, with more girls who have lost their virginity before the age of 15.

Sources:

CNNA. 29-04-010.

Inventorspot. 27-04-010.

Senplades. 27-04-010.