Sex in Advertising - How Advertiser Influencing to Consumer Impact and Ethical Issues

Sex in Advertising - How Advertiser Influencing to Consumer Impact and Ethical Issues

Sex in Advertising - How Advertiser influencing to consumer impact and ethical issues

What is sex in advertising?

As stated by Richmond and Hartman (1982), "Every media consumer is alert to 'sex in advertising.' Its pervasive use and misuse are constantly around us and typically elicit strong criticism”. As the invertors can view that, the use of sex in advertising has been happening for several decades and the reason for it? - It works. However, many peoples may not exactly know what sex in advertising is. Some people consider subconscious content to be sex in advertising, whereas others only consider sexual information that is readily visible.

Sexual information, defined by Harris (1994) as “any representation that portrays or implies sexual interest, behavior, or motivation”, is often integrated within the ad as images or verbal elements .As follow U.S. Court Justice Potter Stewart(1964) described pornography, "I know it when I see it," similarly vague descriptions are used to convey sex in advertising (Strong, 1979).

In fact, when the general public considers sex in advertising, a wide variety of exemplars come to mindset. Others describe sexual images inserted into ads, for some individuals, “fetishized” objects and parts of the body come to mind (Schroeder & Borgerson, 2003).

More formally, sex in advertising can be considered mediated messages (i.e., television commercials, magazine ads) containing sexual information with the persuasive purpose of selling branded goods (Reichert, Heckler, & Jackson, 2001). Advertising is commonly defined as "any paid form of nonpersonal communication about an organization, product, service, or idea by an identified sponsor" (Belch & Belch, 2001).

As follow to Ken theory that sex appeal can through the people emotional response to create non-rational process. He stated that: “Neuroscience has proven that our actions are subject to greater non-rational decision making than we ever thought possible. Going beyond the facts, the emotional elements in communication are incredibly important and meaningful, something we as an industry have felt instinctively for years.”-Ken Kaess, 2004

Concerning sexual matters, some specialists also defend the idea that advertising mirrors reality – that it reflects a change of attitudes towards sexuality – rather than being a source of change (Soley & Reid 1998). In fact, advertisers attempt to create awareness and knowledge of their brands among carefully defined target audiences. Organizations and marketers also attempt to reinforce or modify consumers' attitudes, perceptions, beliefs, and, ultimately, behavioral outcomes with regard to the brand.

What are commonly identified forms of sexual content in advertising? An examination of the analysis research done on television and magazine content reveals that common forms of various sexual advertising content include the following (Reichert. T, 2003):

п‚џNudity/Dress : Amount and style of clothing worn by models.

п‚џSexual Behavior: Individual and interpersonal sexual behavior.

Physical Attractiveness: General level of model’s physical beauty.

п‚џSexual Referents: Allusions and references to objects and events that have sexual

meaning by means of double entendre and innuendo.

п‚џSexual Embeds: Content interpreted as sexual at the subconscious level.

For the viewed of various sexual content Identified, a recent analysis of respondents' identification of sex in advertising showed that they overwhelming described visual aspects and symbolism (Reichert & Ramirez, 2000). Sexual language and referents to sexual behavior have been analyzed sex advertising content as well. (Walker, 2000).

Industry and advertising professionals claim there is no vital in the ad creation process to employ sexual ads. As follows social science research, it has failed to maintain subliminal effects in consumer mind (e.g., Rosen & Singh, 1992). However, Key argued that advertisers' proprietary consumer research, proved that subliminal ads are effective. "Advertisers use the technique, which they deny using, because it sells products. People are scared to even consider the plausibility of its existence because it threatens their sense of free will". Others have argued that advertisers, because of their own unconscious motivations, may not even be aware of their use of sexual symbolism (Key