Sex in Advertising – Is It A Good Strategy?

Lately, we have seen a lot of brands overtly using sex to sell themselves. While for some it might be relevant, for most it’s unnecessary. There are several problems that can arise from this strategy. Let’s look at them one by one.

Evony is a very popular MMOG (Massively Multiplayer Online Game). Its 2009 campaign had images depicting females who, as the ad campaign continued, grew further and further unclothed, until the ad was simply a pair of breasts. A running slogan for the campaign was "Save the queen!", although within the game, there is no queen to save. One 'Save The Queen' advert featured a woman without a bra or panties lying on the floor with a sword pointed at her breast. Another advertisement used two women with their eyes closed and the motto "Save Your Lover." It said "Play Unnoticeably", despite the fact that Evony does nothing to hide itself from network logs and its URL and cookies will still be present in a web browser's history like any other website.

According to me, this advertising campaign created two problems. First, the new players, who were enticed by the ads, were extremely disappointed to find nothing of the sort in the game. They quit playing pretty fast. The second problem was that the players who loved the game could not connect with the ads. In Evony’s defense though, it should be mentioned that it’s a very interesting game & it hooks you if you like the genre. Probably they thought that once people are attracted by the ads, they will stay on because of the game. However, I doubt that very much as I can see a lot of inactive players within the game world.

These kinds of strategies can also lead to brands losing their differentiated image as this can be easily copied. Take the example of Axe & Set Wet in India. Worldwide, and also in India, Axe has successfully positioned itself as a tool for males for increasing sex appeal.

However, Set Wet has now come up with their own campaign on similar lines. Watch the two ads and you’ll realize that you can actually interchange the product windows and no one would know! Then how does a new entrant in the market differentiate between the two. If I’m a 12 year old who wants 2 buy his first deodorant, on what parameters do I decide my brand?

However, sex, if relevant to the product/brand & integrated well, can really obliterate the competition. One only needs to look at the fate of Old Spice in the UK market after the entry of Axe/Lynx. As Woody Allen succinctly put it, “There are a number of mechanical devices that increase sexual arousal, particularly in women. Chief amongst these is the Mercedes-Benz 380L convertible.”