Like them or hate them, sexually suggestive ads are everyday parts of our lives. Luckily for the general public, there are some brilliant folks bringing attention to the ridiculousness of it all. Let me introduce to the illusionists and Target Women.
The Illusionists
When they go too far, folks like the Illusionists are there to point them out, shining a light on the ridiculous portrait of women in advertising. Take the BMW print advertisement above for example. The illusionists write,
“another class act by BMW – an underage girl in an overtly sexual pose, mouth open, sultry look, and the ad copy: “You know you’re not the first.” Bravo BMW!”
These things seem so obvious
As the illusionist points out,
Before you go any further, please just stop for a second and contemplate the fact that these ads, like any ads, were produced after a series of meetings in between the ad agency and the client. These ads passed the normal stages of strategic planning (what to do), creative development (how to do it), production (casting call, photo/film shoot, editing), media planning (where to show the ads: street billboards, TV shows, magazines, newspapers, online), media buying (purchasing billboard space / TV commercial slots / pages in magazines). These ads didn’t simply come out of the blue. Everything was deliberate and at no stage did anyone raise an objection strong enough to stop the ads. Because sexism and objectification are fun, right? [...]
Audiences Enjoy the Ridiculousness of it All
While the illusionist blogs about ridiculous advertising aimed at women, Sarah Haskins exposes their hilarity. Her Current.tv show, Target Women pokes fun at the absurd ads that, well, target women.
Here are some of her gems
Beauty Contraptions – Target Women
Rape Fables – Target Women
How much longer will ads like this last?
Do you think ads like these will always have a place in the marketing mix or will social media and the internet provide a loud enough voice to the contrary or, such effective targeting, that these messages are no longer relevant?
Or not?
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