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The key difference between advertising and other forms of promotion, such as personal selling, sales promotion and publicity is that advertising is impersonal and communicates with large numbers of people (ibid). Communication process The most significant factor to be considered in planning advertising is an understanding of the immunization process (Shaker, Bator & Myers, 1992). No organization can afford either the financial or reputation damage caused by inadequately designed or implemented communication campaigns (Brainstorming & Appetite, 2000).
Therefore it is of great importance that the communication process function as an establishment of common news, or oneness, of thought between a message sender (advertiser) and a receiver (consumer) if communication is to occur (Shims, 2003). An outline Of the communication process can be seen in figure 1. 1. Figure 1. 1: The Communication Process Source: Adapted from Shims (2003) The source in the communication process is a communicator; it could be an advertiser, salesperson or sales promoter who has thoughts to share with a single customer or an entire target audience (Shims, 2003).
The sender must have a clear idea or view of what message he wants to present, in order to create brand awareness and positive brand image towards the receiver. In order to bring the message forward to the receiver a channel must be chosen from the sender (ibid). Depending on what message the sender wants to deliver the choice of channel will take place (Brainstorming & Appetite, 2000). It is hoped that the outcome to the receiver matches the communicator’s general objective and results in more positive attitudes towards the brand image, increased brand awareness or greater purchasing of the brand.
Whatever the response, it is important that the sender is provided with feedback on whether the message has been received, understood and interpreted as desired. A message moving through the process can always be distracted by noise (ibid). Advertising media are called on to execute the task of delivering the message to the consumer and therefore the advertiser needs to choose medium or media, the channel, most suitable to the task in hand (Brainstorming & Appetite, 2000).
Examples of ways to deliver the message according to Brainstorming and Appetite complemented by Eastman, Ferguson and Klein (1999) are: – Television, it enables a seller to communicate to a broad range of potentially large audiences. Radio, it is an important mean of broadcast communication for smaller companies operating restricted geographic area. Within a – Magazines, it can be presented and then examined selectively at the reader’s leisure and also narrowly targeted to a niche audience.
Newspapers, it is preferably used for communicating swiftly and flexibly to a large audience. – Outdoor advertising it is used to provide rapidly digestible messages to passers-by or to offer a person to look at. Something for – Movie theaters, it is not a major medium, however it can be used to reach selected audiences, especially younger people. – The Internet, According to Eastman et- al, (1999) it is a tool for accessing information and to mage. Widen the distribution of a companies When delivering the message through these channels there are different ways of presenting it.
The roles that can be used when creating advertising are humor, fear, guilt and sex (Shims, 2003). When humor is used correct and in the right circumstances, it can be an extremely effective advertise technique. A complication of using humor in advertising might be that humorous appeals differ in effectiveness across demographic groups. The use of fear is especially effective as a tool of enhancing motivation. Since consumers in the 21 SST century live in a world where the threat of terrorism is present, advertisers have to pay attention and be careful when choosing this tool.
The use of guilt is rueful since it motivates emotionally mature individuals to undertake responsible action leading to a reduction in the level of guilt. The use of sex in advertising appeals to something that people generally approach rather than avoid and sexual appeals in advertising are frequently used and with increasing explicitness Sex in advertising Sexuality has for a long time, at least since the arrival of the Lutheran faith in the 1 7th century been associated with disgrace and guilt (Counterstrike, 1994). However, during the last century the view towards sexuality has altered due to information and politics (ibid).
According to Heeler (2000) sex was not as common in mass media during the early twentieth century as it is today. But over the past one hundred years the human body has been exploited 2 in advertising and it has been provocatively used to sell products (ibid). Advertising research reveals that, sexual appeals are often attention getting arousing, inducing and memorable (Heckler, Jackson & Richter, 2001 The use of nudity and partially nude models has increased during the recent years and this sort of advertising is more common now than ever (Smith, Anton, Haughtiest & Quadric, 1995).
Sex in advertising is the use of sexual interest as a tool of persuasion to draw attention to a particular item for consumption and it is considered one of the most influential tools of marketers and especially advertisers (en. Wisped. Org). Post-advertising sales response studies have shown it can be very efficient for attracting instantaneous interest, holding that interest; and, in the context of that interest, introducing a product that in some way correlates with that interest (ibid).
Advertisement often touches the borderline of the forbidden, with the purpose of attracting attention (Counterstrike, 1994). The edge for the standards is pushed all the time. In the beginning of the 20th century it could be enough to focus on a woman’s calf under her skirt to pass the limit for what was tolerated, and at that time the advertising of today would surely have been considered pornography (ibid). 1. 2 Problem Discussion Sexual information, whether in the form of pictures, sounds or stories, has been shown to stir up predictable range of emotional responses within viewers (Heckler et- al, 2001).
The authors’ further state that sexual appeals can roughly be defined as messages, whether as brand information in advertising contexts or as persuasive appeals in social marketing contexts, which are linked with sexual information. There are different types of sexual information in advertising (Lambdas & Richter, 2003). Lambdas and Richter states five different types of sexual content identified in advertising, these five are; nudity, sexual behavior, physical attractiveness, sexual referents and sexual embeds .
According to Ramirez and Richter (2000) another definition if an advertisement is considered to be sexual, are if these four characteristics are included; physical features of models such as clothing, hussies, and general attractiveness, behavior/movement, contextual features such as camera effects, and intimacy between models. The usage of sex appeal in advertisement During the past two decades, the use of sexual appeals in print advertising has become more or less commonplace (Honoree & Layout, 1994).
The existence of sexual appeals in advertising is prevalent in many parts of the world and it is often promoted in terms of fulfilling erotic fantasies (Gould, 1994). The author further claims that the ethics and morality of such appeals continues to be challenged, much as sexual norms and traditions in general eve been contested all through world history. How the advertisements influence consumer judgments and reactions is unclear (Smith et. A’, 1995). A review of existing research suggests complex relationships between the use of nudity in an advertisement and several measurements of advertising effectiveness (ibid).
Research on the use Of nudity in an 1 Defined as referents or forms of sexual representation designed to be perceived subconsciously 3 advertisement, as an advertising appeal indicates that although nudity may increase attention it may decrease the attention toward the brand name Belch, severe, 1990). Sexual appeals used in advertisements are of several types and consist of a variety of elements and they are frequently grounded in visual elements, such as eye-catching models, and may show varying degrees of nudity and suggestiveness (Gould, 1994). According to Gould (1994) such appeals may also include suggestive music.
The author believes that reflection of these elements is vital because they may determine whether people think a sexual appeal is ethical or unethical. Sex plays three major roles in advertising (Shims, 2003). Firstly, sexual trial acts as an initial attention lure and retain awareness for a longer period, often by featuring attractive models in challenging poses. Secondly, potential role is to improve recall of message points. The author continues to claim that sexual appeals create drastically better recall when advertising execution has a suitable relationship with the advertised product.
Furthermore, a third role performed by sexual content in advertising is to evoke emotional responses, such as feelings of arousal and even lust. These reactions can boost an advertisement’s persuasive impact, with the opposite effect the advertisement elicits negative feelings such as embarrassment, disgust, or uneasiness (ibid). According to a study by Urchins (1991) more than 50 per cent of respondents said that when they see clothing advertisements and cosmetic advertisements, they compare themselves with models in the advertisements about half the time or more frequently.
After viewing beautiful models or highly attractive individuals, in for example television advertisements, viewers rate the attractiveness of more ordinary looking people lower than they would otherwise (ibid). Cultural aspects in sexual appeal The understanding of different religions and value systems are crucial when defining and sanctioning the different variables concerning sex and decency in advertising (Boohooed, 1991). The author claims that in Moslem countries all kinds of body displays as well as direct and even indirect sexual references are considered to be indecent.
Similar patterns can be found in conservative countries such as Ireland, Mexico and the Philippines (ibid). When it comes to sex and advertising in different countries there are differences not only in appropriate roles for women and men, but also in nonuser attitudes towards sex roles in advertising and in advertisers’ use of sex role portrayals (Halcyon & Roth, 2003). Decency in sexual appeal The entire issue of sex and what is considered decent and acceptable in a society is frequently changing (Honoree & Layout, 1994).
On a global scale, the use of nudity in advertising has potentially harmful social consequences, characterizing people, especially women, as sexual objects (Smith et. Al, 1995). Advertisements that are indecent and sexual, and only as objects are a problem in many countries treat women (Boohooed, 1991). Women are sometimes described and portrayed as sexual objects in advertisements (Tries & Weighed, 1994). However advertisers are changing the way they target and promote women in advertisements (Choosing, Tambala & Wee, 1995).
Most acknowledge that the advertising industry growing sensitivity towards women can be traced to women’s more influential positions in the business 4 Sometimes people fail to encode many of the messages presented to them in advertisements (Bushman & Fibonacci, 2002). The authors’ further claim that the more attention individuals pay to a television program, the less attention they have for other stimuli. Sexual appeal directed to youth
Sex and sexism in advertising justify further discussion, as marketers with sexual appeals and marketers use sexual target young audiences imagery to sell products to teenagers and young adults (Richter, 2003). The effect of sexual content in advertising may be heightened for young adults, for whom sexual expression and experiences are still relatively new and therefore sexual content is often targeted to young adults (ibid). The author States that advertising creators are producing sexual appeals for products targeted to young adults, and media planners are placing these advertisements in media consumed by younger audiences.
Much of today’s sexual advertising targets youth, yet little empirical work appear in existing research to show how the youth meet to such advertisement. Therefore, we deem it valuable to contribute to research through our present study. Sex Appeal in Advertising has Negative Effects A Attention getter: It is practically inescapable to turn on the television, browse internet, page through a magazine, or drive past billboards without seeing some “use of sexual themes that appeal to a sort of sex appeal. Sex appeal is the person’s desire to be attractive,” according to the article “Advertising” in the 1 999
Book encyclopedia. B. Credibility Statement: As a person of society today, I am World constantly viewing advertisements around me that use sex appeal to grasp attention; so, I decided to research the erects of sex appeal in advertising on society. C. Significance Statement: From my research, have concluded that sex appeal in advertising has a negative effect on society; and that more than 70% of people a poll in 1999 believe there is too much sexual imagery in advertising according to Tom Richter in a thesis he wrote. Responding to D.
Identification Statement: Like all of you, I run across these advertisements intriguing sex appeal on television, on internet, in magazines, and on billboards daily. E. Thesis Statement: Today, I will convince you that sex appeal in advertising has a negative effect on society. F. Preview Statement: We’ll examine how it degrades the image of women, causes moral values. 1. 3 Purpose image disorders, and increases desensitizing to The purpose of our thesis is to gain a better understanding of how young men and women are influenced by sexual appeal in advertising. . 3. 1 Research questions With the help of three research questions outlined below we will try to each the stated purpose of our thesis. – How do young men and women define sexual appeal in advertising? – How do young men react to sexual appeal in advertising? Young women react to sexual appeal in advertising? 1. 4 Demarcations How do Since our time frame for this thesis is limited we are forced to do some demarcations.