An article from Psychology for Marketers convinced me that sex does indeed sell in the marketing industry. According to the article, humans have a “lizard brain” that is only focused on three things: food, danger, and sex. When we see an advertisement that even alludes to sexuality, our “lizard brain” takes over and convinces us that that product is worth buying. In that moment, we are led to buying the products that are intriguing to us, but are not necessarily the products that we need.
Another article accompanied with a video from Science of Us expressed that sex doesn’t sell. The video’s message said that an Ohio State University research study found that brands with erotic advertisements are typically not as well liked by the general population as the brands with G-rated advertisements, even though the sexually charged ads stimulate an physical arousal in the viewers, like warmed skin and an increased heart rate. Additionally, the researchers conducting the experiment found that when the viewers saw an advertisement with sexual connotations, they couldn’t even remember what brand it was advertising because they were too distracted by all the sex. This is the result of “attention narrowing,” which is a phenomenon that says if we are focused on one thing, something else has to fade into the background. If we pay close attention to the sexual images, we will not be able to pay attention to the brand being advertised, and therefore we will not be able to purchase that product.
Both research sources clearly contradict one another, but they both discuss how sexual images incorporated within advertisements affect the brain and determine whether or not we as consumers will purchase the product.
Kay, Magda. "Sex and Marketing." Psychology for Marketers. OptimizePress.com, 29 July 2013. Web. 30 Oct. 2015.
Riesman, Abraham, and Melissa Dahl. "This Is Your Brain on Advertising: Why Sex Doesn't Sell." Science of Us. New York Media LLC, 05 Oct. 2015. Web. 30 Oct. 2015.
Annie Stanger
Another article accompanied with a video from Science of Us expressed that sex doesn’t sell. The video’s message said that an Ohio State University research study found that brands with erotic advertisements are typically not as well liked by the general population as the brands with G-rated advertisements, even though the sexually charged ads stimulate an physical arousal in the viewers, like warmed skin and an increased heart rate. Additionally, the researchers conducting the experiment found that when the viewers saw an advertisement with sexual connotations, they couldn’t even remember what brand it was advertising because they were too distracted by all the sex. This is the result of “attention narrowing,” which is a phenomenon that says if we are focused on one thing, something else has to fade into the background. If we pay close attention to the sexual images, we will not be able to pay attention to the brand being advertised, and therefore we will not be able to purchase that product.
Both research sources clearly contradict one another, but they both discuss how sexual images incorporated within advertisements affect the brain and determine whether or not we as consumers will purchase the product.
Kay, Magda. "Sex and Marketing." Psychology for Marketers. OptimizePress.com, 29 July 2013. Web. 30 Oct. 2015.
Riesman, Abraham, and Melissa Dahl. "This Is Your Brain on Advertising: Why Sex Doesn't Sell." Science of Us. New York Media LLC, 05 Oct. 2015. Web. 30 Oct. 2015.
Annie Stanger