Discussions

Does Sex Sell?

Posted by shelleyk • 3/09/08 • Subscribe to this Discussion [RSS] • Report This Topic

That was the topic of my new blog thread. With Victoria's Secret feeling like they need to "cover up" more do you think that will help or hinder their sales? Do you think sales of beer, cars, chips goes up the more skin their commercials show?

User Comments

3/09/08

philellis

Well, as a retailer, there is no doubt that beautiful sells. I am not sure it is sex, but healthy men and women, interfacing with products certainly sends a certain message....healthy, beautiful people like or do this or that. That being said, I think SOME retailers are taking to too far. I am certainly not a prude, but I am sometimes shocked by what I see from television and internet marketing, especially places like Victoria Secrets. Oh well, I am old and out of touch.

Phil Ellis
www.divesportsblog.com
www.divesports.com

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3/09/08

cranelegs

i think sex sells because numbskulls buy. it's sort of that chicken or the egg conundrum.

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3/09/08

ModelElaine

See, here is the thing; more skin means more sales for men's products. Women don't care to see more skin on other women, which is what Victoria Secret is targeting, thus I don't think that less skin will affect their sales. Now, beer and car sales, that's a whole different story.

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3/09/08

offendedblogger

Well, it sure helped my blog traffic when I switched to a cute pin-up girlie theme!

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1. 3/09/08
  
  ModelElaine
  
  I actually just took down my picture from my blog ;-)
2. 3/09/08
  
  offendedblogger
  
  Did you?
  
  Wonder how that will affect your traffic. Of course most everyone here knows you are a cute pin-up girl already haha.
3. 3/09/08
  
  ModelElaine
  
  My analytics show 0 views today....... I wonder if that's because of that... LOL ... No, actually, I figured out when I changed the template, analytics code dissapeared, but I sure freaked out
  
  PS: I just put a new pic up on my blog
3/09/08

kevingoodman

Subtle is better

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3/09/08

shelleyk

I changed my avatar as well - took off my personal pic on my blog as well...left a little mystery. I have received 50% more hits today than usual meaning 2 hits total hahahaha!! Actually traffic has picked up and I have had more comments sent to me.

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1. 12/28/08
  
  skwguitar
  
  best way to drive traffic (imho) is to actively comment on other people's blogs... but then again I only get 25 or so unique hits a day so... maybe i'm not the best person to ask. It's just worked better for me than anything else.
  
  But to answer the original question, yes sex sells.
  
  www.newsday.today.com
3/09/08

mitch972

Sex sells.. as much as we don't like to admit it. It attracts attention to the product. Even godaddy did it ...and increased their numbers overnight.

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3/09/08

CreativeFossil

comment removed by the community.

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3/09/08

TonyB

Isn't this like asking the question is water wet?

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3/09/08

steverhode

The honest answer is "Yes, it does."

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1. 3/09/08
  
  offendedblogger
  
  Well I have never bought it.
2. 3/09/08
  
  crpitt
  
  I have never sold it!
3/09/08

BlogEntrepreneur

This absolutely begs for a jab. :-)

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3/09/08

CreativeFossil

I see my comment was removed, is the word an*l banned? It's in the Oxford dictionary you know

maybe it was the word *ss? I thought that was good old American word?

meh, you just like removing my posts.

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3/09/08

TonyB

CreativeFossil... we don't use their dictionary here

[reply]
1. 3/10/08
  
  CreativeFossil
  
  you mean you robbed our language now refuse to use the acompanying dictionary?
2. 3/10/08
  
  TonyB
  
  Im from the colonies...just don't have the Oxford English dictionary here.
3/09/08

Sylvia

There is a very simple answer...

YES, it always has and it always will.

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3/09/08

Jturnmerich

what a foolish thought.

why just read this one:
wisdomof-love.blogspot.com/2008/03/singles-and-sex-logical-and-loving.html

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1. 3/09/08
  
  Sylvia
  
  That article is fool of foolish thoughts.
  
  Just my opinion...so take it easy.
3/09/08

blurem23

Sex sells. My goodness.. It is men's weakness exploited for commercial purposes.. tsk tsk tsk.. or is it men's only? hmm. what can u say?

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1. 3/09/08
  
  Sylvia
  
  I'm a woman, what does that say about me......
  sheeeesh
3/09/08

aningeniousname

I sell mine by the inch.

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3/09/08

Hippychikky

blurem23 sometimes sex is a woman's weakness to! Sex does sell. Even if you don't agree you usually cannot look away. It is a memory etched in your head.

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1. 3/09/08
  
  Sylvia
  
  and I don't care what anyone says...I love the New Axe Bullet Commercial!!
  
  www.blogcatalog.com/discuss/entry/the-axe-bullet-commercialthis-is-amazing
3/09/08

msSmunro

Yes, sex sells, and fair enough. I personally enjoy it!

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3/09/08

Rich

Sex sells, but not always want people think it does. While it works in Vegas, the whole sex vibe has put any cultural steps much lower on the priority list ... like, um, negative last.

As for VS, I think they might win by leaving more to the imagination. Frederick's, not so much.

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3/09/08

lordlikely

I believe sex does sell. All my most popular posts involve me either getting naked; making sweet aristocratic love or other such depraved activities.

Of course, sex does not sell everything. I have yet to see it deployed to sell dog-food, or cat-food, for example. Neither would I want to!

[reply]
1. 3/09/08
  
  Sylvia
  
  I missed the Lord getting nekkid??
  
  Lord...can you email me next time this happens!!
2. 3/09/08
  
  lordlikely
  
  I think it shall probably be on the news, such is the staggering importance of my nude state.
  
  Today, however, you may witness me half-naked in a dustbin, should you visit my wondrous web-log. Oh yes!
3/09/08

thegnr

women study other womens bodies more than men in some cases.

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3/09/08

Leon35

products get certainly noticed, but I am not sure if it helps get them bought. Thinking about my buying habits, I it is not at all affected.

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3/11/08

DeansDesignIdeas

Hmm... the answer is short: Yes!

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3/11/08

LGramlich

If it didn't we would be so surrounded & inundated by it.

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3/11/08

Sylvia

Don't forget, sex in advertising doesn't always mean naked men or women.

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1. 3/12/08
  
  picstoenjoy
  
  lol, that's a good ad.
2. 12/28/08
  
  shelleyk
  
  What an ad! Advertising giants seem to use it whenever they can.
3/11/08

LisaT

Uh... Yes

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3/11/08

LinkyLove

comment removed due to link dropping.

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12/25/08

JuliaGomes

It really sells. In spite of being a lady I would dare to say Yes... People who are saying that Sex does not play any roll, is absolutely wrong.. Plzzzzzzzz change your opinions......I love Sexxxxxxxxx.

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12/25/08

dratiffarid

Sure it does. But, not to me!

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12/25/08

JuliaGomes

I totally respect your thought. But I think you are an exception.. I enjoy this a lot.

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12/25/08

OffDuty

Does Sex Sell? If it were not for sex web sites the internet would never have gotten the boost it needed to have what it is today. And as a Retailer when the Budweiser Girls have a booth near mine at a show, guess where all the customers go? Yup, to see the girls. Merry Christmas all.

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12/25/08

OffDuty

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12/25/08

JDh888

yes

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12/25/08

WARSHOCK

sure it does..I've tried inserting just a wee bit emma watson upskirt w/ image into one of my old posts, labeled and tagged. a month later, that upskirt has the most queries according to google webmaster report. Deleted it afterwards though.

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12/25/08

MadMadMargo

Yes, just ask Madison Avenue.

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12/25/08

JuliaGomes

Hi OffDuty, You have just echoed the exact thought of mine.. From Search engine's point of view the word "sex" is known as bad neighbor. But they also know that without sex their traffic will also sink into the oblivion...

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12/25/08

ekim941

Well, I've never bought any.

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1. 12/25/08
  
  timethief
  
  Me neither ... lol
12/25/08

benspak

Well sex does sell, when it comes to adult entertainment. When it come to normal products my friend Norski says it the best.

"The conventional wisdom is that sex-saturated content=lots of hits. On the other hand, advertisers for the most part stopped putting hot girls in bikinis in their ads when someone did a bit of research. They found out that the guys seeing the ads could remember the young woman's appearance in exquisite detail - and sometimes remembered what sort of product was being advertised."

This response was pertaining to my old BC discussion about adult content on your blog. www.blogcatalog.com/discuss/entry/would-you-add-adult-content-to-your-blog

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12/25/08

catatansejarah

Yes it does........

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12/25/08

Nesmuth

Yes sex sells. Once we had a booth at a county fair. We had a volunteer who was 2nd place miss deaf bulgaria at the booth. She created a lot of attention to our booth our cause. Next year the county building set new rules we couldnt use models or the like to bring attention any more.

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12/28/08

JustinChambers

Well take a look at how big the porn industry is. I think the answer is pretty obvious.

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12/28/08

roentarre

Unforunately, sexy industry is the oldest profession in the human history

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12/28/08

anatacx

comment removed by the community.

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12/30/08

exit2013

Yes!...s e x sells! Fact of life!

Now...who's "anatacx" and what the heck was said to get coment removed?

Just asking.

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12/30/08

deco

Sex cant sell but it can make a impact for the viewer to view it more. THere are situvation nude bill boards has caused a number of car accidents

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3/31/09

dmobile215

depends if its good sex, bad sex is only when a female talks to damn much and brags to her girlfriends and tell them about how good you are in bed and then she gets mad when the girlfriends come at you.

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4/04/09

springinhetveld

Oh yes, sex, or at least "sexy" sells.
Personally I think less skin is normally more "sexy" especially with stuff like being sold by "Victorias Secret"

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4/04/09

UncleBeau

Of course sex sells. But usually sex when it comes to appealing to men sells the most. We're perverts.

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4/04/09

xmarks

Yes but my wife doesn't allow me to buy it anymore

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4/04/09

Agit8r

uniquely musky yes...

oh, I thought you said 'smell'

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4/17/09

garret35

just for an experiment I added sexy pics on one of my blogs and my traffic tripled in a matter of days. So in my opinion sex sells

Garret

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4/17/09

onceafortnight

Wait a minute - are you saying all I have to do is put a nude pic on my blog and I'll get more traffic? Hhmmm. Better make it one of someone else though!

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4/19/09

shelleyk

onceafortnight - yes that is what we are saying! Kind of crazy but people love looking at other people especially if they are beautiful and sexy!

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4/19/09

ArsenicCookies

sex absolutely sells. For example here are 2 of my avatars:

very limited hits

after a photosession I chose this one:

and viola, the hits came a rollin in

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4/19/09

LisaNYC

ModelElaine has the right idea! I'm going to be a supermodel, too, and am also considering removing the photo of myself from the blog (I'm the spitting image of Angelina Jolie) because I'm too damn gorgeous and sexy for my own good! In fact, many people drop by just to oogle me, and I don't want to lead them on because I'm saving myself for my soul mate, Scott!

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6/28/09

allofarts

love for sell!

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1 day ago

Briesauce

Sex sells, but I think SEXY sells even more. Here at Blog Catalog I will usually click on a sexy woman's picture first. I do this for 2 reasons. 1st- I love beautiful, smart, sexy women. 2nd- Sexy women that blog usually end up having the most informative and up to date information. That's why you see a lot of guys here on Blog Catalog use a sexy picture of a woman instead of their own because more people are likely to click on it!

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1 day ago

AroundTheWaygirl

Yes, yes it does.

[reply]
1. 1 day ago
  
  ccRicers
  
  Funny that you post that. I saw an ad for male underwear showing women wearing the tightie boxer-briefs. Their reasoning- most men do not want to see other near naked men. Makes a lot of sense.
2. 1 day ago
  
  AroundTheWaygirl
  
  Indeed it does
1 day ago

bringbackpluto

Absolutely! If it didn't, they wouldn't use it to sell.

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23 hours ago

crazyTsu

Ask the logic circuits within the cyborg in "Terminator 3". She'll tell you how she increased her bust size upon seeing the victoria ad

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23 hours ago

shelleyk

When I first started my blog my numbers were not too high - as soon as I changed my avatar to a sexy woman I got so many more views - I do totally still agree sex does sell! Not that I am bad to look at - a model showing off her cleavage seems to be very pleasing to many people

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1. 23 hours ago
  
  crazyTsu
  
  you mean, that's not your cleavage?
22 hours ago

Richer44

Of course sex sells! That is the whole reason I entered this discussion. I saw the word "Sex". I didn't even know what the discussion was about... but I had to participate.

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1. 21 hours ago
  
  sjtavo
  
  sex absolutely sells - I write about it, joke about, objectify men.... in fact, i was just telling Holly this weekend that I was thinking of changing my avatar to one of my cleavage in a bikini LOL