October 2013 – Kevin Song's Blog

Does sex really sell (Ethical issue for COMM296)

Why should companies fix aspects of their marketing strategy that still work? While sexual images are raunchy, suggestive, and a bad influence, they ultimately help companies’ bottom line. Companies such as Calvin Klein and Abercrombie and Fitch have sustained competitive advantages over competitors largely based on their clothing and marketing strategy, which revolves predominantly around sexually implicit material.

Sex targets the emotional and physical needs of consumers. By satisfying such personal and intimate needs, companies can create a special bond with its consumers, resulting in loyalty and recognition. Sex can be a platform for companies to be memorable with their advertisements; they can incorporate humor into them. Studies have shown that consumers spend more time looking at sexually-charged ads as opposed to contemporary ones.

However, it is also important for companies to use sex wisely. In an industry where companies are mainly trying to satisfy consumer’s physical and emotional needs, sex can be a great tool. For example, companies that sell lawn mowers should probably stray away from sexual marketing. Because sex targets such a personal and intimate need of a consumer, it may be important to ensure that consumers still have reasonable expectations for the product. If the results stray too far from the advertisements, companies may run the risk of losing the trust of their consumers and in turn, future revenue. Demographics of the target audience are also important. Sex can be a manipulative tool and may not appeal to everyone, especially if it does not satisfy their most imminent needs.

Using sex sparingly will do companies wonders, especially if they have the right product fit. With pornographic industries on the rise, sexual content has become more accessible and accepted in society and as a result, the marketing forecast sees plenty of sex in the future simply because it satisfies an ageless need.

My Thoughts on Marketing Myopia

Marketing Myopia

Theodore Levitt’s Harvard Business Review article “Marketing Myopia” essentially states that companies need to focus on the correct target audience with regards to demographics and preferences. Instead of creating products to fit the company’s needs and vision, companies need to create products that provide the most consumer value.

Consumer response is the best tell-tale sign of the success of a company. Therefore, companies need to focus marketing strategy to promote a both sustainable and distinguishable product from other competitors. By focusing on company needs, inward marketing strategies are usually too suited for the short-term. In subjective industries driven by consumer taste and income, companies without long term marketing strategies will not gain traction.

A marketing strategy should not target one audience, but segment the target market to include many fields and capacities and satisfy many needs. Marketing strategies often play to highlight the company but in actuality they lose sight of what the company’s purpose is in its industry or what benefits it can bring to consumers that drive it. It is important to be open-minded to create a long-term marketing plan that accounts for stiff competition and other risk analyses. The surefire way to conquer this is to focus on satisfying consumer needs and wants. This involves treating consumers properly by marketing transparently and respecting consumer privacy. Ford’s creation of the Edsel vehicle was innovative and a great accomplishment for the company, but it was not an accessible or practical product for their target audience- families.

With regards to innovation, companies need to use it wisely. Innovation needs to help better satisfy consumer needs or else it just becomes a deadweight expense. It is simply not enough to employ the latest innovation for the sake of updating the business- it needs to add consumer value to a product.