Music is my Boyfriend

Perhaps you've seen the new iPod Touch commerical on TV. Who am I kidding? You've definently seen it; it airs on almost every station all the time. The reason why this ad is so successful is becuase of the catchy song it's paired with; "Music is my hot, hot sex" by Cansei de Ser Sexy (CSS). But what many do not know about this ad is that Apple employees did not come up with the idea.

About three months ago, Nick Haley, an ordinary student, created a 30 second video on his MacBook about the new iPod Touch and posted it on YouTube. He combined a catchy, non-mainstream song with clips taken from Apple's website and became a fan favorite overnight. But Haley's success didn't stop there.

A few ad executives from Apple got wind of this impressive video and decided to take a look for themselves. They were blown away. Haley was immediatley flown out to Los Angeles to edit his work, the ad was reshot in HD, and Haley got a huge pay-out from Apple.

Dylan Tweney, a blogger specializing in technology, sums up Haley's strategy perfectly: "the song has the perfect YouTube trifecta: pounding beat + accented female singer + constant references to sex. "

Who's got a crush on Obama?

I'm the first to admit that I'm not that politically inclined. I know some will get offended when I say this, but, I'm a little apathetic concerning political issues. Politics can be overwhelming and, for the most part, I choose to just stay out of it.

Well, that was what I used to think. I thought politicians were a bunch of old, white men pretending they care about the well being of others. Until I heard about a certain video called "I Got a Crush on Obama." It features a seductive girl dancing around to lyrics about Obama and his political views. Grabbing the attention of millions of people, the online video obviously raised many eyebrows, but it also earned respect for its politically informed messages. Posted by "Obamagirl", the video has been viewed over four million times on YouTube.

Due to the overwhelming political indifference of many of America's youth, organizations have been doing whatever they can in an attempt to grab the attention of eligible voters. Groups like Rock the Vote and MTV's Choose or Lose have made it a point to educate young Americans to research candidates and vote as informed citizens.

With public supporters like Leonardo DiCaprio, Madonna, P.Diddy, Rachel Bilson and Adam Brody, Rock the Vote has purposely shot photo shoots with the sole intention of catching young people's eye. While they are certainly not overly racy, bare midriff and mini-skirts are an effective way of getting a message across. Even if it is political.

As If

PETA is the largest animal rights organization in the world, at just over 1.8 million members. They proudly claim to “focuses its attention on the four areas in which the largest numbers of animals suffer the most intensely for the longest periods of time: on factory farms, in laboratories, in the clothing trade, and in the entertainment industry”. An acronym for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, PETA “works through public education, cruelty investigations, research, animal rescue, legislation, special events, celebrity involvement, and protest campaigns."

In the past, PETA has been most publicly linked with their very public and very extreme “protest campaigns”, but lately, their new “public education” and “celebrity involvement” operations have been receiving much more attention.

We all know and love Alicia Silverstone from her ditzy role as Cher Horowitz in the nineties pop-culture flick, Clueless, but she has recently made a comeback. Appearing in a very racy ad for PETA, Silverstone’s blatantly nude body can be seen in major magazines and on select TV stations. In addition to the words, “I am Alicia Silverstone, and I am a vegetarian”, Silverstone’s slim poolside image hopes to attract more attention and, ultimately, more support. This approach seems to be working.

Another racy ad released by PETA features Australian singer and actress Sophie Monk completely exposed. “If you are going to take your clothes off for something,” Monk explains, “it better be a good cause.” Sprawled out on a bed of chilies, Monk’s bare body is accompanied by the words “Spice Up Your Life—Go Vegetarian” in and elegant and tasteful font. Go figure.

Call it distasteful. Call it offensive. But PETA’s new racy ads seem to be drawing more attention than any other campaigns before and there are no signs of it slowing down.

Beautiful Girls

Total Request Live, or TRL, is a daily, hour long show on MTV, featuring the top ten most requested music videos of that day. Usually airing Monday through Thursday, TRL is not actually "live"; most shows are, in fact, pre-recorded. Interestingly enough, the top ten videos requested in one day most often coincide with the top ten videos in the nation.

But why is any of this relevant? We all know about TRL and MTV but do we really know the subconscious reasoning behind why certain videos are so popular? The answer is no. Obviously songs on the top of the Billboard are constantly fluctuating, but this is because of the music and the message the song is portraying. A music video is a whole different thing.

Wikipedia defines a music video as a "promotional device"; a strategy to encourage people to buy an artist's album. The airing of a particular music video can make or break the sales of an album. And artists like Justin Timberlake, The Backstreet Boys, and Christina Aguilera, who went on a break and then made a come-back, have all been boosted by the airing of their videos on stations such as MTV and VH1.

But it's not just the music that makes a video popular. Actually, it has nothing to do with the music. The images flashing across the screen often overpower the music being heard. Often found in male artists' videos, scantily clad, attractive women dance in the background while an artist is singing. Sometimes, as in the case of Rocco Deluca and the Burden's video to their hit "Colorful", the female will have more screen time than the actual artists. And in a female artist's music video, the camera will often focus on her seductive dancing and/or barely covered body.

The next time you have the chance, check out TRL (3:30 on MTV) and watch the top videos. You will soon come to the realization that the videos all share a common denominator: young, attractive women.

That's Hot

Everyone knows about Paris Hilton; the eight year old boy across the street, my journalism teacher, even my grandmother. We ALL know. Yes, she's gorgeous, rich, and has good fashion sense, but what can she do? She's an actress, but she can't act. She's an artist, but she can't sing. She's an author, but she can't write. But none of this matters because she's "hot", right?

In 1964, CKE Restaurants was incorporated by Carl Karcher. Forty-five years later, CKE is the parent company of Carl's Jr., Hardee's, Red Burrito, Green Burrito, and La Salsa restaurant chains. An ultra-conservative businessman, do you think Karcher approves of current CEO Andrew Puzder's recent marketing ventures? Probably not.

In November of 2003, Hugh Hefner signed on with Carl's Jr. (a predominantly West-Coast chain), agreeing to appear in a commercial with three beautiful young women. After an overbearing amount of innuendo, the commercial concludes with, "Because some guys don't like the same thing night after night." In reply to the outrage by such groups as the American Family Association, CKE President and CEO Andrew Puzder stated in a press release, "Who better to deliver the message of variety than Hugh Hefner? Hefner appeals to our target audience (young, hungry guys) and credibly communicates our message of variety."

No more than two years later, Carl's Jr. was at it again, this time, with Paris Hilton. Clad in a revealing bathing suit, the young heiress takes a bite out of the new Spicy BBQ Six Dollar Burger after suggestively washing a beautiful Bentley. Research director for the Parents Television Council, Melissa Caldwell, called the commercial "soft-core porn." This time, Puzder shot back with, "get a life." To CKE, people like Ms. Caldwell don't really matter; a sales increase of $400 million in one year makes it all worthwhile.

It's true, advertisements are rapidly approaching the "too inappropriate for TV" category but we are also in a time where businesses are more successful than they're ever been. So, whether we deem it morally right or wrong, sexually themed campaigns are proving to bring in more profit when compared to the average advertisements. The proof is in the purchaser.

"When she sweats it's hot, when you sweat, it stinks."

Old Spice's tagline says it all: "When she sweats it's hot, when you sweat, it stinks." But Old Spice's measly $10 million sales, and even Tag's $21 million, are no competition for Axe's impressive $71 million. The international Clio Awards named Axe its Advertiser of the Year in 2006, probably because the sales have skyrocketed in such a small amount of time. But why is this? What makes Axe so popular?

Axe's recent marketing approach proved to be the smartest move they could've ever made. Introduced to televisions everywhere in March of 2007, the phrase "Bom Chicka Wah Wah" rapidly became a popular catchphrase used in teenage conversations all across the nation. The popularity of Axe's new campaign can be attributed to the source of the catchprase. According to UrbanDictionary.com, this onimonapia is supposed to stand for guitar "Porn-riff" from the 1970s. Pairing nicely with the overwhelmingly sexual feel of Axe's commericals, "Bom Chicka Wah Wah" is proving to be a very successful marketing technique. A spokesman representing Axe says that the purpose of the new campaign was "to subvert the language of lust by creating a phrase that would become synonymous, not only with improved fragrances, but also irresistible physical attraction."

The names of Axe's different scents support the campagin that is centered around the teenage male and his "mojo". Names such as Touch, Essence, and Vice (which "turns nice girls naughty"), Axe must be doing something right. The overload of sexual messages continue onto the internet, where commericals are posted by the dozen on YouTube and where, upon visiting the website, one will encounter such messages: "Science shows that Axe's improved fragrance acts upon the female libido and stimulates the clothing-removal section of the female brain. Which means you can fulfill more of your manly desires. One application of the new improved axe and you'll smell like a hunk of man candy all day long. Which is good, because babes like man candy. Lots."

The trend in fragranced body sprays is, really, the best thing that could ever have happened to the youth of America. Before Axe, a high school would reak with the smell of gross boy body odor, now, schools just smell like Axe. So, in this situation, everyone wins: Axe is making a ton of money, high schools smell better, and, hey, maybe teenage guys really are getting hot chicks.

But, probably not.

JFK was an Abercrombie and Fitch fan?

Can you tell what this picture advertises? If it were in a magazine, would you know what it was for? I bet you do recognize it. But why? This model is not wearing any clothes!
This is what many, many people are wondering about the advertising methods of Abercrombie and Fitch.

Since its start in 1892, Abercrombie and Fitch Co. has worked its way up to being a household name, recognizable all over the nation. But many are not aware of what A&F originally was: a retail store for the sporting expeditions of New York's elite. Katharine Hepburn, JFK, Charles Lindbergh, and Clark Gable were all frequent shoppers at Abercrombie & Fitch. It is even believed that the gun Ernest Hemingway used to commit suicide was bought at A&F. Up until 1988, A&F was an honest company just trying to sell some sporting equipment. But then things changed.

In 1988, The Limited Inc. bought A&F, determined to revive the sales. CEO Mike Jefferies completely changed the feel of Abercrombie and Fitch over the next decade; marketing the store towards teens and young adults. Branching out to abercrombie kids, Hollister Co., and RUEHL 925, Abercrombie and Fitch has broadened its horizons to encompass anyone between the ages of seven and mid-thirties.

But the recent controversy has nothing to do with Abercrombie and Fitch's history. In 1993, a new campaign was launched in hopes of creating a more successful company. Suddenly, A&F's shopping bags, billboards, and even magazines featured attractive, half-naked young adults in sexually suggestive positions. Sales skyrocketed.

Advertised as "humor tees", A&F sells shirts that say "my lucky number is 3, bring a friend", "sotally tober", "awkward mornings beat boring nights" and "who needs a brain when you have these?". Slogans such as these are bought up by the dozen in hopes of making a teen more popular. Billboards and magazines are extremely risque and seem to feature more skin than fabric. So, how are pictures of naked people annually selling a record breaking number of teenage apparall?

A recent survey showed that 32% of consumers are more likely to buy a product if it is sensually endorsed. Experts believe this to be so because it is human nature to be desired. Companies are playing genius when they advertise a product in conjuction with sex or affection. So consumers are falling into the trap of buying a product in hopes that it will increase their attractiveness.

If you were to walk into any Abercrombie & Fitch owned company, here is what would be encountered: young, attractive employees (mostly Caucasian), loud music, dim lights, overwhelming cologne, insane prices, and, if you're lucky, half naked live-models that you can take pictures with. A&F certanly isn't going anywhere, but who knows, maybe soon you'll have to be over 18 to buy their magazine.