Sex sells – as simple as it may sound, but it’s true. We, as consumers, may not like to be audited as simply following the commercial industries’ lure of sexual images that undoubtedly prone us to buy certain products. Yet, the fact that advertisement has been working with sexual images for decades is a very strong indicator for the simple fact that: Sex sells. My intention when looking for an interesting commercial to analyze was to find an ad in which one can easily follow our society’s idea of the commonly accepted view of men’s dominance and women’s subordination.
An ad amplifying this view would have been a very interesting analysis for me to write about, particularly from a female perspective. In my research, I came upon many famous Beverage commercials which portray females as sex symbols. Who doesn’t remember Cindy Crawford’s Pepsi commercial of 1990? One that stood out the most to me is, without doubt, the Diet Coke TV commercial of Spring 2013. The ad which was produced by art director Neil Dawson at BETC London and shot in South Africa by director Rocky Morton, features the male model Andrew Copper, disguised as a landscaper, as the new ultimate Diet Coke Heartthrob. While the Coca-Cola company’s intention with this ad is to clearly sell a beverage, it implicitly sends various messages to the consumer. Subliminal messages including female initiative, strength, as well as body image expectations. Additionally, this ad fits very well into the current movement of female empowerment.
