Hey, how about posting photos of naked women? Maybe that’ll draw shoppers’ attention.
Would your decision about putting up the photos in your store be different if I told you I’d like them to be in the baby department? That’s because the photos are intended to help you sell Britax baby strollers and bassinets.
What if you saw that the photos featured a naked woman holding one or two naked babies, and that the objective announced by Britax was to show how their baby holders are designed to duplicate the loving hugs by a mother of her child. Click here to see for yourself. Click here for a video.
Does nudity that provokes useful attention on TV or YouTube cross over the line to blatant offensiveness when those images are shown in a store? The erotic images in Calvin Klein media advertising shocked lots of people. Retailers might decide that such ads are fine in magazines—shocking lots of people means consumers are noticing the brand—but those retailers might decide not to have the images on their walls.
What if your store is in Saudi Arabia, where female mannequins must never show the heads, arms, or bodily curves? Does it seem clear that posters showing naked women would be highly offensive? What if your store is in Australia? Research from Griffith University, University of Canterbury (New Zealand), and University of Queensland indicates that Australian women are more likely to take socially responsible actions—such as ensuring that their infant is in a proper stroller—when ads and signage feature mildly erotic imagery? But would your shoppers consider the Britax ads to be even mildly erotic?
Think now about how to use your advertising and merchandising to provoke attention while never offending too many of your customers and potential customers.
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