Effectiveness of Sex in the Advertisement: Compar ison of Consumer Reaction of British and Japanese

BcA. Uyuki Tanaka

Master's thesis

Abstract:

Women were and are sexual objectification in the advertisement and sex has been used in the advertisement from early as the 1870s. In the modern age, we are surrounded by a plethora of advertisements, many of which use sex. In the past, the use of sex was seen as a huge problem, but why has it not decreased? Perhaps it is because the use of sex has a positive effect. On the other hand, we see news stories and articles that criticize the use of sex in advertising. In this thesis, we will analyse use of sex in perfume advertisement video of luxury brands and effectiveness of the videos. Also, in the case study, we'll look at the reactions of Japanese and British consumers to sexually explicit and non-sexually explicit advertisements to find out if the use of sex in advertising is effective, and to what extent it is influenced by cultural differences in consumers and targets.

Abstract:

Women were and are sexual objectification in the advertisement and sex has been used in the advertisement from early as the 1870s. In the modern age, we are surrounded by a plethora of advertisements, many of which use sex. In the past, the use of sex was seen as a huge problem, but why has it not decreased? Perhaps it is because the use of sex has a positive effect. On the other hand, we see news stories and articles that criticize the use of sex in advertising. In this thesis, we will analyse use of sex in perfume advertisement video of luxury brands and effectiveness of the videos. Also, in the case study, we'll look at the reactions of Japanese and British consumers to sexually explicit and non-sexually explicit advertisements to find out if the use of sex in advertising is effective, and to what extent it is influenced by cultural differences in consumers and targets.

Keywords

Sex, advertisement, feminism, sexual objectification, cultual diffrence, locsalization.

Language used: English

Date on which the thesis was submitted / produced: 20. 4. 2021

Thesis defence

• Date of defence: 16. 6. 2021
• Supervisor: Mgr. Jitka Cirklová, M.A.
• Reader: doc. Giuseppe Maiello, Ph.D.

University of Finance and Administration

Master programme / field:
Marketing Communication / Marketing Communication