Beauty as Power (Pt 6): Sexual Business Strategy

How we feel about others’ attractiveness influences us. Businesses create sophisticated marketing, advertising and branding strategies often tapping into the sexual energy this attractiveness creates. Yes, we generally know this, but to what depths do we?

For example, imagine walking by a storefront window. It’s merchandised to attract our attention, stop us and encourage our entering. Now, translate this to television. Channel surfing is akin to walking by a storefront. Moreover, continue imagining once your inside. The merchandising, which is often beautiful, encourages us to remain. Casinos are notorious for this.

Return to television. The article, “Foxy Ladies” (The Atlantic, September 2012 edition) by Liza Mundy, discusses the depths to which sex is strategically used to attract us and keep us watching. While it focuses on Fox News and Fox Business, they are trendsetters for other news and business shows when it comes to the infusion of glitz, glamour, makeup, dress and sexual energy tailored to their audiences’ tastes. All is aimed at enticing and securing our attention without our awareness. Moreover, women are at the forefront of this infusion.

For example, “Fox sets look like stage sets: ‘The colors are brighter, the camera angles faster. Everything pops on the screen more, everything is eye candy.’” Even though the sexual strategy is aimed at their predominantly male audience, “the truth is, women also [especially conservative women] like to look at pretty women.” Since the male audience is also older, “winsome, lavishly cosmeticized women [are] paired with older men.”

As this trend evolves, each show will carefully and intricately calibrate the sexual energy it desires to project for its audiences. Thus, this aspect of beauty becomes integrated with its other aspects (i.e. attractiveness, glamor, movement) to increasingly form a comprehensive sexual business strategy to attract and retain viewers.