Sexist or sexy? Why gender-based product marketing persists despite young people’s changing attitudes
- Brands have long used gender-based marketing campaigns but more companies are now embracing a non-binary approach
- New research, however, shows men and women who own gendered products believe they have more sex appeal and nicer bodies
Consumers have long fallen into the “pink for girls”, “blue for boys” trap, and it can start young, from the shade of a newborn’s nursery to the colour of children’s clothes and toys. It also seeps into adulthood – think pink razors, laptops and cars – as brands push the belief that people buy products based on their gender.
Companies have even convinced women to fork out more for almost identical items marketed towards men. It’s called a “Pink Tax” as this is the colour of products directly marketed to females.
How could we forget Bic’s “For Her” pens, pastel-coloured pens “designed to fit comfortably into a woman’s hand”? Its design flaw, however, was that they cost more than the regular pens, and they were famously ridiculed by comedian Ellen DeGeneres on her talk show.
Fiona Nott, chief executive of The Women’s Foundation Hong Kong, says marketers all too often play to outdated portrayals of gender that reinforce unhealthy perceptions, subtly programming people to feel they have to behave or look a certain way.