12 Ad Campaigns that Prove Sex Still Sells

Ad campaigns may seem a dime a dozen, and that may never seem truer than in the age of the Internet, but when it comes to effective marketing there is an old adage that stands true to this day: Sex sells. These 12 ad campaigns are all perfect testament to the old saying, and they set themselves apart from the white noise of blander advertising by taking the naughtier route. Parents and feminists may hate them, but there’s no doubt that they work.



PETA

PETA, as an organization, is sure to make headlines at least once a year for bad behavior, and usually the sort that converts men to the leafy lifestyle. The 2009 Super Bowl was no exception, and the girls of PETA hit the Internet hard when their proposed ad was declined and subsequently banned from television by NBC. As you can see in the video, it’s no ordinary pro-vegetable commercial — and NBC didn’t mince words when telling PETA why it wouldn’t air. Among other things, NBC execs said that in order for the ad to have a chance at running, it would have to lose the segments that showed a woman “rubbing her pelvic region with a pumpkin,” “licking” said pumpkin, “licking an eggplant,” “rubbing asparagus on her breast,” and, of course, the part with a woman “screwing herself with broccoli.” Despite NBC’s efforts, no less than half the Internet watched the video anyway.



Calvin Klein

Image Source

Calvin Klein ads have more or less become synonymous over the years with sex appeal, and we really can’t blame them for sticking with what works. Lately, the eye-popping lovely that’s been luring watchers closer to their screens has been Zoe Saldana, who writhes around playfully in her undies while conversing with the camera. One may think that she’s hard to beat, but memories are short. Eva Mendes has played this game before, but unlike Zoe, she was willing to bare all in front of the lens — and the result was so hot that it couldn’t run on American television.



Durex

Image Source

Andrej Krahne came up with this ingenius ad campaign for Durex earlier this year, and it was so good that it spread across the Internet like wildfire almost overnight. Women tend to hate it, but in doing so they also tend to share it with others while talking about just how much they hate it, spreading it even further. Men tend to love it, and have no difficulty sharing it with every friend they have. There are three versions of the ad, with three different activities and/or positions involved, and it’s pretty tough to pick a favorite — see for yourself and try.



Guinness

Guiness isn’t usually known for taking the overwhelmingly sexual route in its advertising campaigns, but there’s an exception for everything. This ad is so unbelievably brazen, raunchy, and direct, that it has the effect of paralyzing the watcher until it’s over — whether the viewer actually likes it or not. When it comes down to it, women are likely to stare in horror and disgust, while men tend to stare in hopes that it doesn’t end so quickly.



Axe

Axe, known for its ad-shenanigans and exploiting the male sex-drive, has to have the funniest addition to this list. First popping up in January of this year on YouTube, the ad features two undeniably hot women who seem to want nothing more than to help men clean their balls — their sporting balls. It’s basically two and a half minutes of non-stop innuendo and dirty ball-jokes. The ad was meant to sell what is more or less nothing more than a luffa mounted on rubber, but it’s not the cleaning tool that guys are watching when this video is playing.



Levi’s

Levi’s has been awfully quiet for the last few months, but this ad has proven to be enough to hold us over until the next over-the-top campaign of denim-laced promiscuity comes to fruition. This ad shows what is apparently the sexiest rendition of American hipsteresque debauchery — and instead of selling jeans, seems to sell the adventurous idea of picking up a complete stranger and using a strange family’s apartment for a quickie. Sounds good to us, since a brand like Levi’s hardly needs any help selling jeans.



Lovemachine Condoms

Image Source

Condoms, unlike most things, are quite difficult to market without using sex, but it’s a fact that some companies are better at making condoms sexy than others. Lovemachine Condoms happen to be one of the best, and they made that clear when they began their “take longer, give longer” campaign. The ads all involve exquisitely sexy girls in a compromising position, and some form of subtle joke that hints at the idea of lasting longer in bed. This one is the best of them all; from the ridiculously hot figure of the girl, to the obvious “sex sweat” forming on the small of her back, to the way she’s clenching the sheets beneath her — this is one hot ad.



Aniela

Image Source

Shot by the same guy who took this photo of David Lynch, this ad for Aniela Bras makes it difficult to look away. The idea behind it was “48 years of experience in handmade lingerie,” and the juxtaposition of the creepily old hands cupping the obviously young breasts is one that doesn’t leave the mind quickly. That being said, the detail of those breasts is nothing short of stunning.



Lorgan’s

Image Source

Though it’s just recently begun to crop up in various parts of the Internet, this ad campaign is already 2 years old — and it’s nowhere near played out yet. The ad was originally meant for a Singapore market, and the idea behind it was the slogan “Lorgan’s The Retro Store. Everything from the 60s. Well, almost.” There were several cardboard poses in the campaign, but this one was the major favorite (for obvious reasons).



Nikon

Image Source

Nikon doesn’t usually dabble in the sexy ad-business, but when it decides to do something, it does it well. This ad for the S60 point and shoot was meant to convey the simple but potent message that the camera “detects up to 12 faces.” There were several ads run simultaneously, both in print and online format, but this one was the winner by far since it was the only one that included scantily-clad young women on a bed. What people usually fail to notice are the 5 other faces in the background of the picture — look closely.



Burger King

Image Source

Burger King’s no stranger to shock-advertising, but that didn’t stop it from reeling back a bit from the backlash that this ad caused when it rode the waves of social networks from Malaysia to the USA — where women in all 50 states were up in arms over it’s supposedly offensive nature. Don’t get us wrong, there’s little doubt that this is a blatant blowjob joke under the guise of selling a sandwich, but there’s even less doubt that it’s a really effective ad.



Forrest & Bob

Image Source

We saved the best for last, and it really was worth it. Forrest & Bob are an underwear company that really knows how to sell lingerie, because they had the good sense to hire photographer Henrik Adamsen to shoot this ad for them (in both video and stills). Adamsen, in turn, had the good taste to use a model by the name of Sarah Grünewald as the centerpiece for said shoot. The still photos have been floating around the various social networks as though they were some sort of ultimate sexual fine art masterpiece (we won’t argue), while the video itself is a bit hotter than actual porn. See for yourself.