London, Nov 19: The golden rule of advertising – thin models lure more people towards the product – is actually a misconception, claims a new research.
The study revealed that skinny models are a ‘turn off’ to consumers in TV commercials and other advertising.
According to scientists, images of super-thin models carry no edge in encouraging young women to buy and for the majority of adult women ads showing skinny girls actually discouraged sales.
Whereas, plus size models, actually encouraged them to buy, the research found.
To reach the conclusion, the study psychologist Phillippa Diedrichs, of the University of Queensland, Australia, created a series of ads for underwear, shampoo and a party dress.
Each ad was made twice, once using a skinny size eight model and another featuring a size 12 woman. When the ads were shown to 400 young women, they produced no difference in the likelihood for them to buy.
However, when women aged between 18 and 25 saw the adverts they felt better - and more likely to buy - after viewing the images of the larger models.
"For anything to change, research has to be convincing, not just to government and health researchers, but also to people in advertising who actually make the decisions,” the Telegraph quoted Diedrichs, as saying.
"Often people make the argument that thinness sells, and that’s why they use slim models.
"But we can change the images we see and still sell products but also make people feel better about themselves,” the expert added.
ANI
First Published: Wednesday, November 19, 2008, 00:00