SEX POSITIVITY: WHERE ARE ALL THE BRANDS?

21/10/2024

Sex Positivity is sweeping through culture. But there’s a resounding silence from brands, argues BBH London Strategy Director Ally Waring.

"You know I'd never kink shame...".

And yet, I am here to call shame on brands for missing the boat on Sex Positivity.

Wait, what’s Sex Positivity again?

In a nutshell, Sex Positivity (SP) is an attitude towards human sexuality that regards all consensual sexual activities as fundamentally healthy and pleasurable. A way of being that replaces shame with pleasure and judgement with freedom - the literal opposite of 'sex negative'. 

I opened with a line about kink, but SP goes way beyond "non-conventional" means. One BBC article suggests that, “depending on whom you ask, Sex Positivity encompasses everything from anti-racism to male nudity in the movies.” 

Why is it 'a thing'?

Oh lordy, so many reasons.

The list goes on!

There is a HUGE wave of Sex Positivity sweeping through culture. And almost all Sex Positive stands are being made by queer, POC or women-led (minority) entities. Sex Positive sources for (straight) men are virtually non-existent and narcissist sociopaths (naming no names) are filling the vacuum. 

In a world where most boys see their first gangbang online before they have their first kiss, this feels like an urgent need. 

Very few brands are really being Sex Positive…

Not to mention the resounding silence from brands. No one is sounding the horn for SP. (See what I did there?).

I can count on one hand the number of brands breaking down sexual taboos. And I really struggle to see any actually championing Sex Positivity. 

Granted, BBH’s work for Wild and GirlVsCancer is high on my list. I might also add Tinder’s ‘It Starts with a Swipe’ work and Relate’s ‘Hornicultural Society’ / ‘The Joy of Later Life Sex’.

But it’s very rare to see a brand not directly related to sex or sexual wellness engaging in Sex Positivity. Even though sex has (clearly ^) moved well beyond the closed bedroom door…

The truth is, brands are getting left behind.

So what the F is going on?

When we dig a bit deeper, the root becomes clear.

Whilst open interest in sex has never been higher, being actively Sex Positive is getting harder…

Exhibit A. The sex content industry is booming. Last year, OnlyFans creators made more money than all the NBA players combined. AND they paid $148m in UK corporation tax last year - that’s more than Starbucks, eBay and Apple combined. Yet sex workers are also being shadow banned on social media and ‘de-banked’ (iced out of their own funds) over misplaced fears of ‘risk exposure’ by financial institutions. 

Exhibit B. There is very little accessible clinical sexology or sex therapy available at all. Especially post-life altering treatments for conditions like cancer. And when cancer affects 1 in 2, half of our population are at risk of just not finding pleasure in sex anymore. There’s also a massive talent drain. Of the 289,000 therapists in the UK, only 790 are specially trained and currently accredited in sex and relationship therapy. 

Exhibit C. Advertising is part of the problem. We have contributed to the idea of ‘sex sells’ above and beyond any other industry and it has only got worse. A study by The University of Georgia revealed that visual sexual imagery in advertising increased from 1983 (15%) to 2003 (27%), with much of that growth driven by increases in alcohol, entertainment, and beauty advertising. Notably these ads sexualised women to sell products that make the customer ‘more likely’ to either attract women or feel more attractive themselves. That’s it. 

It’s clear there is real, old-fashioned (read: archaic) discrimination still at play.

Our society still lacks systems that support sexual wellness. 

And despite the ASA's rules, advertisers can also get lazy - especially when it comes to using sex to sell something.

So we’re all getting fucked by patriarchy. And not in a fun way. 

It’s our job to get brands on the SP train.

With the odds stacked against Sex Positivity and yet public interest in sex being so high, there’s a clear role for brands here.

It goes beyond ‘sex for the sake of sex’ (even though, conversely, SP could even be a 'cure' for systemic issues ingrained in our society).

It speaks to an unmet need that brands can show up for and incrementally change. 

And it ensures that, as culture is moving towards Sex Positivity, that brands also don’t get left behind.

TLDR; Sex Positivity is ushering in a new wave of acceptance, freedom and all round health. But brands are nowhere to be seen! Before they get left in the dust, it’s our job to find a role for SP within brands that answers our systemic needs. Even if historically, ‘sex sells’ has been Adland’s modus operandi.