I’d like to think I’m a pretty decent guy, but when I’m standing in line at the grocery store, I know which magazine-stand pictures and headlines will attract my lazy gaze. Of course, those magazines don’t care what kind of person I am. They just want to get my attention.
And they get it. Because “sex sells.”
Well, at least, sex gets attention, and in our content-saturated environment, brands rely on sex at least as much (if not more) than ever to get that first turn of the head. Think clickbait. Think of those images Buzzfeed claims “break the internet.”
It may be worse than we think
Jeff Haden reports on a study that found women who wear “provocative” clothing—a low-cut blouse, say—in their resume photos get more interviews than women wearing more conservative clothing.
Haden points out to employers that they should want to hire people who can do what the job requires. Appearance isn’t ability.
Nor is attention a sale. I’ve never bought a magazine from a grocery line.
Profit vs. People
Of course, the cynic could say, “Hey, whatever works: I need to make a profit over here.” And the cynic is free to think like that and act upon it. But let’s think a bit about what that means.
Cynicism (at least this kind) means a distrust of conventional pieties and values, an attitude of, “Everyone’s in it for themselves, whatever they may say.” The cynic claims pragmatism or realism, but that’s just a mask for what he’s really saying: that power or profit are more important to him than people.
If you’re a responsible business owner, you probably don’t think this way. In fact, you probably can’t afford to think this way. You know that if you don’t take care of your people, they won’t stick around; you’ll waste valuable time constantly filling positions, and your projects will keep getting stalled out.
So Haden’s advice to employers is a valuable warning: Don’t let your reptilian brain win. Find the best people to represent your business, not just the prettiest.
The Craft of Community
The bigger question, though, is, What kind of community do you want to create?
Whether you’re a craft brewer, distiller, distributor, manufacturer, or retailer, the presence of your business in your community will have an impact, and you want to think about what it means to craft your community.
How do your choices impact the people who live and work near your business? Does it matter where your materials come from? Does it matter how you manage waste? Does it matter what values your brand represents to the people drinking your beer?
You probably believe your business helps people in some way: Helps breweries brew or get their beer to market. Helps beer fans connect at your pub or unwind at the end of the day. But if you’re perpetuating inequalities by treating people as objects or as replaceable, then whether you mean to or not you’re doing harm to your community. That’s not who you want to be.
The only way you can avoid that is make sure you don’t put the bottom line above your better self.
Not a Fair Fight
Here’s the funny thing: profit and people are not necessarily in conflict. The people who want you to believe that are like tyrants pitting gladiators against one another. It’s a rigged game.
After all, don’t you consider women potential drinkers of your beer? Why would you want to tell them that you think their primary function is to get men excited?
As Jim Vorel wrote in his criticism of sexuality in craft beer, women make up over 1/3 of craft beer drinkers in the U.S. Your branding should include them in its audience.
I think there’s a simple reason that, contrary to the cynics, social values and capitalist markets work well together. While any given economy has its basic theory to describe it, all economies are based on two things: people and resources.
Yes, you can make a lot of money, quickly, by abusing those two things, and maybe you’ll die before history catches up with you, but mistreatment of these elements creates pressures that eventually lead to change: labor laws, unions, political revolutions, business failure, etc.
YOLO & The Soul
You only live once, so what kind of life do you want? What legacy do you want to leave your friends, family, and community? One thing I love about the beer industry right now is how values-oriented many breweries are. Craft beer has real soul.
A study here or there will still show that our animal natures are powerful, but they don’t determine us. Animals don’t paint Starry Night or build cathedrals or brew bourbon-barrel stouts.
You got to where you are by following a passion, a deep-seated part of you. Don’t lose hold of that as your business grows. Rather, grow your business by sharing your passion with the world.
(Want a writer who values your entire audience? Contact me!)
Image credit: Advertising, by Nina Jean/Flickr
