Whist this is not specifically real estate marketing, it is an interesting luxury brand marketing ploy gone awry. Last Year, Giorgio Armani came in for some criticism with the release of a marketing campaign for “Armani Junior,” using this particular image:

The Institute for the Defense of Children in Spain called for these advertisements to be removed on the basis that they promote sexual tourism.

Several fashion bloggers have decried this as being an issue of “censoring children,” and the fashion police suggests that we should, “let kids be kids while they still can.”

I have to say that dressing children up, covering them in make up and paying their parents large sums of money to have them photographed is not exactly what I have in mind for that idyllic childhood.

It certainly brings to mind Seth Godin’s maxim, “If I think it’s broken, then it’s broken.” And I come down on the side of the Spanish Institute – I think it’s broken.

Although the cynic in me thinks that may be Armani has achieved their desired goal. Take a look at another image from their collection and see if you can see the difference.

In one image, I see a little girl – a child, being a child. In the other, I see two little girls dressed as adults, holding the type of pose we are familiar seeing adult models holding. What do you think? Is this sort of marketing acceptable. Is it just a storm in a teacup – or are they sexually suggestive? This is not the first time Armani has had this particular critiscism leveled at them, and withdrew a series of advertisment along similar lines in 2004. This one being an example:

I do wonder why they would try a similar ploy again, unless it was to create controversy. Is this what they want? Have they achieved their goals?

If anyone needs more proof that you can sell anything using sex, here is another example. A New York real estate agent has come up with not-quite-original idea to use a pretty girl as a little extra appeal to the buyers. Paolo Zampolli launched his “Model agency,” last year, using super models as sales agents. First impressions were favorable, but I wonder how successful this ploy has been. The naughty part of my brain wonders what else you get if you buy a property.

This video was shot around the launch. Although, I have to say, I have never even heard of these models. Where’s Eva Hertzigova? If I was going to buy a $14 million property, she could probably persuade me to buy.