Weight Watchers’ ‘sex life’ marketing campaign seriously backfires

[Photo: Twitter/Bridie Jabour]

You know when you spot an advert or piece of marketing and wonder how on earth it was given the ‘okay’? Well, a recent campaign by Weight Watchers in Australia is definitely one of those after many have accused it of suggesting that heavier people have worse sex lives.

After research found that over half of Australian women feel self conscious having sex because of body image issues, the company decided to use this statistic in their latest campaign.

The brand sent out a ‘mood light’ to female journalists with the idea that it would increase confidence in the bedroom.

The packet it came in reads: "Let’s be honest for a minute, sex is pretty damn fantastic.

“But if you’ve ever felt self-conscious in the sack you’re not alone – we’ve heard that more than half of women have avoided sex because they were worried about how they look.

"This globe is a ‘mood light’ designed to give you a little boost in the bedroom (a PG sex toy, if you will). We hope it helps you start seeing yourself in a new light – to love how you look and love how you feel.”

And it hasn’t gone down well at all.

One journalist tweeted: “Weight Watchers Black campaign seems to involve marketing the idea fat ppl [sic] don’t have optimal sex lives & would if they lost weight.”

Another said: “How many people thought this was an okay idea before it arrived on my desk as a piece of PR.”

Instead of boosting self esteem - which we can only assume was its intention - many believed the packet implied that the quality of a person’s sex life correlates with their weight. Not a great message.

Weight Watchers’ senior marketing manager, Rebecca Melville, admitted to Mumbrella that sending the bulbs out may have seemed offensive “without context” of the wider campaign.

“As we launched, we launched in stages and that has fuelled the conversation without context,” she said.

What do you think about Weight Watchers’ campaign? Tweet us at @YahooStyleUK.

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