human billboards

in the name of advertising, what people will do for cash ...

Woman auctions ad rights on baby's birth
The Sydney Morning Herald, March 11

A woman has sold the advertising rights to her pregnancy for $US1,000 ($A1,365) to an internet company, giving exclusive rights to temporarily tattoo its brand-name onto her belly and broadcast the birth of her daughter live on the internet.

Asia Francis, 21, of St Louis, Missouri, whose baby is due any day, auctioned off the rights on eBay - becoming just the latest American to join the human billboard trend.

Twenty-one year old Andrew Fischer earned more than $US37,000 ($A50,500) last year by bearing a corporate logo on his forehead for a month. Michele Hutchison auctioned ad rights for her baby's clothing on eBay last year, seeking $US1,000 for a months' lease.

For big companies, the idea is simple. Do something outrageous or strange, grab some media attention and cut through the clutter of advertising messages that bombards consumers.

"It's a well-held theory in the advertising industry that the average person on the street receives up to 3,000 branded messages a day," said Floyd Hayes, whose New York advertising firm, Cunning Communications, specialises in media stunts. ...

The pregnant belly is prime real estate for auction because it's likely to get people talking, Hayes said. ...

Francis said she got the idea to sponsor her first childbirth after seeing another expecting mom auctioning ad rights on eBay. She said she will be induced late next week if she has not already given birth. Unmarried and unemployed, she will use the ad revenue to make car payments, she said.

But, Hayes said, the gold rush on human anatomy seems to be drying up.

"Once the shock of the new is gone, it's lost its power as a piece of communication," he said. ...