What better way to kick off my new blog than with a juicy marketing analysis ripped from the latest headlines? Let’s DIG IN

Unless You’ve Been Living Under a Virtual Rock…

Unless you haven’t been near a computer, watched TV News or listened to talk radio in the last two weeks – AKA living under a media blacked out rock – you’ve seen (or at least heard about) Kim Kardashian’s nude pictorial in Paper Magazine:

• Ample (photoshopped) derriere supporting champagne flute.
• Said derriere exposed (and oiled up for maximum sheen).
• And **gasp**!!! Full. Frontal. Nudity.

But really, what’s all the hub bub about, Bub?

Sex Sells (and Kim Kardashian Sells Sex)

What is everyone really all a tither about? Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t Kim K “get famous” from a “celebrity sex tape” conveniently “leaked” to the internet?
Kim parleyed a sexy romp with C-list rapper and reality TV “star,” Ray Jay, into a media empire.
If you take a step back and survey the bigger picture, however, it all becomes pretty obvious. This is (or should be) Nothing Shocking. One more calculated move in a long (by today’s standards) and lucrative media career.

Sexy Nude Pix (And Sex in General) IS Kim Kardashian’s Brand

Kim Kardashian’s BRAND is her talent. And her Brand is SEX and SEXUALITY.
Even a cursory examination reveals Kimmy K’s built her “career” on sexuality and provocation. Follow the timeline: sex tape … countless provocative magazine pictorials … reality TV show detailing her sex life and the sex lives of her sisters (right down to her teenaged sisters), her parents and just about every guest on the show … high-profile, sexually charged “celebrity” relationships (Reggie Bush, Chris Humphreys, Kanye West) … high-profile pregnancy (sex makes babies) … recovering her “pre-baby” body playing out across tabloids magazine covers … the big reveal – sexy nude pix.
It all scans, career and brand-wise, start to finish. And this latest move is perfectly calculated and well-timed.

Keeping Up With The Kardashian’s Ratings Are Slipping…

Though sex, via her sex tape, jump started Kim K’s “career,” her Reality TV show Keeping Up With The Kardashians (and its many spinoffs) is the real foundation (and cash cow) to Kim (and the rest of the Kardashian clan’s) media empire. Opportunities, financial and otherwise, flow from the TV show(s).
But ratings are steadily declining. Over the past four seasons, the season premiers, season finales and overall season ratings have decreased, by double digit percentage points, year-by-year.
So how does Kimmy boost ratings? And more importantly, what does she do after the TV show (which will eventually be canceled)?
The key for Kim, and so many others who are “famous for being famous,” is staying relevant. And staying relevant often equates to pushing the envelope.
Stay relevant … Push the envelope … I’ve got it! Pose nude, showing off not just your biggest ASS-et, but sweeten the deal by oiling everything up and throwing in some full frontal nudity for good measure. Let’s call it the T&A Marketing Campaign.
DING – DING – DING! We have a WINNER!!!

In Final Analysis

Kim Kardashian and the rest of the Kardashian clan are Marketing Geniuses. There’s really no argument, other than for argument’s sake.
And how did I arrive, with such resolution, at this conclusion you might ask?
Love the Kardashian’s or hate them, we’re talking about them. Titillated or disgusted by these latest nude photos (and all the rest of the antics), we’re talking about them.
TMZ, with one of the internet’s most heavily trafficked websites and a popular prime time TV show, has dedicated multiple segments to this happening. CNN, Fox News and MSNBC (among many other news outlets) have all dedicated multiple segments, and even panel discussions, to this happening.
Sex – Publicity – Brand Building … It all scans PERFECTLY …

Thoughts, Comments, Questions?

What say you about Kim Kardashian … Her ass-ets … Her hot bod … Or her marketing savvy?
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