I want you to think of something right now that you could use to sell anything in the world. Something that will help the product pop and grab everyone's attention. Have you got an answer? Good!

Now was your answer Billy Mays? If so, that is wrong.

But if your answer to the question was women, then you are correct.

No matter what the product is, you can almost always count on a very attractive woman being in its ads.

So what's the big deal? So what if they put some girls in bikinis and make them eat a hamburger (which is really weird if you think about it). Well the problem is that we are using a woman as a marketing tool. Not in a behind-the-scenes sort of way either. It's more like "go be hot and hold this while you do it." What's happening is that we are using the female body as a way to sell things. People, men especially, are more likely to buy something if it is shown next to a gorgeous woman wearing minimal clothing. The girl is not in the advertisement because she IS the advertisement.

Even though I said women are the center of most ads I forgot to mention that it is only the ATTRACTIVE women that make it to the advertisements. But what do these people consider attractive? What are they basing it off of? Are they using my opinion of attractive? Or are they conjuring up a meaning that the public will then base their opinions of attractive off of?

Based off of what I've seen in ads it looks like the new attractive is very large breasts, tan skin, big butts, tall, and unrealistically skinny. Now the reason why it's unrealistic is because it is in fact unrealistic. A lot of times for magazine covers or ads, the editors will edit the photo to the way they want. So they are able to change every aspect of their body, including making them appear very skinny.

Now here is where the real problem begins for me now. They put out the ads with the women on them, but they do not mention the fact that they are enhanced digitally (and physically sometimes *ba dum tsss*....I'm sorry I'm done). So what happens is now you have all of these girls and women comparing themselves to these ad girls. They think that is how they need to look to be considered pretty. And do you know why? Because that is what society believes beauty is.

Now more than ever there are so many girls out there who simply just do not believe they are pretty based off of what we consider beautiful to be. I can not tell you how painful it is to tell a girl she is beautiful and no matter how many times you say it, she just does not believe you. Because she isn't a size 2 with D-Cups she doesn't think she is beautiful.

And there are women who do have size 2 waists with D-Cups who are beautiful too! All women are beautiful! There is not one specific idea I have of what beautiful is, and that is because beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Everyone has different opinions, but an opinion can not be saying some girls are more beautiful because of the qualities they have. That is just hateful for no reason and is pointless.

So this letter is to all of the magazine editors and advertisers who set these high and impossible standards for women to base themselves off of.

And this letter is also to the girls out there who don't believe they are beautiful because of someone else's opinion. You are smart, you can set your mind toward anything and accomplish it. You are caring and wise. You are beautiful in every single way. Physically, mentally, and emotionally beautiful. Don't ever let someone tell you different.

Yours truly,

Ryan Jordan