Using tattoos as a marketing medium?

We live in a time of mass media marketing that has seen billboards springing up on every corner and buildings under construction wrapped in enormous advertising drapes. Is it any wonder then that the last bastion of free space, our own bodies, are beginning to fall prey to the clutches of the advertising companies and the brands that they represent?

And how do you (or they) determine the going rate for this prime mobile advertising service?

Recently a woman in the USA accepted $10000 (around R70000) to place a tattoo on her forehead to promote a particular product. And this was not a henna tattoo that would eventually fade after a few weeks. No, this was there for the life of the woman who allowed her “head space” to be commandeered by this particular brand.

So would you do it for that amount of money? 

I posed that question to tattoo artist Ryan “Busta” Bolton recently 

and his response did not surprise me

“Personally”, he told me, “ I have nothing against doing a tattoo for someone who is being paid to have their skin inked with their favourite product or service. 

HOWEVER...I would closely question the prospective client before going ahead with the tattoo”.

He has done club logos (usually Man U), national flags and even local rugby clubs, but he has never tattooed a brand onto someone’s forehead!

He has done a Coca Cola tattoo on the leg of a friend who needed to fill a space and thought that that particular logo would work (he did not approach the soft drink company for any sort of payment)

 But back to my original question that was “Would I do it”? The answer for me is a definite “NO” UNLESS there are large sums of money about to be deposited into my bank account.

With that rider and if the money was sufficient what sort of brands would I be likely to allow onto my skin...and where would I place them?

I already have several tattoos, but none are product related...although the one design was adapted from a banking advert.

Would I allow a supermarket chain to appear above my eyebrows? I don’t think so. But, by the same token I would allow an energy drink to use the back of my legs especially if their brand gave my bank account wings!

If I lived in a country where there was a culture of facial tattooing then I might consider incorporating a logo into such a design...as long as it did not offend the culture of that particular people.

But what if I was to have a particular brand, that was acceptable here in South Africa, applied to my forehead only to find that it was unacceptable in a foreign country!

Try explaining your particular forehead message to a non-English speaking customs official (think Midnight Express)

Should the tattoo, or product be age appropriate? If I got a tattoo aimed at the 16-24 market, what happens years later when I am seeing walking the halls of my retirement village? Will I be labeled as some sort of deviant? Or could be changed to be more suitable?

Several years ago there was an advert for a particular German vehicle where the lead character had the name of his current girlfriend tattooed on his arm. Every time a relationship ended he went back to the tattoo parlour, had the offending named canceled out and the new name put underneath. Eventually seeing that his relationships never seemed to last he had the badge of the vehicle he was driving applied as it was the only constant in his life.

But that brings me back to the earlier question “How to you choose a brand and where would you put it?”

From a product placement perspective the company would want the most exposure they could get at the same time maintaining the dignity of the person who will be carrying their brand.

There was a local company that was wrapping vehicles in order to promote certain brands given what type of car and for what purpose it was usually used.

Could there be casting agencies that would spring up locally to promote their clients with a particular brand?

The bottom line, no pun intended, is that beauty is in the eye of the beholder and if you want a puppy with a toilet roll on your face forever then who am I to judge.

Are tattoos art?

Can the application of ink to skin be compared to the works of the great masters or perhaps even the modern artists like Picasso or Dali?

If any of the recognized artists had turned their hand to tattooing, this would not even be a question.

The roots of this particular art form are somewhat murky and it seems as if the artists and their end product are fighting for recognition. 

 TV programs like Miami Ink and LA Ink seem to be making their end product more acceptable.

But as Ryan “Buster” Bolton, explained it could be seen as a double-edged sword.

“Viewers only get to see the work in progress and the finished product. They do not get to see the prep work, neither are they given insight into the medical aspect of getting a healthy tattoo”.

This was not my first tattoo but I wanted to find out more about Ryan before I allowed him to put ink on my skin.

He has been in the business for several years and is more of an old-school tattoo artist in as much as he did an apprenticeship, which included doing tattoos on himself!

Before taking up this profession he worked in special effects for the entertainment industry specializing in monster make-up for music videos.

Although he always wanted to be a cartoonist, and this shows in his own tattoos, he found that his passion for body art allowed him to indulge in both.

Aside from a two-year apprenticeship, he also emphasized that inter-personal skills are very important…”Its almost like a Doctor-patient relationship”, he said.

Before picking up his instruments he chatted to me at length about my design and my reason for adding this to my “collection”.

Ryan tries to talk people out of tattoos that include names that might be transient. “Try explaining to your partner why your high school sweetheart’s name is still on your chest and tattoo removal is a costly and painful procedure”.

“At the end of the day it is my reputation that is on the line and if I make a mistake, and they do happen, I must be able to fix it”

Just to make sure we both checked the spelling of the words in my tattoo several times, just to make certain there would be no mistakes.

Ryan believes in customized tattoos and that means potential customers will not find reams of “tattoo flash” hanging from rails in the store. There are a few catalogs to help with ideas but he prefers it if you bring your own design along.

He went on to tell me that the youngest person to have ‘ink’ was a 15year old who came in with his parents to have the work done and the oldest was his Gran who was 79!

He also described in detail about how important hygiene is, not only for the customer but for the tattoo artist as well.

The process itself was not as painful as I expected, given the position of the tattoo. My previous tattoo on my chest hurt a lot more!

David Beckam and his wife as well as Angelina Jolie and a variety of rock stars, 

old and young, have allowed this ‘art form’ to become more acceptable in main stream society.

Unlike the facial tattoos of the South Sea Islands, 

South Africans tend to be less daring, although I have noticed several neck tattoos in Johannesburg.

I came away with a new insight and understanding of the culture surrounding this art form.

If you are looking for a gift for yourself or a loved one…consider a tattoo!

I am already planning my next one…

Two weeks later I added this to my "collection"!

The reason I chose to have the turtle done was because it is able to escape the world within the comfort of its shell. The spirit of the turtle is one of protection, healing and inner knowledge.

The turtle has a deliberate and thorough approach to life; Turtle is also courageous because it makes progress only when it sticks its neck out, and moves forward with patient, steady flow in order to achieve the desired results.

The turtle was incorporated into the Chinese design by using the shading

Feeling that my left arm was "unbalanced" I decided to add this Gecko tattoo to the Maori fish hook piece that I got in New Zealand in 2007.

The reason for the Gecko was the fact that it can lose its tail as a self defense mechanism 

and  regrow it. For this reason they symbolize regrowth and luck.

Geckos, are also seen bringers of good luck and  capable to keep diseases away from the  home. The belief that geckos have supernatural powers is common to many cultures, all around the world