Advertisers tend to hire attractive people for their ads, obviously. Sex sells, right? But marketers also need to make their performers look like "normal" people, while retaining their good looks.
The blog "Who is that hot ad girl?" is devoted to digging up the real identities of actresses in commercials. We noticed that many of the actresses' looks were toned down to sell products.
Common tactics include putting the actress in low-key makeup, baggy clothing, a relaxed hairstyle, and bland employee uniforms.
Here are a few examples, in which the actress in the ad is compared to her own publicity material:
Fernanda Romero is certainly pretty in a McDonald's commercial, but a big shirt over a swimsuit and messy hair make the Mexican actress seem much more average-looking than she actually is:
Alisa Allapach, a friendly Best Buy clerk in a recent holiday ad, is a former competitive ice skater who has appeared in movies like "The Hangover":
Mercedes Cornett is a model and commercial actress whose professional look in a Lincoln car commercial is a far cry from her bold modeling pics:
Rachel Adams is a cute hipster in a 5-Hour Energy ad aimed at women, and has appeared on television and in movies:
Milana Vayntrub is some average Joe's cute girlfriend in a Buffalo Wild Wings ad. She's acted on stage and on television, and has appeared many times on comedy site Funny or Die:
Hannah Levien is a goofy Elvish-speaking waitress in a Denny's "The Hobbit" cross-promotional ad. She's an Australian actress:
Nadine Heimann is your everyday dog lover in a Pronyl tick/flea repellent commercial. Heimann is an actress/model who also had a starring role in a tremendously popular Katy Perry and Timabaland music video:
Jessiqa Pace couldn't be too distracting in an Infiniti ad about one of its car's safety features. She's also an actress and filmmaker:
Jessica Leccia appears in a Kit Kat commercial as a typical mom, a role much different from some of her risqué parts in soap operas and movies:
For many more examples, check out "Who is that hot ad girl?" on Tumblr.
SEE ALSO: Here's What Amazon's 'Mayday' Amy Looks Like When She's Not On A Tablet Screen