Many young Vietnamese women have been trading on their looks to become promotion girls to earn money in a tough economic climate.

More young women in Vietnam choose to be promotion girls

Being a promotion girl entails direct interaction with potential customers, but perhaps more importantly, dressing up in alluring clothes that feature the label of the product they are selling. Essentially they rent out their sex appeal to any given brand; anything from bikinis and skin cream to electronics.

Although requirements vary, some of the most common are a minimum height of 1m60, a "good-looking face", attractive figure and no aversion to wearing skimpy clothes. After sending in their information such as height and weight, if a girl is chosen she will make no less than VND1 million (USD47.6) per shift.

Models regularly have to sit for hours for the application of make-up that is up to the standards of the employer.

Many girls express their interest these jobs because of the relatively good pay, with some even making their phone numbers public so any employer can easily contact them.

Dieu Linh, a final-year student at a university in Hanoi, has two-years of experience working as a promotion girl. She has worked as a model for advertising soft drinks and electronic products. She has recently moved to work as a bikini model so she can earn more. “It’s quite an easy job. You just need to wear the clothes and pose for a while and you have some income," said Linh.

A number of models who advertise skin and hair products have said that despite the easy money and handsome income compared to other jobs, they also face risks such as unexpected reactions to the heavy cosmetics.