It really depends on what you want your bodies to look like.
Plain foam works just fine, but, even if it's so called 'closed cell' sometimes they can absorb water. For that reason I like to either 'waterproof' the foam if I'm leaving it plain, or 'seal' it if I'm coloring it.
For a 'waterproofer' look in the camping section of WalMart or such for product like 'Silicone Water Guard' or in the shoe section for a similar product meant to waterproof shoes.
As a 'sealer' over a painted body, you can't beat clear acrylic paint from the craft store. It's inexpensive, flexible, and dries quickly.
As far as coloring the bodies goes, you can use several different materials. Permanent markers are the easiest and fastest option. The pen body makes it easy to control for those who find a brush a bit of a challenge. Let the markers cure for at least an hour and then these with a sealer to make them stay bright.
Acrylic paint is by far the cheapest option and it comes in every color imaginable (and you can mix it to get blends as well). A few cheap plastic handled 'craft' brushes are all you need to paint a body. Add a set of cheap dollar store drill bits to make dots and/or eyes, and you can have a blast coming up with easy and pretty bodies. You can buy a clear coat that has some glitter already mixed in for a bit of sparkle. Use the clear acrylic as a final top coat to make your body look finished and protect the paint from the elements.
Nail polish works, but I've had these chip off of soft foam bodies. Still works okay and is cheap and fast. Durability of the finish isn't always an issue anyway. The fish are going to eventually chew them up pretty good....
Enamel paints work, They don't work or last any better tha nthe acrylics, though, and take longer to apply and cure. I'd not use them unless I already had a bunch of it and didn't mind waiting hours/overnight for each coat to dry. Most model type enamels aren't very flexible, so on a soft popper they can come off quicker than the nail polish.
Plain or fancy, these things catch fish. What I usually do is make white or yellow bodies, and then use markers to add marking of some kind. Things like dark backs, red faces, gill slits, etc. I'll usualy add stick on domed eyes (I like how these type of eyes look on the bait). A final coat of clear acrylic seals them and I can get a couple dozen bodies punched, turned, mounted, colored and sealed in an evening.
I've nothing agianst 'plain foam', but I really like them pretty.
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