09.30.09
Conquering the Male Animal
Special considerations must be made when marketing personal care products to men. Some of these challenges are the importance of using language that does not connote femininity when naming and describing products, men’s reluctance to ask for beauty advice from consultants and how to actually get men to approach the cosmetic counter. These and other important issues affecting the men’s grooming market were discussed on June 13 during the HBA Global Expo at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, New York, NY. At this seminar, “Conquering the Male Animal,” a panel of experts in the field of men’s personal care products gathered to share their insights and findings with marketers, advertising executives, new product developers and a host of other industry insiders. The seminar leader, Mark Brooks, group manager, NPD BeautyTrends, moderated a panel of experts from various men’s grooming companies and a consulting company. While the speakers all had different advice to offer on succeeding in this market, there were some common themes that were addressed such as the media’s effect, an aging baby boomer population and an increased emphasis on appearance.
Lisa Hawkins, executive director of marketing, Aramis, Inc., detailed some of the differences between male and female consumers. According to Ms. Hawkins, men are interested in looking their best more than ever before and are willing to try personal care products; however, men are not as likely as women to experiment with personal care products for fun. The products must be functional and produce results. According to her research, women, as consumers, are easy to catch but hard to hold on to; conversely men are hard to catch, but easier to hold on to.
She named four keys to success in marketing to men: deliver real benefits, focus on language, keep it simple and help them to win.
Ms. Hawkins revealed that men are sensitive to language. “They don’t want makeup words,” she revealed. In addition, she said that there should be an emphasis placed on non-traditional marketing and that marketers should “go to where the men are,” which isn’t necessarily at the fragrance bar. Successful men’s lines will also offer a simple and discrete source of information with an emphasis on sampling and demonstration.
Colin Hession, managing director of Colin Hession Consulting and a columnist for Cosmetic Packaging and Design and Happi, told the audience “mass is where it’s at” in terms of men’s grooming products. Mr. Hession cited Lynx, the leading brand of men’s grooming products in Europe, as an example. “Lynx succeeded in penetrating the male market by giving young men permission to use fragrance in the form of deo sprays which are really fragrance alternatives,” Mr. Hession explained. The reason that Lynx was so successful is that the deo sprays fit in with a man’s everyday routine, they got the language right and used “masculine” imagery and words. Mr. Hession also noted that ranges of personal care products are also very popular in Europe.
Brian Robinson, executive vice president of sales and marketing for Zirh International, a prestige line of men’s skin care products, detailed ways to attract men to department store cosmetic counters. According to Mr. Robinson, the men’s grooming category is currently stable and there is room for growth. He noted that men are brand loyal and creatures of habit. The category has experienced growth as a result of several factors. The media has influenced men’s notions about skin care products as a proliferation of men’s magazines has convinced men that it is acceptable to use grooming products. This in turn makes them more comfortable approaching the skin care counter. Added pressure to look good and increased affluence have convinced baby boomers to buy these products too.
Challenges do remain, however. Mr. Robinson suggested marketers use demonstrators instead of line personnel because men will respond to a hands-on approach. Another challenge is the low visitation rates of male customers to department and specialty stores and the reluctance of men to approach the counter and discuss skin care issues with consultants. Retailers can combat this with special promotions, demonstration access, tester units, sampling and on-counter literature, he noted.
In the final part of his presentation, Mr. Robinson outlined how to conquer the male animal: ensure the company has strong logistics, allocate proper financing, keep costs low and introduce tertiary items such as eye cream through more traditional items such as aftershave.
Anthony Rosnick, president of Anthony Logistics for Men, a line of skin care and bath and body products designed exclusively for men, concluded the session with his presentation, “Trends on the Men’s Grooming Market.”
Mr. Rosnick reported that the category is growing 11% a year. Hair color is the fastest growing subsegment, increasing 80% last year. Some of the reasons he cites for this growth are the huge baby boomer market, increased awareness of how appearance affects a man’s personal life and business dealings and the media, especially men’s magazines that have beauty columns.
According to Mr. Rosnick, “Men’s magazines such as GQ, Esquire and Men’s Health have dedicated a growing number of columns to looking good and feeling good.” Men are now more willing to spend more on products, as shown with the success of Gillette’s premium-priced Mach 3 razor.
He calls the recent trend of men visiting spas and buying personal care products, the “beautification of the American male.” According to Mr. Rosnick, as women buy these products for the man in their life, they become more aware of the benefits of them. As it becomes more acceptable for men to buy these products the market will increase. According to Mr. Rosnick, “As a result of media and work acceptance, men are increasingly demanding men’s products.”