Adverts Give Men A Rough Ride
Advertisers are risking alienating men by using humiliating and emasculating stereotypes, according to research carried out by design and branding consultancy The Corporate Edge. The research has found that advertisers, in their eagerness to avoid sexist marketing against women, could alienate men by creating anti-male campaigns.
Focus groups explored the use of male stereotypes, and concluded that advertising offers a polarised portrayal of men as either “the Homer [Simpson] or the Hunk” and is causing men to become “unsure of their role in an increasingly feminised society.”
According to The Corporate Edge: “There is a real opportunity for marketeers and brand owners to help redefine masculinity, if they can identify and understand what men want and avoid creating more stereotypes which men will soon outgrow.”
However with more and more advertisers exploiting the ‘girl power’ theme in their campaigns, the negative portrayal of men is becoming an increasingly popular way to appeal to women .
Current examples of the theme include drinks brands such as Archers, Lambrini and Reef. Further mocking portrayals of men are used in breakfast cereal, washing powder and insurance adverts.
Linda Hodgson, head of futures at The Corporate Edge, said the men taking part in the survey felt put upon particularly when ads featured men and women, as women always got the upper hand.
Advertisers should note that damage may not be limited to male egos, but could spread to brands. Neil Dawson, executive planning director at TBWA/London, said in an article in Campaign recently: “Ads that turn the tables on men and show them in an inferior light try too hard to engage women. It’s the classic error- trying to mirror what they think the target likes.”
However Clare Rossi, Grey Wordwide’s executive planning director defended the girl power approach in the same article, saying: “It is a good strategy but I think its often done badly.” The debate has continued in the Campaign letters pages.
Hodgson warns, “Men feel that these adverts are creating reverse sexism. They are being alienated by ads. Women have fought for years not to be portrayed in a sexist way, but what is happening now is that the same thing is happening to men. Men now feel that brands don’t understand them.”
A straw poll of the 19 male and 19 female MediaTel staff found that the men were generally more sensitive about how the genders are portrayed in advertising. Just under 90% of men thought that men were portrayed unfairly in ads, while nearly 60% of women thought that men’s treatment in ads was fair.
When it came to women 80% of men thought that the opposite sex was treated unfairly, but over 40% of women thought the way women were portrayed was fair. However, in many cases the reason given was that unfair stereotypes were used equally for men and women, and therefore the situation was, overall, a fair one, if not a good one.
The Corporate Edge: 01993 823011 www.corporateedge.com
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