Advertisers rebrand the Indian male by ditching gender stereotypes

A gimmick, or does it mirror a societal shift?

Earlier this year,  Procter & Gamble (P&G) flipped the advertising line for its male grooming brand Gillette. Its popular tagline was changed from 'The best a man can get' to 'The best a man can be'. And  the company said that it was setting out on a journey to challenge the stereotypes and expectations of what it means to be a man. In the Indian leg of its campaign, Gillette has a heart-warming story about two girls from a village in Uttar Pradesh, who  bridge the gender divide by running their father's barbershop. Told from the point of view of a little boy '#BarbershopGirls' was an instant hit on social media. More important however isthe signal the brand is sending out; as one that speaks to and for men, the advertising is all about the grit and gumption of two girls.

Gillette’s journey down a sensitive and balanced gender narrative is not unique. In recent months, big and small brands for deodorants, perfumes, luggage, insurance, have all attempted to do the same. What is pushing advertisers to redefine the ‘man’ for male audiences?

Some experts argue that  the #Metoo movement forced male grooming brands to take a long hard look at themselves, while others say it is a natural progression. But all agree that the narrative has changed.

Brands have been talking of gender equality for a while now. But this has largely been the domain of  categories that target women, such as detergents (#Sharetheload by Ariel; Nirma Advance featuring actor Hrithik Roshan and Everyone can shine by Rin), sanitary napkins (Touch the Pickle by Whisper) and dishwashers (#GharSabkaKaam-Sabka by Scotch Brite). The male grooming brands are new initiates to the club where advertisers are moving away from traditional marketing tropes that have defined these categories, including objectification of women. 

In June last year, Brylcreem from Unilever launched its digital and television campaign, leveraging the popularity of actors Varun Dhawan and Siddharth Malhotra to deliver the message that the sign of a real man is respect for all, including women. At that time, Hindustan Unilever had said that the campaign was intended to help men become better social citizens by doing away with abusive language and aggressive behaviour.

Wildstone uses humour to frame the pitch for its male deodorant

“Apart from the realisation of the contribution of women to society, I believe there is a marketing purpose to this shift,” says Abhijit Avasthi, co-founder Sideways Consulting. “Women are an important target group for many segments including ones that have been traditionally branded as male-centric. As their economic power grows, communication keeping women in mind by male-centric brands will also grow,” he says.

It is a challenge though, for such brands to change tack. Deodorant brands, for instance, have had to seriously rethink the promise. Long used to pitching the brand as a way to get the most attractive women in the room, they have struggled to find the right tone and voice. An ongoing campaign for deodorant brand Layer Shot talks about online safety and respect for women with brand ambassador Dhawan driving home the message of 'good thinking'.

K S Chakravarthy, co-founder and chief creative officer of Tidal7 Brand and Digital, says that #Metoo has raised the issue about how women are treated in society, giving marketers the platform to speak about a topical subject. “I don’t think, it (#Metoo) is directly responsible for the shift. Libido marketers are increasingly seeing the pitfalls of objectification. All ads appear the same. Having said that, gender equality is topical and marketers love being topical,” he says.  

Some male-centric brands, say experts, are moving to a more gender-neutral platform in response to the rising #Mentoo, a counter movement to #Metoo, using humour to drive home the message at times. The ongoing campaign by Emami’s He deodorants, for instance, strikes a light note about the difference between men and women to highlight the need for different fragrances forfor different genders.