Brands Must Reflect the Many Faces of the Modern Male

Research from leading advertising agency JWT London reveals that being married or in a committed relationship is actually more important to men (85%) than it is to women (79%). And expressing emotion, long depicted as a sign of male weakness, is now not just something most men are comfortable with, it is actually a source of pride (62%).

On the day London’s Southbank Centre launches its three day ‘Being a Man’ event, JWT, which creates advertising for Nestle’s Yorkie and KitKat brands, Shell, HSBC, The British Army and Mr Kipling, unveils its latest research: ‘Masculinity & Modernity: Investigating the Men of Britain Today’.

As a JWT report, it delivers intelligence into twenty-first century man and finds that he is multi-faceted; as handy with a nappy as his credit card and as nifty with a whisk as a power-tool.

• Family tops the list of priorities for modern men: 84% are most proud of being able to provide financially for their family and 80% are most proud of raising their kids.
• Looking good is no trivial matter: 69% are proud of taking care of their appearance.
• 74% are proud of their prowess in the kitchen and 77% select their home décor projects; being a man about the house is something to shout about.
• Men are still proud to be men; DIY skills (78%) and ability to fix technology (75%) are equally important as family and household priorities.

There has been much talk of gender-blurring and the feminisation of men, but what JWT’s data suggests is that the modern British male is simply more multi-dimensional than is commonly credited. Indeed, 43% of men agree that their sex is better-rounded today than it used to be.

Marie Stafford, Planning Foresight Director, commented:

“Men are not as one-dimensional as the media would often have us believe. Just like women, they juggle different roles of parent, partner, provider or one of the boys. Brands need to start acknowledging, reflecting and appreciating their complexity, rather than simply trotting out the same old tired clichés”

Notes to Editors:

1. JWT polled 500 UK adults during Summer 2013.

The full report is available at http://jwt.co.uk/?p=3744