A Blackstone Market Facts Research study unearths four distinct psychographic profiles of the Indian male. For what this means to advertisers, or if you'd just like to know more about yourself (or your partner), read on...

By Shailesh Dobhal

He is young, clean-shaven, and good-looking in a plain sort of way. He wears trousers that are either black or grey, blue or white shirts, and bright red braces. He is Indian advertising's preferred male stereotype, and he sells soap, condoms, formal wear, banking services, watches, and cars to an entire universe of customers-traders in two-horse towns, students, young executives, middle-aged middle-managers, even women. Only, this man, whom some advertisers and marketers consider the embodiment of all desirable masculine virtues (from the communication p.o.v) belongs to a dying species.

If you are reading this article in the office-we suggest you do this; there surely must be some scientific research that establishes a link between intermittent mental stimulation and increased productivity (there! That's this issue's quota of self-promotion done)-look around you. See anyone in red braces? Likely not. See anyone who'd like to sport red braces? Probably not. See anyone who'd listen to anyone sporting red braces? Certainly not. QED

Anyway, this story isn't about red braces or Barchettas; it is about Indian men. And it is about the men and women who make a living out of selling products and services to them. It's not as if the species itself has undergone a sudden mutation. The Indian male, and the social milieu that constitutes his habitat haven't changed much. He is still a hunter-gatherer, the dominant financial provider to his family. And Indian society is still largely patriarchal. Women are chipping away at these male bastions, but there's substantial 'chipping-away' to be done. That could explain the bimbo-on-the-bonnet and the red-braces schools of advertising: sex and power, logic dictates, should still be relevant motivators for the Indian male.

They are, but not across socio-economic classifications (SECs). ''In certain SEC strata,'' says Santosh Desai, Executive Vice-President, McCann Erickson, ''the Indian man is negotiating a new relationship with women.'' Desai speaketh the truth: the process of redefinition of the Indian male's relationship with sex (women) and authority (that's your boss) seems well underway. The process will impact his sense of himself, his career, his relationships, and the society around him. Not everyone has reacted to this change the same way. Thus, four clearly distinct psychographic segments of the Indian male have emerged. Each is distinct from the others; and none is remotely similar to the male-stereotypes that abound in Indian advertising.

Steeped In Respectability

Meet Pankaj Mishra. He's 33, the manager of a suburban branch of a public sector bank, and an out and out stickler for convention. He is married to Rashmi, and they have one child, a three-year-old son. Mishra lives with his parents and younger (unmarried) sister, Meera, in an apartment his father bought twenty years ago. Mishra and his father, who retired as a general manager with another public sector bank, make all decisions for the family: where they should go for their summer break (Mussoorie); where they should invest their savings (deposits and debt funds); and what kind of man Meera should marry (a banker, what else?).

Traditionals-that's what men like Mishra (or his father) are called-aren't losers. They may not have great careers; they may not have an exaggerated opinion of themselves; but they're still the masters of their household. Somehow, that seems enough. Men belonging to this category are the favourites of mass-market brands that reach out to them with images celebrating their manhood, either through overt acts of dominance, or covert acts of one-upmanship (over women).

Thus, whisky brand Imperial Blue (''Men will be men'') shows an exec-type almost neglecting his wife at a restaurant to catch up with a cricket telecast. And cigarette brand Red & White's pure-machismo commercials feature a rugged protagonist who is forever rescuing a damsel in distress. The man is in control, and all is well with the world.

In some ways, the Traditionals are the Indian equivalent of the wasps (Western Anglo-Saxon Protestants) who built corporate America. Hard-work and sheer-effort are qualities they'd like to think they possess. That makes the task of marketers easier. ''The key communication trigger for this audience is the depiction of effort in his life,'' says Saumya Sen, Creative Director, O&M. 'Effort' was the central theme of Bajaj Auto's ads for its motor-cycle, Caliber ('The Unshakeable'). But the first commercial where a returning (from wherever) hero searches for his old girlfriend, only to find her happily married didn't cut much ice with the audience. The hope held out at the end of the advertisement-a girl whose car has broken down looking for some help- went largely unnoticed. And the subtle communication cues of ignoring minor problems and going ahead with life missed the mark in its ability to get a message across to the primary motor-cycle buying audience, the family-oriented Traditional. That could explain the company's decision to move on to a more overt-communication, The Unshakeable man holding his own in the face of a provocation to bend the rules a bit.

The other communication cue that works with Traditionals is the value-for-money proposition. This approach is exemplified by Peter England, Madura Garments' 'Honest Shirt'. The brand's positioning and the communication strategy feed off the typical Traditional's desire to maximise-value, and preference for plain-speak. Just for the record, with over 2 million units sold last year, Peter England, is the largest selling shirt brand in the country.

Imagery won't work with the Traditional: thus Gillette sells its shaving gel-perceived to be an expensive option to shaving cream-to middle-class Indian consumers, in tubes (not cans), and touts the economy of using gels (you use less of it). Marketers can convince the Traditional to move up the consuming hierarchy, but only when they offer a tangible benefit, not some impalpable feel-good thingamajig. That's why Gillette India continues to bundle, for the third year running, a Gillette Presto twin-blade razor with every pack of 7 O' Clock blades, at a promotional cost of Rs 12 a pack. ''He (the Traditional) will not upgrade,'' says Subodh Marwah, Regional Business Manager, Gillette India, " because he doesn't exactly want the best, but something that will do the job.'' Gillette's efforts have won it forced trials and a retention rate of 15 per cent.

I, Me, and Myself

Karthik Narayan is 29, a marketing manager with the Indian arm of a US tech company. He lives alone in the city and is every marketers-dream come true. His wardrobe overflows with clothes; he has eight pairs of shoes; and he parties the night away on week-ends. Karthik has no moral hang-ups, and he loves taking risks: he drives his scarlet Ford Ikon like a maniac and is currently on his fifth girlfriend and sixth job in four years.

Narayan is not a monster. He is a creation of his surroundings, an incurable optimist who believes material wealth is the route to everlasting happiness. He belongs to a category called Pleasure Seeker. Marketers get through to men in this segment by simply indulging their sense of self, luxury, or gratification. Says Atul Sobti, Senior Vice President (Marketing & Sales), Hero Honda, "He is very style-conscious and lives for himself". Denim Cologne pampers them with its 'For the man who doesn't have to try too hard' punch-line. The tone of sexual triumph in commercials for this brand couldn't be more overt. "The context of the communication needs to be male-driven,"says Sonia Pal, Branch Head(Delhi), ACNielsen.

The Pleasure Seeker buys the best. Allen Solly's concept of Friday-dressing succeeded primarily because the Pleasure Seeker loved the sheer contrast of the brand to the stuffiness normally associated with work-wear. ''It's the 'I am a success, but by my own rule-book' attitude,'' explains McCann's Desai. Positioning statements that tout a brand's premiumness and flaunt hi-tech imagery work well with this customer-group. It's about freedom. It's about a fast-track career. It's about life in the fast lane. And it is about having a way with women. Family? That's for sissies and wimps.

1  |  2  

Issue Contents  Write to us   Subscription   Syndication 

INDIA TODAY |  INDIA TODAY PLUS | COMPUTERS TODAY  |  TEENS TODAY  
THE NEWSPAPER TODAY | MUSIC TODAY | ART TODAY | CARE TODAY

© Living Media India Ltd