The Influencer Marketing Strategy For Reaching Men on Social Media

While generally speaking many women follow lifestyle influencers on social media, the same is not as widely true for men. Much to the disappointment of personal care and mens' clothing brand marketers, there is not a massive fleet of grooming, fashion and wellness influencers playing a large role in most men’s lives. But this doesn’t mean that men are off the grid -- they are just using social media in a different way. 

For many marketers, Instagram is the main social media platform for their influencer marketing strategy. This blog post explores the challenge that CPG brands face when it comes to effectively reaching male audiences, with whom the buffed and polished Instagram lifestyle influencer may fail to resonate.

While it won’t shock anyone to learn that the majority of Instagram users are women, the extent of this imbalance may come as a surprise; a study from the London School of Economics estimates that men make up less than a third of Instagram’s user base. 

Twitter, on the other hand, has an estimated 70% male user base. Similarly, the YouTube user base is estimated at 55% male, with Twitch clocking in at over 80% male. However, TikTok’s gender breakdown of 60% women versus 40% male could also be due to mens' slower adaption time to social media apps.

For CPG and lifestyle brands, a well targeted play on Instagram is by no means misguided. However, the strong show of men across all social media platforms with the sole exception of Instagram could be interpreted as a rejection of the general vibe of Instagram content.

Marketers of mens' grooming, fashion and wellness products should consider a robust, multi-platform strategy with a roster of influencers whose audiences are precisely aligned with their target consumer, and whose strong engagement rates indicate both the audience’s attentiveness and trust. 

For marketers to successfully expand beyond lifestyle influencers, they have to think beyond the aesthetic of the Instagram grid.

The Influencer Marketing Strategy of Passion Point Influencers

While a lifestyle influencers’ scope is typically broad, and their exuberance is often spread thinly among an abundance of partnerships, Passion Point influencers are more focused on a highly specific project, hobby or, of course, passion. Their followers tune in to be inspired, motivated, and educated. Crucially, these content creators often boast a quality which is a critical asset to marketers: credibility. 

While popular Passion Point influencers on these platforms may not at first glance appear to be the most likely drivers of fashion, body wash and grooming product purchases, it is critical to recognize that aspirational content may very well look different to male and female audiences. 

Ultimately, it is a far less polished presentation which dominates on the platforms to which men gravitate. 

See below for a screenshot of Search looking for a BMX passion-point search:

Whether it's hiring a musician to promote grooming or fashion products (french artists @sprinoir and @georgiaxv3 would be great choices), or partnering with Youtube chefs to promote digital fitness classes (like Ethan Chlebowski did on his channel recently)-- it seems that the best influencer marketing strategy for reaching those who are apathetic towards influencers is to tap into their passions.