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We reviewed the “No More Uncle” case examining the market for male-targeted grooming and cosmetics products in Asia. You used the Empathy Map to analyze a possible consumer segment. Now, translate those insights into a persuasive value proposition. For example, the case describes a line of barbershops called HERR that focus on delivering a “total lifestyle shopping experience,” complete with whiskey happy hour, a social experience, and coordinated skincare and fashion offerings. Imagine that you are a brand manager or an entrepreneur and you have an opportunity to launch a new venture or product line to the target that you analyzed last week. What would it be? In a 400-500-word writeup, construct a value proposition for your offering that is aimed at the target consumer described in your Empathy Worksheet. Use the case and any other sources for supporting justification. Start by sharing the proposition itself. Convey it in any way that is persuasive; for example, you might choose to use the “fill in the blanks” technique described in this week’s lecture, you might draw a sketch or make a video recording, you might write out a math equation, etc. Whatever inspires you. Then, justify the elements of your value proposition, keeping the following issues in mind: 1. How does your proposed offering represent a good fit with the target consumer that you described last week? What elements of the offering align with the job that the consumer seeks to accomplish, and how does the offering address their life objectives (gains) and barriers (pains)? 2. What are the major weaknesses of your value proposition? What would keep you up at night if you were actually launching this product or service? For example, you might worry that consumers will misunderstand the offering, that it is easily duplicated by competitors, etc. 3. How feasible do you think it would be to launch this offering? What are the other pieces that would need to fall into place to make a successful launch happen? · Who is the person we want to understand? · What is the situation they are in? · What is their role in the situation? 1 WHO are we empathizing with? · What do they need to do differently? · What job(s) do they want or need to get done? · What decision(s) do they need to make? · How will we know they were successful? 2 What do we want them to DO? · What do they see in the marketplace? · What do they see in their immediate environment? · What do they see others saying? · What do they see others doing? · What are they watching and reading? 3 What do they SEE? · What have we heard them say? · What can we imagine them saying? 4 What are they SAYING? · What do they do today? · What behavior have we observed? · What can we imagine them doing? 5 What do they DO? · What are they hearing others say? · What are they hearing from friends? · What are they hearing from colleagues? · What are they hearing second-hand? 6 What do they HEAR? PAINS What are their fears, frustrations, and anxieties? GAINS What are their wants, needs, hopes and dreams? 77 What do they THINK & FEEL? 1. WHO are we empathizing with? 2. What do we want them to DO? 3. Wh at d o th ey SEE ? 4. What do they SAY? 6. What do they HEAR? 5. What do they DO ? GOAL PAINS GAINS 7. Wha t do they THINK & FEEL? What other thoughts & feelings might motivate their behavior? ©2021 XPLANE | xplane.com Everyone in your organization is driven by different things. The Empathy Map gives you a deep-dive into the underlying motivations of your people to uncover why they are functioning the way they are. The principle is to start with your people and design with their needs in mind. Empathy mapping for organizational (rather than consumer) insights, follows all the same principles, just putting employees or stakeholders at the center.Empathy Map Empathy 1: Given the case scenairo, it is evident that target audience is Asian men who are falling under the age group of 25 to 40 years Focus is on professionals and career driven individuals who cherish logical reasoning, execution as well as convenience in regular interval of time. Empathy 2: Leveraging of fundalmental grooming products like soaps, shampoo, even moisturizer on a routine level. Occasional utilisation of a few more products like suncreen, deodorant. However, these use are highly subjective. There is high inclination to purchase the product that is perhaps more accessible, affordable as well as offer much more tangible gains like enhancement in skin health and quality of hair. Empathy 3: Straightforward packaging as well as simple messaging that offer clear communicatin of how to use the products along with sharing the benefits These products come across practical, very easy to use as well as compatible with chaotic lifestyle Consistent communication of advertisements and product images that display real men utilising the products as important way to express themselves as well as to elevate their personality Empathy 4: "I require something that is effective" "I cant have time fussing about grooming routine that is perhaps complicated" "I greatly appreciate products that are authentic, perhaps unscented and even have masculine fragrance." Empathy 5: Associating with fundalmental grooming products that are perhaps effective and have given results in the past Concentrating on convenience as well as practical aspect of understanding the grooming products as well as sticking to minimal routine that can be well establised even in tight schedule In search for products related to grooming that are perhaps fundalmental as well as have a fimilar fragrance associated Empathy 6: Marketing messaging and constant advertisements that accentuates on the pratical gains of products utilised for grooming like enhanced skin as well as quality of hair Endorsement by celebrities as well as social media influencers that discuss various grooming products such that its very relatable and approachable. Strong recommendations from known sources like family members, friends as well as coworkers who can certainly counsel them the use of these product based on the specifics of their skin type Empathy 7: There is a greater probability to thinking that one is being self-conscious especially about grooming as well as how one appears to be. Scenarios where one feel overwhelemed and pressurised to be presented in a very polished image as well as put-together as an anxious person Very likely to be perceived as someone who has inadequacies and flaws Empathy 8: Consicous about building a personal brand and maintaining a professional appearance at their place of occupation as well as in the personal journey. Inclinded towards enhancing the level of confidence from appearance Great source of personality development and driving future growth Empathy 9: There is strong probability of being insecure with respect to the way one looks and grooming behaviour May be judged because of societal stereotypes of masculinity SMU076 “NO MORE UNCLE”: ASIAN MEN’S BEAUTY CARE IN THE FOREFRONT OF GENDER-NEUTRAL MARKETING Night cream, eyeliners, pore improvers, anti-aging serums and concealers are all familiar products in cosmetics. There is nothing new here until you find out who their big users are. No, it is not women but men, and not just young men but men of all ages. While the use of men’s skin and hair products has been on the rise globally, nowhere is this more pronounced than in Asia. Welcome to the glittering world of Asian men’s beauty care. Is the redefinition of masculinity or “gender-neutral” marketing just the latest passing fad or buzzword in cosmetics, or the new reality that companies and brands must now adopt in how they approach their customers? Men Coming Out The notion of men caring about appearances has historically been a controversial subject matter. This stems from the hegemonic definitions of masculinity and its manifestation in, and the stigma against, homosexuality that has long prevailed in many societies. As a result, many men have desired but have not been able to openly use cosmetics.1 It has long been established that men have literally been “in the closet” – using facial and hair care products in a clandestine fashion, often “stealing” or “borrowing” from their wives and girlfriends. This is now changing as men are “coming out” in a broader sense to freely show that they care about how they look. Open-minded and accepting social attitudes about masculinity have paved the way for “metrosexuals” – heterosexual men who embrace effeminate displays such as earrings and hairbands as best embodied by football legend David Beckham in his heyday. Then came the “ubersexuals”, popularised by the book The Future of Men:2 The descriptor 'uber' was chosen because it means the best, the greatest. Ubersexuals are the most attractive (not just physically), most dynamic, and most compelling men of their generations. They are confident, masculine, stylish, and committed to uncompromising quality in all areas of life…He doesn't care what people think. He's not worried that people think he's gay. He knows he's straight, and that's all that matters. The posterchild for ubersexuals was the American actor, George Clooney. He fitted all the attributes above and while he was seen as caring about women and their issues, he was undoubtedly a “guy’s 1 Matthew Hall, Brendan Gough, and Sarah Seymour-Smith, "I'm METRO, NOT Gay!: A Discursive Analysis of Men's Accounts of Makeup Use on YouTube,” The Journal of Men's Studies, 2012, 20 (3). 2 Marian Salzman, Ira Matahia and Ann O’Reilly, “The Future of Men”, McMillan, https://us.macmillan.com/thefutureofmen/mariansalzman/9781403975485/ accessed December 5, 2017. This case was written by Professor Dae Ryun Chang at SUNY Stony Brook Korea and Jin K. Han at the Singapore Management University. The case was prepared solely to provide material for class discussion. The authors do not intend to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of a managerial situation. The authors may have disguised certain names and other identifying information to protect confidentiality. Copyright © 2022, Singapore Management University2022-09-09 guy.” Whereas metrosexuals tend to be more popular with women, ubersexuals are accepted equally by both men and women. Men’s Beauty Industry Once an afterthought to the women’s beauty market, the size of the global men’s beauty care industry was estimated to be about US$141 billion in 2020.3 This market, which includes men’s bath and shower, deodorant, skin and hair products, was expected to reach US$183 billion by 2027, making it one of the fastest growing industries in consumer marketing.4 The market was even bigger if other related products and services such as fashion or lifestyle stores, dermatological and orthodontic care, plastic surgery, spas and barbershops were added. In contrast, men’s toiletries that had traditionally focused on shaving razors, cream and after care, was estimated as being US$27 billion in 2020 but with much more limited growth.5 Euromonitor predicted that the region of greatest growth for the global men’s beauty care industry would be Asia Pacific.6 If Asia’s CAGR of 8.1% continued beyond 2021, it would most likely become the biggest men’s beauty care market in the world, displacing Western Europe, which was predicted to have a much lower CAGR of 3% between 2015 and 2020 (refer to Exhibit 1). For global cosmetic companies, this trend would have significant implications for planning for future growth not only in terms of demographic segments (e.g., by gender and age) but also by region (e.g., shift to Asia). Western versus Asian Men’s Beauty Asian countries, perhaps with the exception of Japan, were latecomers to mass adoption of consumer products in general. A good example was the luxury market – whereas personal motivation drove the demand for luxury products and brands in the West, they were more symbols of social status for Asians. Thus, Asian buyers typically sought brands that ostensibly signalled their position in society, mostly to be accepted by their peers. Asian men were also late adopters of men’s beauty products but ironically, their late arrival allowed them to leapfrog the slower and conservative adoption by men in Western countries. The popularity of men’s beauty care and the growing number of “metrosexuals” in the West made it acceptable for Asian men to also express their individuality in a bolder way than before. But as with many technological innovations, notably the use of mobile technologies, Asia took the trend of men’s beauty many steps further. As open discussion of sexuality was still limited in Asia as compared to the West, beauty care and fashion in Asia did not take on the connotation of one’s sexual orientation. This also helped in the bold and quick adoption of men’s beauty products. 3. ReportLinker, “Global Men’s Beauty Products Industry”, April 2021, https://www.reportlinker.com/p05818008/Global-Men-s- Grooming-Products-Industry.html, accessed August 2022. 4 Ibid. 5 IMARC, “Male Toiletries Market: Global Industry Trends, Share, Size, Growth, Opportunity and Forecast 2022-2027”, https://www.imarcgroup.com/male-toiletries-market, accessed August 2022. 6 Euromonitor International, “Reimagining Growth in the Global Beauty Industry”, May 5, 2017, https://www.euromonitor.com/article/reimagining-growth-in-the-global-beauty-industry, accessed August 2022. 2 The aesthetics for what constituted masculinity and good beauty care was also different. In the West, there was a tendency to equate manliness with rugged looking men with facial hair.7 This contrasted with Asia where “pretty boy” images were familiar and acceptable. Moreover, according to some marketing experts, Asian men’s beauty care was possibly about more than just wanting to look clean and good: The men who are driving the