This one’s for the boys (and men).
A lot of my brand positioning material and case studies have been focused on brands that target women. But in this issue I wanted to highlight a positioning strategy that has yielded some of the fastest scaling men’s brands on the market.
I call this positioning “the bro niche lifestyle brand”.
Before we get into it, I want to thank this week’s sponsor: WorkMagic is a comprehensive measurement and experimentation platform that combines the actionability of attribution and the guidance of MMM with the grounded truth of incrementality tests.
WorkMagic just released their TikTok Incrementality Report, based on 90 incrementality tests run over the last 6 months. I recommend giving it a read if you're interested in scaling outside of Meta.
How Does This Positioning Work?
If you read the series on brand positioning, you’ll remember that a strong brand starts with an unmet need, or whitespace in the market. Then, the brand defines its guardrails (what we are/are not) in relation to that unmet need.
In fashion, there are a number of dimensions on which to define whitespace, and then a number of additional levers you can pull to build a moat that makes it harder for “dupes” to take you out. (Go become a member and read the whole series if you want a step by step guide on how to do this).
The Bro Niche Lifestyle Brand helps brands targeting men unlock a combo move that is traditionally used by female-focused brands: the status symbol x passionate niche to mass status symbol pipeline.
A brand like Alo leveraged this strategy as follows:
- Market Whitespace: athleisure for IG baddies–eye-catching fashion over function
- Status Symbol x Passionate Niche: product seeding and paid influencer partnerships with the most aspirational IG baddies (and other influencers)
- Result: the market believes that “attractive women wear this brand”, so it becomes a mass status symbol for the segment of women who aspire to be IG baddies
- Scaling Opportunity: logo product (logo becomes a status symbol) and SKU/category expansion (market is more willing to buy whatever they’re selling)
This playbook originated with celebrity and athlete marketing–”Be like Mike”, Gloria Vanderbilt jeans, etc. But hiring celebrities is expensive, and there is always inherent “key man risk”.
Men’s brands have struggled to leverage the mass status playbook because men’s mental model of aspiration is different. If a guy thinks an influencer is cool, it’s usually because of some result that person has achieved. That limits the influencer’s aspirational halo to products that directly influence the outcome.
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No matter what brand positioning you're using, one thing is clear: if you want to scale your brand with multiple paid media channels, in-platform analytics are not going to cut it.
WorkMagic’s TikTok Incrementality Report shows you why.
Based on 90 incrementality tests (16 on TikTok) with brands like True Classic, DRMTLGY, and Liquid I.V., the report uncovers TikTok’s true impact on sales.
A couple of quick takeaways from the report:
- 94% of tests showed that last-click attribution underreported TikTok's contribution.
- The gap between last-click reporting and TikTok's true incremental impact was up to 70%.
- Every omnichannel brand saw a significant halo effect, with an average of 33.6% of TikTok incremental sales happening on Amazon.
Read the full report and click here to book time with the WorkMagic team.
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Example: you see tons of drop shipping influencers selling courses (“make seven figures drop shipping!”), but zero of those guys are going to sell a branded clothing line.
The Bro Niche Lifestyle Brand gets around this problem by de-centering the success of an individual (or set of individual influencers) and focusing on a community that represents self-improvement, camaraderie, etc.
By aligning with the brand, men are signaling that they’re part of an in-group that has an elevated station in society. That in-group is large enough that “those who know, know”–it’s not like you’re wearing a shirt from your family reunion.
But the barriers to entry are high enough that not everyone is a member, and the stereotypical “normie” most certainly is not a member.
What Are Some Examples?
Here are three brands who have leveraged this positioning into rapid growth:
The Niche: Dads–specifically, guys who are proud to be involved dads.
The Product: the brand started with hats that said “Dad Gang Co” in different designs, then expanded to tee shirts.
The Status Signal: these guys are leveling up to a new life stage that requires more responsibility. The brand is reclaiming the dad image, moving away from the “dad bod” stereotype and injecting more of an NFL/NBA draft vibe (you got drafted into the dad gang).
The Niche: Combat sports–the brand differentiated by acknowledging the role that combat sports plays in many men’s mental health (“everyone’s got something to kill”)
The Product: The brand started with a line of Muay Thai shorts, then expanded into other combat sports like jiujitsu and general workout apparel. Traditional Muay Thai shorts have loud designs; the brand leveraged that to stand out visually.
The Status Signal: guys who train in combat sports are typically in great shape and could hypothetically beat you up. Training also represents self-development and mastery of a skill.
The Niche: travel/competitive baseball. The brand was started by a baseball-obsessed teenager who ran an Instagram account dedicated to baseball.
The Product: Printed shorts and tees are the hero products.
The Status Signal: Some of BLS101’s influencer-endorsers are pro ballplayers who started wearing the brand as kids, then went on to go pro. That embodies the dream behind the brand in a way that’s more tangible than a traditional Nike athlete sponsorship.
The brand also celebrates the values that are reinforced by playing the sport–dedication, teamwork and grit.
Pro sports jerseys have been co-opted by some of the less aspirational sides of sports fan culture (gambling, binge drinking, etc), so it’s a way to identify with the sport as an active participant.