Best of Rouges Magazine: Men and Testosterone Ads

Women are used to being inundated with various ads for beauty and youth, however, companies have begun to market to men in the same way but in a very different way. In our go-go economy that has become so common in the last 30 years, it has become important for people in certain industries to look and feel their best at all times. As one tech worker put it, “I need to look like I don’t have a wife, 2 kids, and a mortgage.” This pressure to stay forever young for professional advancement is not new but previously it has targeted women. Now the target of marketers is right in the nether regions of men by playing on the many insecurities of manhood.

Gym, Tanning, Laundry

One of the markers of the Aughts and the 10s of this century is the male obsession with working out. Much like the 1980s, Millennials and Gen Z are obsessed with fitness. Going to the gym has become a by-word for living a healthy life. Even older millennials who came of age in the early Aughts started working out in high school and the fit, lean, and trim look with gym-toned muscles was the style. Compare that to the 70s or even the 90s. Being thin was simply not enough, one had to be fit…