AOL has launched its first site aimed at men's consumer lifestyles, together with BermanBraun. Sponsoring the site, called Mandatory, is Gillette.

The site will feature a range of content from video showing viewers how to become a Renaissance Man in 60 seconds or an interactive map of every micro and macro brewery in America.

Men Defy Social Retail Stereotypes

Marketing on this site would seem to be a no-brainer, except for the fact that evidence continues to emerge that men defy social retail stereotypes. According to their stereotype, they spend little time on price comparison and even less time on social networks researching these purchases. Not so, according to Performics’ 2011 Social Shopping Study, which found that men are more likely than women to conduct five of six social shopping activities.

They more frequently research product information, read reviews, compare products, find product availability and get store information via social networks, shopping and deal sites. In addition, aside from Facebook, men frequent social networks (at least once a month) substantially more than women:

YouTube (54 vs. 34 percent)

Twitter (37 vs. 24 percent)

Google+ (36 vs. 24 percent)

Myspace (31 vs. 20 percent)

LinkedIn (20 vs. 16 percent)

Facebook (96 vs. 97 percent)

Performics layered social network behavior with shopping patterns to get these results as well as try to predict how social shopping figures into upcoming holiday campaigns. Marketers that don’t target the appropriate male demographics on these sites may be doing themselves a disservice, the study concluded.