Men of a Certain Age – Pathetic?

Posted by Deborah Chaddock Brown on December 14, 2009 under Perceptions | 2 Comments to Read

Ray Romano of Everybody Loves Raymond fame, premiered a new show on TNT last week and the second episode airs tonight.  Men of a Certain Age.

It follows the life of three 40/50 something guys and gives the viewer an insight into how they think.

My best friend couldn’t wait for the show to air, being a man of a certain age himself, and so I watched as well.  We chatted the next day – our review?

He LOVED IT.

I thought it was a show about three pathetic guys who didn’t know how to SUCK IT UP and deal. 

hmmmm.

So I had lunch with a business acquaintance today and the show came up in conversation. He also is a man of a certain age and LOVES THE SHOW.

“Finally a show that shows how I am thinking and what I deal with.”

As I watched the show I kept waiting for one of the men to be a shining example – a role model. I look at my BFF and don’t see someone who has given up like the characters on the show.

“There are tons of shows and movies about women of a certain age,” he told me. “Now finally there is one for me.”

So is this a difference in perspective? Is it a gender thing? 

And how does this relate to our customers?

If you’ve had sales training you’ve most likely taken the Myers Briggs  analysis (or something like it) in which you’ve learned your personality type.  You’ve then been taught how to analyze someone else’s type and then use a modified sales technique to effectively connect with them.

We also know that men and women are motivated differently and therefore it requires perhaps a different approach with women than with men. In fact, there is a book In Women We Trust, which outlines the difference in marketing to women and the fact that they influence 80% of all purchases.

But what happens when your view of a circumstance is so vastly different from the person you are having a conversation with?

The reviews of the Men of a Certain Age are through-the-roof FANTASTIC.  So is it just me? Is it because I’m a woman? Are the writers of the show only interested in attracting the men pictured in the show and thumbing their noses at a younger audience and the female population?

As a company do you craft your message to such a targeted niche that you turn off 50% of the population?  Is that okay with you?

I don’t know if there is a correlation here – but when I find a product (the television show) and two such vastly different opinions about the same product – it makes me wonder how that information can be used constructively to help others in business.

So what do you think? about the show? about gender messaging? Or am I on an island alone on this topic?

UPDATE: After watching last night’s episode I must now revise my opinion of Men of a Certain Age.  Wow – powerful, dynamic relationship development.  Yes – there is some back bone.  I am now curious to see how this develops.