Tobacco Monica Vu Charles Long Eugene Talapa Alex Jong

Introduction Smoking tobacco refers to burning the leaves of tobacco plant and inhaling for pleasure or medicine purposes. Tobacco contains nicotine which increases person’s alertness and memory, reduces stress and makes people feel mild euphoria. It was a common practice of the Native Americans, but now it spread worldwide. For people to know about the use of tobacco, companies advertise their product making tobacco look like they have more positive effects than negative.

Advertising Tobacco advertising is increasing the consumption. It’s attracting more younger people because they are exposed by the advertisements and by the people who are smoking around them. According to the “Promoting a Future without Tobacco”, about 85% of smoking teenagers smoke Marlboro, Newport, and Camel, even though these brands only make up 30% of the U.S. adult market.

Methods Tobacco industries follow a method to attract younger people to their advertisements. –Sports Sponsorship: The companies try to connect tobacco with “health and athletic prowess” to reach out to a large audience by sponsoring sports events and teams. –Promotional Items: The companies put their logos on hats, t- shirts, and other popular items children use. –Brand Stretching: The companies market other products with a shared brand name such as, Marlboro Classics clothing. –Samples: They give out their product as a free sample in malls, concerts, etc. to give a sense of why they should try this product. –Entertainment: Companies sponsor popular events that attracts younger people. They show the positive side on smoking especially in movies.

Restrict Advertising Tobacco companies are fighting for not banning their advertisements. To defeat the government from banning tobacco ads, the tobacco companies have to secretly arrange a campaign for advertising. The other option tobacco companies have is to adopt codes of conduct to compromise with the government to stop banning their advertisements. The companies also follow the “freedom of speech” in saying that since tobacco is a legal product, then it should be legal to advertise for it.

Marketing Tactics To see some of the strategies tobacco companies used, we’ve analyze four major industries. They are Camel cigarettes, Kool, Marlboro, and Newport Pleasure. All of these ads portrays people feeling relaxed, stress-free, and it’s all about having fun. It doesn’t show the cause of what smoking tobacco can do to people’s health.

Camel Camel has a milder taste than other brands. Their phrase that they’ve used for decades was “I’d walk a mile for a Camel.” Now, their slogan is “Pleasure to Burn”. In 1988, they had a mascot named Joe Camel, which seems to target younger audience. Children that were about 5-years-old could recognize Joe Camel than other famous cartoons characters such as, Mickey Mouse, Barbie, or Bugs bunny. Ten years later, Joe Camel was replaced with women that looked more attractive for adults.

Kool Kool tends to market towards the “sophisticated man”. When inhaling the smoke from Kool, it has a smoother taste from the rough taste in tobacco and the menthol that numbs the mouth. Kool states that it is “The House of Menthol”. The term “cool” was used by African Americans in the 60s. Some argued that this brand is adopting some elements of one culture by a different cultural group. Most of their advertisements link to the cool taste of menthol and the cool outdoor scene. Example 

If kids were to look at this product, they wouldn’t think it involves tobacco. They might think it’s “cool” even though, the product is called “Kool”. This advertisement has a futuristic look to it by using the colors that might be more appealing to boys and it says “Look at Kool now”. It shows masculinity when it said, “The House of Menthol”. The use of this brand will make them feel tough, big, and strong. The word choice that stands out is “blended”, “perfect balance”, “rich”, and “refreshing”. Using Fowles’ appeals, it has the appeal of dominance and the appeal of aesthetic sensation.

You can totally tell that this ad was aimed at teenagers. Only teenagers would want to be “cool.” The advertisement says it all. Be Kool. It depicts a man holding a pack of kool cigarettes. The women in the back are watching him and smiling. It gives off the message that if you smoke these cigarettes women would want to be with you.

Marlboro Marlboro is famous for its billboard and magazine advertisement. It became the most popular cigarettes brand in Most of their ad campaigns have red colors, a rugged cowboy, and American Western landscapes. These elements are recognizable for Marlboro country. Marlboro is also well known all over the world for its sponsorship of motor racing. It burns 25% faster than other famous cigarettes brand.

Newport Pleasure Newport cigarettes are known for having the highest nicotine and tar than all of the other cigarettes brand. It is also one of the most popular brands that African Americans use.

This advertisement portrays two people dancing where smoking is prohibited. It shows that smoking this brand will provide you the “pleasurable” you need. It relaxes your mind, and the man dancing with her doesn’t seem to have a problem with her smoking. This advertisement shows that you can have the time of your life with Newport pleasure. This advertisement has the need for attention of feeling attractive and the need to escape where it feels like when you smoke, you can forget all your troubles. It also has the need to satisfy curiosity.

Conclusion Ultimately, different companies use different techniques to get people’s attention to their product. But are they so different? All these different techniques are used to show people that smoking is good. Smoking Kool makes people really cool. Marlboro traditionally suggests that their product makes ordinary men real men. Newport is about having fun. And Camel’s “pleasure to burn” slogan explicitly says that this pleasure is worth all negative effects of smoking. This really makes smoking good in the eyes of many people. And they try it. They get addicted. And they make companies happy.