MARLBORO: TURNING A CIGARETTE INTO A SYMBOL

Morning!How's the week been? My brother is back in town and we're off to watch that new Harry Styles film in a couple of hours. Apparently, it's a huge hit. Let's see if it lives up to it!Anyway, enjoy one of the best marketing strategies of all time:What you are in for:- How Marlboro revolutionised marketing- How they sold the man's man- How you become a killer lifestyle marketer

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Breaking Down The Strategy

Marketing is never easy. In fact, it's very hard. Even for brands that have products in high demand. Now imagine trying to market a brand selling a product that has nothing but negative press.A product that:- Was recently proved to cause cancer- The government condemns - People scowl at when used It would be a nightmare to market, right? Maybe even impossible.Yet, this is the exact situation Marlboro was left with after 1950. 

They had to innovate. Quick. They could no longer talk about how great their cigarettes tasted or how smooth they were, that would no longer cut it. So they took a new approach... But what started as a way for Marlboro to switch up their marketing strategy quickly became a revelation for the whole marketing industry. 

You see all of their competitors barely even pivoted, they just began talking about how healthy their cigarettes were.They stuffed their ads full with doctors puffing away and crazy claims that their brand was healthy compared to the rest of the market.

Have this Camel ad as a prime example:

The points they are pushing are obvious: - Camel cigarettes taste good- Camel cigarettes don't cause throat irritation- Doctors smoke Camel cigarettes

It's classic low-level marketing. But at the time this was the standard (and honestly still is for a lot of brands). 

But whilst all the other brands stuck to their guns, Marlboro came out of left field with an ad that completely broke the mould.Introducing the Marlboro man:

It's worlds apart from the Camel ad. - Doesn't push the product- Don't mention any health aspects- Involves 0 doctors They merely show a man on horseback smoking a Marlboro. But he wasn't just any man. He was the archetype of manliness. Strong, hard-working and as free as can be.

And that's for a reason.

They were no longer trying to sell a product. They were selling a lifestyle. And that is when lifestyle marketing was born. It was no longer: Smoke a cigarette, it tastes great.It was: Smoke a cigarette because you're a free man and you can do what you want. 

It talked directly to the hearts of its audience - men.Their wives are moaning at them for smoking, doctors are telling them not to - but all they want to do is smoke.But Marlboro pushes them to forget the wife moaning, forget the doctor. Be a man and be free. Be as free as the "Marlboro man". It made everything that the other brands were pushing obsolete. Whilst they were droning on in their boring ads about how good their cigarette tasted and how many doctors smoked it - Marlboro became the cigarette that people WANTED to smoke.It was no longer a product, it was a symbol - a symbol of being a man's man.

And that symbol rocketed the company...At the time the ad launched, Marlboro owned 1% of the market share.1 year after: They were the 4th biggest cigarette brand4 years after: They were the No.1 selling cigarette in the world Today: Still the No.1 selling cigarette in the world

Selling a lifestyle > Selling a product

But how can you do the same?1. Tie your product/service to a feelingMarlboro → FreedomGo Pro → AdventureRed Bull → Extreme athleticism Coke → HappinessFacebook → FriendshipYou have to be more than just a product.2. Break the mouldMarlboro pushing the "free" lifestyle clearly worked. But one of the reasons it worked as well as it did was because of the fact it was so different from what the other companies were pushing. You'll never dominate by copying. 3. Talk to your target audience, not the world

The Marlboro man wasn't targeted at women, kids, or people in retirement homes. It was targeted at men that wanted to be free - that's why it worked. You have to target your marketing at one person. Make it specific. Talk directly to their thoughts, feelings and problems.You don't need the world to hear you. You just need to be heard by people who will buy your product!And that's all for today!Definitely in my top 5 campaigns of all time. It completely revolutionised the marketing industry. Imagine if we were still watching those shite ads about doctors using certain cigarettes! In fact, it reminds me of the toothpaste industry today, all shilling the fact they're the most recommended by dentists. I wonder if a toothpaste brand will ever step out and break the mould like Marlboro did?We'll have to wait and see.Until next time...— Niall

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This has been a breakdown of Marlboro's marketing strategy. I hope you have learned something and can implement a similar strategy in your business!

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