Target marketing is a mainstay of American businesses. Fueled by Big Data analytics, smart marketers learn all they can about their audiences and tailor products, programs and pricing to meet their needs.
It’s how you run a business.
And then there’s the tobacco industry.
While they would very much like you to think they are experts at target marketing, what they are really doing is profiling—singling out vulnerable populations to sell a product that kills people, claiming 1,300 lives a day.
Cigarette manufacturers know all about diversity and how to exploit it. Where you live, who you love, your race, your mental health and financial status play an important role in how hard tobacco companies come after you. There are up to 10 times more tobacco ads in black neighborhoods than in others, and tobacco retailers are much more likely to populate areas near low-income schools than near schools in more affluent neighborhoods.
And it’s no coincidence that prevalence rates are higher for certain groups. LGBTQ young adults are nearly twice as likely to smoke as their straight peers. Individuals with mental illness account for up to 46 percent of cigarettes sold in the U.S. More than 30 percent of men living in rural communities smoke. The list goes on.
Target marketing is about helping consumers make informed choices that benefit them. The tobacco industry is profiling to advance their agenda, selling an addictive product that only benefits Big Tobacco, not consumers. One-in-three youth smokers will eventually die from tobacco-related diseases.
It’s profiling. And it has to stop.
It’s not the first time the tobacco industry has used this tactic. Consider these truths:
- Historically, the tobacco industry has attempted to maintain a positive image among African Americans by supporting cultural events, making contributions to minority higher education institutions, elected officials, civic and community organizations, and scholarship programs. And aggressive advertising for more “flavorful” menthol cigarettes is prominent in lower-income and African-American neighborhoods. More than 88 percent of African-American smokers, aged 12 years and older, prefer menthol cigarettes.
- The marketing campaign, Project SCUM (Sub-Culture Urban Marketing), was created in the mid-1990s by a tobacco company to target LGBT and homeless populations. Today, tobacco companies sponsor LGBT bar nights and have a strong presence at Gay Pride Festivals. LGBTQ young adults are nearly twice as likely to smoke as their straight peers.
- And finally, a recent study found that low-income neighborhoods are more likely to have tobacco retailers near schools than other neighborhoods. In fact, tobacco companies challenged a Massachusetts law that ultimately went to the Supreme Court, to continue to exercise their “right” to keep tobacco advertising near schools. And they won.
Tobacco companies are leveraging the world’s best business model – addiction – through profiling. Whether by race or other demographic characteristics, profiling has been a time-tested strategy of the tobacco companies for decades.
Of course, despite the money the tobacco industry is throwing at these groups, the recipients aren’t really benefitting. The only stakeholders profiting are the companies themselves, because tobacco is still the number one cause of preventable death in the U.S., taking the lives of nearly a half million people a year.
Still, the tobacco industry faces an uphill challenge. Through our own efforts to counteract their profiling, Truth Initiative and our truth youth tobacco campaign have helped to reduce teen cigarette use from 23 percent in 2000 to just six percent in 2016.
But that doesn’t tell the full story. Smoking rates are not consistent across our nation. In states like West Virginia, the high school smoking rate is 18.8 percent. That’s why we won’t stop until we make it a fair fight for every young person to resist the profiling tactics of Big Tobacco.
Remember that the next time you see cigarette ads at a store in a low-income community or an LGBT bar night featuring a specific brand of tobacco.
Profiling is a calculated attempt to counteract the decades-long decline in cigarette smoking – and create the next generation of smokers. But they have met their match, as this will be the generation to end smoking.
And you can help. Text the word truth to 69866 or visit thetruth.com/join to become a part of the revolution; share our videos at #STOPPROFILING; and join the conversation by tagging @truthorange and #STOPPROFILING.
The tobacco industry may ignore the truth, but the rest of us cannot.
Robin Koval is the CEO and president of Truth Initiative, the national public health organization dedicated to achieving a culture where all youth and young adults reject tobacco.