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The_super_brand_Marlboro
| The super brand Marlboro
The Marlboro cigarettes story began in 1847 and was marketed
mainly to women in London. This marketing strategy did not go
over so well. In the 1920's, Marlboro cigarettes were then
introduced to the American market as the cheap Cigarette of
choice for women. It was also advertised as a mild Cigarette.
The Marlboro Cigarette brand never gained sufficient traction
amongst smokers and was eventually taken off the market during
World War II. Marlboro cigarettes were reintroduced in the
1950's when many consumers began to concern themselves with the
health aspects of smoking. At the time, most cigarettes were
non-filtered. The Marlboro cigarettes branding position as a
women's Cigarette had also been reevaluated and so it was
decided to market Marlboro cigarettes at men, rather that women.
The 'tattooed man' campaign got under way in 1955 - the images
of a leaner, healthy Marlboro cigarettes smoker and laid-back
outdoorsman commenced. Only very masculine men were used in ads
to promote Marlboro cigarettes -- often these were Naval
officers or cattle ranchers. Following this, in 1954, the cowboy
was created and became the most popular Marlboro cigarettes
character ever. By 1963, the Marlboro cowboy became the sole
character in the selling of Marlboro cigarettes. In 1972,
Marlboro cigarettes have become the most popular in the world
and have remained in that position for most, if not all, of the
time since.
In 1980 in the Superman II film: Lois Lane lights up. In fifty
years of comic book appearances, Lois Lane never smoked. For a
reported payment of $42,000, the company purchases 22 exposures
of the Marlboro logo in the movie featuring the children's comic
book hero, and Lois Lane, strong role model for teenage girls,
gets a Marlboro pack on her desk and begins chain smoking
Marlboro Lights.
At one point in the film, a character is tossed into a van with
a large Marlboro sign on its side, and in the climactic scene
the superhero battles amid a maze of Marlboro billboards before
zooming off in triumph, leaving in his wake a solitary taxi with
a Marlboro sign on top. The New York State Journal of Medicine
published an article titled "Superman and the Marlboro Woman:
The Lungs of Lois Lane." Throughout the 80s, Superman II is
frequently re-run on TV in prime time.
The transformation of a brand from a failure and one meant only
for women to that of a best selling brand, which stood for male
machismo, and ruggedness underlined the resilience of the
Marlboro brand.
About the author:
The super brand Marlboro
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