In 2011, in Germany, Philip Morris International (PMI) launched a new mass media campaign to promote their re-vamped Marlboro brand. In 2012, PMI commented to investors that “Innovation is not only about launching new products. Importantly, it is also about thinking differently and innovating in the way we market our brands to adult smokers and trade partners.”1 ‘Marlboro Country’ and the synonymous Marlboro cowboy were replaced with a different approach. According to PMI, the new campaign was targeted at 18-24 year old’s and centered around principles of inspiration and decisiveness, where the young are told ‘Don’t be a Maybe. Be Marlboro.According to PMI’s de Wilde, “Once the campaign concept was established, we started introducing image visuals to add emotional elements and anchor “Be Marlboro” in real situations.”3 De Wilde explained the concept of the youth-focused campaign by stating that “young adults feel overwhelmed by the flood of information and options that new technologies offer. In this time of uncertainty, they have very few life compasses that can provide them with guidance. With the new campaign, Marlboro encourages them to be decisive, trust themselves and follow their inspiration. The concept is very simple: there are three ways to react when faced with a decision: Yes, No, or Maybe. Marlboro does not believe in Maybes. Accompanying each image in the gallery below is PMI’s intended take home message of each image as described by de Wilde.
