Marlboro’s annual sales exceed $15 billion. It is the number two brand in the world after Coca-Cola. And it is a number one cigarette brand. It is a common knowledge that cigarette industry is going downwards, however, Marlboro is only getting stronger at the same time. Every third American chooses to smoke Marlboro. Marlboro is a dominant brand domestically and worldwide.

Marlboro's image is the most powerful and evocative in the tobacco world. It encapsulates overt masculinity; to the young it can mean adulthood; it can also represent freedom, adventure and independence; to the urban dweller it can mean the escape to nature; to female smokers in the developed world it can mean the right to make one's own decisions; to many smokers it is seen as setting the standard for good taste and flavour; it is exciting, contemporary and dynamic. The cowboy is a myth figure and thus is timeless. It epitomises the key image characteristics, reinforces the winner element in Marlboro and expresses the American heritage. Because of the image being young and because of the timeless appeal of the cowboy, the brand can constantly appear young, fresh and contemporary. From the start the Marlboro man was set up to symbolize ideal masculinity. Many people would argue that the Marlboro man represents a return to the American original heritage, that he is the 'last free American.' This certainly has some truth in it. The Marlboro man was generated during a period that heavily emphasized the appeal of the Western frontier.

Once brand values have been identified, they should drive all other activities impacting on customers and be used to achieve consistency, which is so meaningful to consumers. All aspects of marketing and communications should reflect the brand values, as should company employees in demonstrating those values in their behaviour to customers. In this sense the Marlboro Man appears to have a purpose and agenda, yet the flexibility to do things his own way. Control is another major theme in the advertisements: whether pulling in his horse with the reins, gathering up the stray sheep, or even just standing, looking out into the distance, the Marlboro Man is portrayed as having immense control over things and his life. This idea of controllability has a dual influence, attracting women as well. Heroism and the concept of being "one with nature" also play important roles in enticing women. Sex appeal is also present and portrayed through the cowboy's physique and symbolism.

The cowboys in Marlboro advertisements come to represent men of substance, strength, and fearlessness. And perhaps most importantly, these real cowboys came to represent real men, to all the workers stuck in their offices in the city. These cowboys become a possibility, a feasible goal for these men. Similarly, Marlboro Country permeates the attractive values of the cowboy, namely adventure, independence, freedom, and heroism. Although Marlboro has often been narrowly defined as a male brand, it also has enormous appeal to women. This is because, underneath the cowboy clothes is an authentic man who possesses all the qualities both men and women desire. When a man looks at the inviting landscape of Marlboro Country and the rugged cowboy, he is being exposed to a number of powerful messages. Looking at the open grass fields, the viewer sees escape from the pressures, stresses of mundane life. When interpreting the lone cowboy riding his horse, he feels a sense of independence and autonomy.

As Keller suggests, brand personality reflects how people feel about a brand rather than what they think the brand is or does. A brand with the right personality can result in a consumer feeling that the brand is relevant and 'my kind of product'. Two elements affect an individual's relationship with a brand. First, there is the relationship between the brand-as-a-person and the customer, which is analogous to the relationship between two people. Second, there is the brand personality - that is, the type of person the brand represents. The brand personality provides depth, feelings and liking to the relationship. Of course, a brand-customer relationship can also be based on a functional benefit. In this case the Marlboro cowboy projects a free spirited, masculine brand personality. The success of Marlboro is based on this great brand personality brought to life in the 'rugged American cowboy,' and the client's discipline to stick to it over the years. Considering the Aaker brand personality scale, Marlboro's key factor would be 'Ruggedness', with facets including outdoorsy, tough, masculine and western. The brand personality is assigning personality qualities that inanimate products thus make the product stand out from the competition. The Marlboro personality is a classic example of how a company understands and combines the physical and emotional elements that appeal to certain customers who live or would like to live a certain lifestyle.

What one should consider here is Marlboro's actual and potential product markets. These can be broken down into inner core, outer core, extension areas and no go areas. When considering the inner core, one looks at the critical elements in brand image associations. These would hereby be the Marlboro Man, ruggedness, individualism and masculinity. The outer core factors are those which may be altered, while the extension areas are those areas to which the brand can be widened without damage to the brand. These are explored at a later stage in the report. The no go areas are those which would damage and compromise clarity of brand proposition. In Marlboro's case the areas would include any form of female cosmetic products. This is largely due to the fact that Marlboro has established their masculine personality and it would make no sense at all to try move into female markets. This would only result in confusion as to what personality they are exactly trying to achieve and in turn would damage the Marlboro name.

The success of Marlboro cigarettes, which has triumphantly crossed all kinds of cultural and social barriers, lies with the Marlboro cowboy who has become an international icon even in countries where cowboys never existed. The main objective should be to consistently promote one's core branding properties. Whenever legally possible, for instance, Marlboro's 'brand advertising is universally the same, all over the world, pitched to every socio-economic level.' The leadership essence of cigarettes is embodied in Marlboro. This brand was founded with the brief of being 'the cigarette for men which women like'. The cowboy icon and later stereotyping, such as American Independence and Marlboro's Wild West Country, were identifiers which translated the meaning of this essence into an image for generations of consumers to wear. Another association is that of the red chevron which has always done a great job in ensuring that Marlboro's pack stands out from the crowd. The consistency of Marlboro's red flag is the connecting thread which keeps the whole history of the brand's equity alive.

Author: null