Promoting tobacco through the international language of dance music: British American Tobacco and the Ministry of Sound

Abstract

Background: Tobacco companies target young adults through marketing strategies that use bars and nightclubs to promote smoking. As restrictions increasingly limit promotions, music marketing has become an important vehicle for tobacco companies to shape brand image, generate brand recognition and promote tobacco.

Methods: Analysis of previously secret tobacco industry documents from British American Tobacco, available at http://legacy.library.ucsf.edu.

Results: In 1995, British American Tobacco (BAT) initiated a partnership with London's Ministry of Sound (MOS) nightclub to promote Lucky Strike cigarettes to establish relevance and credibility among young adults in the UK. In 1997, BAT extended their MOS partnership to China and Taiwan to promote State Express 555. BAT sought to transfer values associated with the MOS lifestyle brand to its cigarettes. The BAT/MOS partnership illustrates the broad appeal of international brands across different regions of the world.

Conclusion: Transnational tobacco companies like BAT are not only striving to stay contemporary with young adults through culturally relevant activities such as those provided by MOS but they are also looking to export their strategies to regions across the world. Partnerships like this BAT/MOS one skirt marketing restrictions recommended by the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. The global scope and success of the MOS program emphasizes the challenge for national regulations to restrict such promotions.

Figure 1

Promotional image used by BAT and MOS to promote their Lucky Strike Tour.^,, These images with the Lucky Strike bulls-eye and the M\cephastorage2OS logo on juxtaposed turn-tables with ‘Lucky Strike Presents the Ministry of Sound Tour’ were used to promote co-branding. This image was likely used on a London ‘cardguide “interactive” postcard promotion [that] hit over 200 London bars and clubs’ where these postcards were free giveaways. (The London cardguide was a ‘network of high quality postcard display units in café/bars in central London used by advertisers’.²⁵) Lucky Strike’s cards ‘were taken before those of any other advertiser. 228 000 cards [were] taken from [venues]—all of which cater for the 18–30 age group’. In 1995, BAT and MOS established their Club Tour, which included a 4-week foray into London pubs and university student unions, with promotional materials and merchandise, product sampling. The tour started with two nights at the MOS on 28 and 29 October 1995²³, followed by events at over 50 clubs and pubs, including student unions at London universities. Free samples of Lucky Strike and branded materials were distributed

Figure 2

Flyer used to promote a BAT/MOS Tour held on 29 March 1996 at Kings College in London. After the initial Lucky Strike/MOS event in 1995, a follow-up tour was planned at various universities around London in conjunction with student unions, including Kings College. Each of the 10 additional Student Union tour dates was complete with sampling and games with branded gifts

Figure 3

An example of the 3-track CD giveaway to consumers at venues as part of the 555 MOS program in 1997. Dance music was an integral part of the 555/MOS Tour. Tour promotions were supplemented by these CD samplers as well as ‘CD Sessions’, three 1-h MOS CDs playing in HORECA outlets by local DJs to promote 555 and ‘Radio Sessions’, which were recorded radio DJ sessions for local stations. BAT paid MOS to make this CD sampler as giveaway as well as Club Culture Guides (brochures) and branded jackets, T-shirts, baseball caps and record bags, all of which featured the 555/MOS key logo and intended as giveaways (see figure 4 for logo)

Figure 4

The key logo for BAT’s State Express 555 1997 MOS World Tour in Asia. The creation of support materials involved exchange of royalty-free licenses between MOS and BAT’s 555 for use of respective trademarks in China and Taiwan. In logos and creative material like this one, BAT aimed for an ‘integrated 555/MOS look’, which was subtle and purposefully not ‘in your face’