Abc Analysis - Uptown, Dakota and Powermaster

Uptown, Dakota and Powermaster

---Case Study Analysis

Course Name: Marketing Ethics (M)

Student Name: TING WANG

Student number: 1601392

I. Background of the Case

In 1989, R.J. Reynolds announced to introduce a plan for Uptown, the cigarettes designed to target at black smokers. However, Uptown never reached the shelves because the opposition of some interest groups. In 1990, R.J. Reynolds begun to sell Dakota, which were a new cigarette brand targeted primarily at 18 to 24 years old female. In 1990, the alcohol producer Heileman Brewing Company launched a new high-alcohol drink PowerMaster, in order to targeted at black customers. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. and G. Heileman Brewing Co. targeted the minority and ethnic groups. The segmentation marketing strategy of the cigarette and alcohol company induced some controversy marketing problems (Smith, 1995).

II. Ethical Issues of the Company

The ethical issue of R.J. Reynolds and G. Heileman Brewing was the same: they targeted the consumer segments viewed as “vulnerable” with the unhealthy products. Although marketing segmentation is an important marketing strategy for the company, the introduction of Uptown, Dakota and PowerMaster have resulted in controversy and even criticized as unethical because the products targeted at those people who are in lower income and with fewer education experience.

2.1 Ethical Issues Related Uptown and Dakota

（source: http://www.naaapi.org/documents/uptown.asp）

With sales amount declining, R.J. Reynolds announced to introduce Uptown to seek new customers. Uptown is designed according to the black customers’ performance with lighter menthol and upside down filter. Uptown was charged for its misleading advertisement message brought more disease to a group with high smoking illness and mortality (Richard J, 1998). Although the plan of Uptown was cancelled because of the strong against of the social interest groups, the company’s segmentation strategy was implemented via other brands such as Dakota.

Dakota targeted young female through the use of younger slim models and the advertisement slogan to mislead the young women smokers. Most of the targeted customers of Dakota were white female with high school degrees or blue-collar workers. They were so young to have good self-control awareness or the ability to judge true or false from the advertisement. And the company advocated Dakota as slim cigarettes and appealed the young female customers with misleading message.

2.2 Ethical Issues Related to PowerMaster

PowerMaster