December 1, 2015

Snuffing Out Tobacco Use, One Ad at a Time

December 1, 2015

If you’re like many people, you’ve been exposed to multiple anti-tobacco advertising campaigns over the years. One that may come to mind is the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) “Tips from Former Smokers” campaign which features real-life individuals who were former smokers that now live with the diseases and disabilities from it. You’ve probably also seen gruesome, graphic approaches to try to persuade someone to quit like a smokers lungs trying to breathe or a heart struggling to beat. These ads are memorable because of their provocative content and they way they command attention.

Asher works with several health and wellness-related organizations around the country (see our work here), so while we enjoy dissecting why a particular advertisement works, it’s also part of the job. Some elements we consider when looking at anti-tobacco campaigns include the visual aesthetics, personal hook and relevance, conveying facts in a meaningful way, and memorableness.

Plus, with the plethora of anti-tobacco promotions running, advertisers are forced to get creative with their messaging. Some anti-tobacco messaging might even be dubbed the most creative advertising out there. Take a peek at some samples we collected below. What do you think?

: Deviant Art: “Struggling to get out?”

: The Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation – Advertising Agency: CHI & Partners, UK: “Deathbed”

: Advertising Agency: TBWA, Vancouver, Canada: “For More Information on lung cancer…”

: Advertising Agency: Team Young & Rubicam, Abu Dhabi, UAE: “Smoking Can Kill Your Eyesight”

: The Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation – Advertising Agency: CHI & Partners, UK: “Smoking kills”

: Advertising Agency: The Classic Partnership Advertising, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: “…Xantham Gum, 3,4-Xylenol, Yeast and there are another 4000 chemicals found in cigarette smoke. Say no to smoking.”