For the first time in decades, consumers may be surprised to see a commercial advertising smoking cigarettes, but not quite in the way you would expect – we won’t be seeing a revival of the Malboro Man anytime soon.  In the midst of a social trend towards healthy living, in which you’re expected to carry a yoga mat everywhere, even the unhealthiest of habits have been converted; hence, the e-Cigarette.  A relatively new innovation, the e-Cigarette is tobacco free, unlike a traditional cigarette, and instead vaporizes nicotine and enables smokers to have a puff anywhere, at anytime. Marketers have capitalized on the ability to bend the rules of the Tobacco Control Act and promote smoking, since the e-Cigarette doesn’t technically qualify under legislation as a tobacco product.  That being said, Harvard Medical School notes that several carcinogens and toxic chemicals common to traditional cigarettes can be found in significant dosage in the e-Cigarette, raising the concern that advertisements claiming the e-Cigarette is a safe alternative to smoking are simply a money grab to exploit the segment of the population that may have already quit smoking or are looking for a reason to begin.  Offering e-Cigarettes that come in hot pink and are shaped like lipstick, it is obvious which untapped market campaigns are targeting; marketers have found a way to bridge the gap between smoking and youth via endorsements from celebrities popular with Generation Y like DJ Heavy Grinder and actor Stephen Dorff.

Mirroring the themes that created such appeal for tobacco cigarette brands, marketing for the e-Cigarette has gained momentous traction and is showing no sign of slowing down, captivating smokers and non-smokers alike.  Although there is something to be said for the lack of tobacco, it calls to attention whether promotion of this product is really just putting a bandaid over a bullet wound.