The attached advertisement for West Cigarettes appeared in "Der Spiegel", Germany’s biggest newsmagazine, August 7 this year. Owned by Reemtsma, the company held a 7 percent share of the German tobacco market in 1999. Competing against giants like Phillip Morris, the company probably has to segment the market in order to increase its market share. I will look at how this has been done in the advertisement, and will also consider that what their values are. As we soon will see; they probably do not have any.

A colourful picture of what seems to be the Swiss Alps on a warm summer day dominates the advertisement. Two attractive individuals are centred in the foreground. One is a blond woman in her mid twenties, and she is dressed in a fairly provocative, but also seemingly traditional, mountain costume. She holds on to an empty bucket with her right hand, this while she holds a smokeless cigarette in her other hand. Apparently dressed to do some farming, she is nevertheless wearing red party shoes, and thus gives the impression that milking cows not necessarily is the only option available to her.

There are two striking aspects concerning the brand’s segmenting. One is obviously the focus on young users. It is evidently vital for any company to convince consumers to try a product at an early stage, but this especially so in the case of tobacco. Since it is an addictive product, targeting young users becomes an issue of utmost importance. Secondly, West seems to be targeting users in less urban areas. The male in the picture appears to be a trendsetter, this as he introduces the blessings of West Cigarettes to the arch symbol of Germanic countryside culture. It might seem ironic that West attempts to position itself as a European alternative to its American competitors, this as the brand is marketed as the "American Blend" on the package itself.

West Full Flavour is the original brand, and contains more nicotine and tare than the other West alternatives available. The company does in other word offer other products to market segments based on diverse consumer preferences for flavours and nicotine content. As the original product, West Full Flavour fits into the traditional countryside setting of the attached commercial. Perhaps in the same way as Coca-Cola is considered the classic, so does West desire to position its Full Flavour taste as the original alternative.

The man depicted seemingly enjoys experiencing the wilderness of nature, and is additionally successful with the opposite sex. The woman depicted is in contrast occupied in the agricultural sector, but is also interested in testing what is new. Being the extreme stereotype of a healthy Swiss girl, she gives West the legitimacy it needs to present itself as a healthy brand. Considering that tobacco probably has not been the greatest contributor to the good health and white teeth of the depicted individuals, it is tempting to question the values of Reemtsma. The image reflects a message that stands in sharp contrast to that of the advertisement’s warning label. Consequently, potential cigarette smokers do not receive a clear signal about the health risks connected to smoking. In my view, the advertisement presents a very positive image of smokers in general, consequently neutralising the German warning box in white. Health is obviously an important issue to many consumers, and West Cigarettes thus wishes to emphasise that the health concerns associated with cigarettes are highly exaggerated.

To conclude, I think the company tries to market West as a new alternative, in other words the choice for people who are willing to try something new. They use European models, thereby making use of product differentiation to create the image of a European alternative to the American tobacco companies. Considering the bad publicity suffered by the American giants lately, perhaps this is not a bad strategy. Additionally, the models appear to be younger than those usually depicted in for example Marlborough ads. It is very likely that this is done to strengthen the brand’s image of being a new and progressive company. In other words, the targeted consumer is not only likely to identify himself with sophistication and beauty, but also with the willingness to try new products and the successful lifestyle that comes with it.