From the New York Daily News
This past July, the Marijuana Policy Project created a pro-marijuana advertisement that was supposed to be seen at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on the jumbotron. However, the constant criticism from anti-drug groups caused the company who owned the jumbotron to take it down. The ad called “New Beer” specifically targeted beer and alcohol consumption. Within the advertisement, people are being violent, are hungover, and in depression from drinking alcohol. Then it cuts to individuals that are happy and smiling because they have smoked marijuana. The Drug Free America Foundation, Inc and Save our Society from Drugs had the biggest problem with the advertisement. They complained about how this ad was making false statements that say marijuana is safer than alcohol.
From a marketing point of view this advertisement should have not been shown in Indiana. It should have been shown in another state where marijuana is legal, such as Colorado or Washington State. In these states, the advertisement would be less criticized, and more publicized. Indianapolis does not even allow medical marijuana, so to pick a NASCAR audience in this location was a bad target audience to choose.
From a sales point of view, I find this advertisement very effective. Targeting alcohol, beer specifically, was very smart because alcohol is an extremely popular drug that is advertised with little criticism. Also, beer is very prominent in the sports world. It is sold at almost every sport event, and publicized tremendously. Therefore, showing the negative affects of alcohol, with the positive affects of marijuana, cause the audience to think marijuana could be a better option. This article is a great representation of what we will learn in class. Marketing and sales are all about consumer behaviors, and creating effective ways to sell products. This controversy with the pro-marijuana advertisement just shows what problems can occur when a product is not sold or marketed in the right way. This class is going to give me the skills to create strategies, and develop effective marketing plans, so that I will become successful in this field.
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Review by Jennifer Luck in SRM 435 (section 2)
A commercial “touting marijuana as an alternative to beer” was pulled from displays outside a NASCAR race after just a few airings. The ad was purchased by the Marijuana Policy Project-the nation’s largest pro-marijuana legalization advocacy group-“and was celebrated by the organization as the first time a pro-pot campaign would be seen at a major sporting event.” However, the boards set to display the commercial were not technically on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s grounds. An independent media company, Grazie Media, owns the jumbotron. When officials with the company that had allowed the Marijuana Policy Project to purchase airtime caught wind of its pro-marijuana message, they scrambled to take it down. “We decided to pull ultimately because it’s not obviously a great fit for the NASCAR audience, for the family kind of oriented audience, that’s why we decided to pull the ad,” Grazie Media CEO Vanessa Wojtala said in a released statement.
Mason Tvert, Director of Communications for the Marijuana Policy Project, jabbed back at the advertiser’s decision, accusing the company of being hypocritical in supporting alcohol-related content while denying the marijuana ad. “We find it odd that this company is willing to run ads at an alcohol-fueled event, yet unwilling to run an ad that simply highlights the ways in which marijuana is less harmful than alcohol,” he said.
Marijuana is not legal in Indiana, for medical or recreational use. The ad was scheduled to play 72 times throughout the weekend.
From a marketing standpoint, this ad should not be played at a major sporting event. No matter what one’s opinion is on marijuana, this pro-pot ad is promoting an illegal drug. Marijuana is not legal in Indiana, for medical or recreational use. I do not believe it is smart for a media company to allow a pro-illegal drug commercial play at an event where hundreds of thousands of people are going to see it. Marketing is used to communicate the value of a product or service to customers, for the purpose of selling the product and service. Marketing should only be used to promote legal products and services.
However, from a sales point of view, this commercial is a new opportunity for companies to make money. It is probably not the smartest idea to have this commercial play in a state where marijuana is not legalized, but in the 18 states where medical marijuana and two states where recreational use is legalized this ad can be played. As marijuana continues to be legalized in the United States, it is going to be advertised more in the public eye. Just think about how much money FOX is going to make this year off of beer commercials alone in this year’s Super Bowl. Who knows, maybe one day these major TV networks will have a new source of commercial income.
This class examines how promotional activities and sales efforts are closely intertwined and impact upon the success or failure of the sport and leisure industry. This promotional ad was not approved by the sports industry, and NASCAR is lucky they were able to dodge what could have been a major crisis.
Mason Tvert, Director of Communications for the Marijuana Policy Project, jabbed back at the advertiser’s decision, accusing the company of being hypocritical in supporting alcohol-related content while denying the marijuana ad. “We find it odd that this company is willing to run ads at an alcohol-fueled event, yet unwilling to run an ad that simply highlights the ways in which marijuana is less harmful than alcohol,” he said.
Marijuana is not legal in Indiana, for medical or recreational use. The ad was scheduled to play 72 times throughout the weekend.
From a marketing standpoint, this ad should not be played at a major sporting event. No matter what one’s opinion is on marijuana, this pro-pot ad is promoting an illegal drug. Marijuana is not legal in Indiana, for medical or recreational use. I do not believe it is smart for a media company to allow a pro-illegal drug commercial play at an event where hundreds of thousands of people are going to see it. Marketing is used to communicate the value of a product or service to customers, for the purpose of selling the product and service. Marketing should only be used to promote legal products and services.
However, from a sales point of view, this commercial is a new opportunity for companies to make money. It is probably not the smartest idea to have this commercial play in a state where marijuana is not legalized, but in the 18 states where medical marijuana and two states where recreational use is legalized this ad can be played. As marijuana continues to be legalized in the United States, it is going to be advertised more in the public eye. Just think about how much money FOX is going to make this year off of beer commercials alone in this year’s Super Bowl. Who knows, maybe one day these major TV networks will have a new source of commercial income.
This class examines how promotional activities and sales efforts are closely intertwined and impact upon the success or failure of the sport and leisure industry. This promotional ad was not approved by the sports industry, and NASCAR is lucky they were able to dodge what could have been a major crisis.
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