If you live in New York City you’re pretty much used to seeing advertisements everywhere and for everything. Advertisements can be used for many reasons from selling a product to promoting a message and while we may sometimes overlook advertisements it is clear that advertisements clearly have an impact on our lives. This tradition of influencing lives through advertisements campaigns is long standing especially in the United States.

            In 1954, Marlboro cigarettes introduced a campaign, which would run successfully until 1999. I am of course referring to the Marlboro Man.  Although over the years the advertisements changed a bit the overall design of the advertisements remained the same with the biggest success being the Marlboro Cowboy. Marlboro did not just promote smoking; instead they created a lifestyle out of it.  The Marlboro Man made smoking cool; it gave people a feeling of freedom and created the illusion of a dream life with no worries. While the nicotine hooked the consumers after trying the product it was the advertisements that drive them to smoking. The advertisements created man responses, but for men the rugged looking cowboy made it manly to smoke. While the advertisements have long stopped running the proof of their influence remained. It was easier to create a life of smoking than it was to quit smoking, a fact that remains truth today.

            Advertisements can influence our lives a lot especially the younger generations. This is why in our country today it is illegal for cigarette companies to advertise to minors. While I don’t smoke it is evident to me that advertisements when done correctly can create a huge impact. This is easily evidenced by the results of the Marlboro Man campaign in 1955 cigarette sales were at $5 billon less than two years latter there was a $15 Billion dollar increase which would continue to increase. Though it has been fourteen years since the Marlboro Man campaign ended we continue to see its influence in the abundance of people who continue to smoke after having picked it up during the campaign.