If there is one word I don’t like and try not to use, it would have to be “stupid.” But today, I read something in the Star-Tribune that made me angrier than I am at all those people who deny climate change. So that’s why I’m using the “S” word
Here’s a snippet of what I read:
The latest push appears to be finding some support among Republicans, who now control the House and Senate and who see the ban as a government intrusion on personal freedom.
“It’s really about freedom of choice,” said Sen. Michael Jungbauer, R-East Bethel, the proposal’s chief Senate author. “People have the choice to pick and decide if they want to go to a bar or restaurant that allows smoking or doesn’t allow smoking.”
My response? What about all those servers, bartenders, barbacks, cleaners, managers etc. who also want the freedom to breathe clean air? Don’t they deserve that freedom? Workplace safety is not a choice, it’s a right.
Anyone has the right to smoke, but they don’t have the right to poison other people’s lungs.
So what does this have to do with marketing?
Let’s check in with the Minnesota branch of the American Cancer Society Action Network. On their website, they ask Minnesotans to “MN: Ask Your Senator to Protect Freedom to Breathe.”
You fill in your contact information and then a letter is generated to your Minnesota senator. It’s not hard to do, but it’s not very intuitive either. Once you complete the form, you go to another page to print your letters. At the bottom of the page, there are links to share it on Facebook etc. I tried it a couple of times and oddly, different representatives came up each time. First Senator Richard Cohen and then Representative Erin Murphy. The form letter was different, as well. This made me think, well why don’t I get to choose to whom I should send the letter to? Is there someone else I should contact?
Effective marketing? C+ for making an effort.
Social Media, well the American Cancer Society does have a Facebook fan page, but there’s nothing about Minnesota and their opposition to House File 188/Senate File 168. And Twitter, well no Twitter feed either. The American Cancer Society Action Network, tweets, has fans, and shares video, but I can’t figure out how they are related to the American Cancer Society. On a side note, I do love their tagline: the Official Sponsor of Birthdays. What fabulous positioning.
I’m doing my best to make up for that though–please Tweet this and include the hashtag #MNSmokingBan so we can raise awareness — a principle goal of good marketing.
Further Reading:
Stand up Against Smoking in Bars by Dawn Aberle
Now, many communities have fines if your dog takes a dump and you don’t pick it up. I highly doubt there are very many people who shout “my dog has a right to do whatever he wants wherever and whenever he wants!” Nor would many be happy to utilize public bike paths and parks and be subjected to the smell or even to step in it.
So as I leaned down to pick up my dog’s pile of steaming poo, I realized I can hold my breath for a little while, and if it gets on my shoe, I can scrape it off and go about my day. I can’t do that with secondhand smoke.
Clearing the air in Minnesota By Taryn Wobbema and Jeremy Olson
The survey, conducted every three years by the Minnesota Department of Health, suggests that the state’s controversial 2007 indoor smoking ban has produced a dramatic shift in Minnesotans’ thinking on the hazards of cigarette smoke.
How dramatic? A majority of smokers now refuse to smoke in their own homes, the survey found.
PUBLISHER’S NOTEBOOK: Regulation may be a burden, but can also provide a benefit By David Phillips
However, the major part of the controversy in 2007 was on the ban’s impact on bars and restaurants as there were fears it would drive them out of business. A separate study by the University of Minnesota indicates that the smoking ban hasn’t caused economic harm. An analysis of employment data from 2004 to 2008, the latest data available, showed no sign that the legislation hurt hiring in that industry.
Review of Economic Studies on Smoking Bans in Bars and Restaurants by Donald Hirasuna, Legislative Analyst
Almost all the reviewed studies reported, on average, no net loss and sometimes net increases in bar or restaurant sales after smoking bans went into effect. These estimates are for total sales and for the proportion of sales within a county.
Sara Kerr 