Cigarette smoking is an addiction and an epidemic. It’s the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the U.S.1 Thirty-four million adults in the U.S. smoke, 68% of whom want to quit.1 Most attempts to quit are unaided (or “cold turkey”) and unsuccessful.2 While smokers know they should quit, the idea of quitting right away can feel scary. By allowing smokers to continue smoking while they start treatment, CHANTIX (varenicline) offers an option to quit smoking more gradually. Up against a frustrated target and challenged to help more people quit, CHANTIX needed a fresh and relevant way to communicate to smokers that CHANTIX can help them ease into quitting.

To offer smokers a more motivating alternative to the idea of quitting cold turkey, we created “Slow Turkey.” An animated character that embodies quitting slowly versus quitting cold turkey.

CHANTIX targets 35- to 54-year-old smokers who want to quit but have made multiple unsuccessful attempts. Many try abrupt quit methods, such as “cold turkey,” without treatment support. This method is daunting because it represents a sudden end to their relationship with cigarettes. Indeed, most smokers who attempt to quit cold turkey are unsuccessful. Research tells us that to successfully quit, smokers need to believe there is something different that might work.

We were also up against a category crowded with heavily marketed over-the-counter patches and gums, which are accessible at every pharmacy without a doctor’s prescription. We needed a new campaign that could break through all that noise and communicate how CHANTIX works to help people quit.

CHANTIX allows smokers to quit “Slow Turkey.” It lets smokers keep smoking at first and ease into quitting, so when their quit date arrives, they’ll be more ready to kiss cigarettes goodbye.

Production on the Slow Turkey campaign commenced in July 2018, with the campaign officially launching in market in January 2019. The Slow Turkey was effectively integrated across core channels:

9 TV spots

Digital display + online video

Owned properties (e.g., CHANTIX.com, Facebook)

Pharmacy/in-store where competitive smoking cessation options are readily available

Since the launch of the Slow Turkey campaign, more than 2 million new prescriptions have been written

Patient-initiated CHANTIX requests are up over 10%

Healthcare practitioner discussions are on the rise

Within the first month of launch:

Unaided brand awareness was at 52%, up 8% from the previous year

Commercial recognition reached the highest point ever at 62%, up 10% from the previous year

In copy testing, “Slow Turkey” TV ads scored on average 63% higher than the previous CHANTIX campaign

Please see important safety information and full prescribing information at www.chantix.com

Sources:

1: https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/fast_facts/index.htm

2: Fiore et al: Clinical Practice Guideline: Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence 2008 update, US Department of HHS, Public Service 2008.