Switching Stories: User Testimonials on juul.com Continue to Contradict JUUL's Switch Cessation Narr
Monday, December 21, 2020
Posted by: Natalia Gromov
Joanne
G Patterson, Devin T LaPolt, Alexis R Miranda, Patricia J Zettler, Micah
Berman, Megan E Roberts, Brittney Keller-Hamilton, Amy K Ferketich
Switching Stories: User
Testimonials on juul.com Continue to Contradict JUUL's Switch Cessation
Narrative.
Tob Control. 2020 Nov 5;tobaccocontrol-2020-055816. doi:
10.1136/tobaccocontrol-2020-055816.
Background.
In January 2019, electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) market leader Juul
Labs (JUUL) launched an advertising campaign encouraging adult smokers to 'make
the switch' from combustible cigarettes to JUUL. Our primary aim was to
describe consumer perceptions of JUUL as communicated by members of JUUL's
online social community via testimonials promoted on JUUL's website.
Methods.
User testimonials that were displayed on the JUUL website in December 2019 and
January 2020 were collected and coded by three reviewers. A total of 220
testimonials were coded for primary and secondary themes (eight codes within
four broader themes).
Results.
Testimonial writers were, on average, 43.0 years old (range 28 to 74) and
reported using JUUL for an average of 21.8 months (range 9 to 59 months). The
most prominent theme, present in nearly half of the testimonials, was a
description of how to use JUUL, with a mention of JUUL's benefits and tips on
how to use the product. Nearly four in 10 statements encouraged smokers to give
JUUL a try or noted that JUUL is a better product compared with cigarettes.
About one in 10 statements focused on switching from smoking cigarettes to
using JUUL.
Conclusion.
This study presents a foundation for understanding how adult users describe
JUUL, including their experiences using JUUL to 'switch' or stop smoking.
Currently, the effectiveness of ENDS for smoking cessation is not supported by
substantial evidence; however, if cessation is defined as 'quitting combustible
tobacco products', then regulators should be aware that switch and cessation
messages may not be distinct.
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