Nicokick Urges Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids to Hold Google Accountable for Nicotine Ads on Its Search Engine; Establish and Enforce a Clear "No Nicotine Advertisement" Policy

WASHINGTON, Nov. 10, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today Nicokick urged the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids to join them in calling on Google to establish and enforce a clear "no nicotine advertisement" policy. This call comes on the heels of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids joining with 179 other organizations across 62 countries to push Google to remove apps on Google Play that promote smoking or vaping, in an effort to prevent youth exposure to these addictive products. While a worthy effort, this initiative fails to address a key area of potential unintended exposure to all nicotine products, which is Google's search engine.

"Our mission at Nicokick is to drive real change in the industry, inspiring alternative nicotine enjoyment for adults seeking alternatives to inhalants," said Markus Lindblad, Head of External Affairs at Nicokick.com. "We urge the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids to join us in calling on Google to establish and enforce a clear 'no nicotine advertisement' policy in learning more about and purchasing smokeless tobacco products."

When users search for terms, Google ranks and returns the site with the most relevant information. Companies can buy these top rankings, and Google generates revenue from this advertising through AdWords. While Google prohibits ads for tobacco and e-cigarettes/vape, its stance on ads for other nicotine enjoyment products is unclear, leaving its enforcement of banning all nicotine ads inconsistent at best. Currently, if a manufacturer or seller of these other nicotine products wants to drive adult consumers to their websites, they find they must bid on AdWords and earn the right to purchase an ad spot.

While manufacturers and online sellers generally work to ensure only adults are able to purchase nicotine products on their sites, the necessity and possibility of "Pay Per Click" marketing for these products in order to compete presents the opportunity for unintended youth exposure. This would be far less likely if these ads were banned completely. This requires further diligence on behalf of online sellers and advertisers – like us at Nickokick – to constantly audit ad placements and consider context against possible individual search intent: an impossible feat considering the sophisticated individualization of search engine returns, as well as Google. 

To learn more about NicoKick, visit https://nicokick.com/learn-more.

SOURCE Haypp Group