Using Experimental Auctions to Examine Demand for E-Cigarettes

Abstract

Background: E-cigarettes are the latest in a line of potentially reduced exposure products that have garnered interest among smokers.

Methods: In this paper, we use experimental auctions to estimate smokers' demand for e-cigarettes and to assess the impact of advertisements on willingness to pay. These are actual auctions, with winners and losers, which means hypothetical biases often seen in surveys are minimized.

Results: We find smokers have positive demand for e-cigarettes, and that the print advertisements used in our study had greater effectiveness than video ads (b = 2.00, p < .05) in terms of increasing demand for disposable e-cigarettes. Demand was greater for reusable versus disposable e-cigarettes. In multivariate models, demand for e-cigarettes was higher among non-white participants and among smokers willing to pay more for cigarettes.

Conclusions: Our findings suggest that cigarette smokers are interested in e-cigarettes as alternatives to traditional products, particularly for reusable forms, and that this demand can be influenced by messaging/advertising.

Implications: Given these reduced harm products are appealing, if smokers are able to switch completely to e-cigarettes, there is a good chance for accrual of significant harm reduction.