12A – Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 1

Choosing a Segment: 
- I decided on the segment being students. All three of my interviews are current UF students who are friends of a previous interviewed person. They are three males who each are battling with cutting off the Juuling nicotine addiction they developed at the same time my friend had. Two are also in the innovation program, the last one isn't. They each attend UF full time as students. None of them have jobs, focusing solely on school.

Interviews:
Person 1- From this interview I learned that the addiction came fast due to him and person two constantly using it for the fun flavors and high feeling that it gave them. He was the owner of the juul they used and didn't notice the lasting affect it had until he ran low on money to purchase more pods and couldn't satisfy the desire to use it. He doesn't believe that no matter how negation is placed against the product even through trying it, people will eventually fall to using it if in the right setting with others who encourage it.

Person 2- This interview showed me how even trying not to get addicted can be troublesome. He only used person 1's Juul every once in a while that they hung out and pitched in money to help buy the juul pods. Eventually person two said they realized they couldn't go without hitting it almost constantly and hid using it in class that he had to buy his own for use. Hes already lost 2 juul's he purchased and is now on his third. They are so small they get lost often and many people try to borrow and binge off of those who own one, trying to avoid buying their own, trying to fool themselves that they aren't addicted or becoming addicted. He believe with proper set up and instruction the service may work by showing how much money is really wasted on it.

Person 3- This interview taught me that even those who arent as addicted to Juulig compared to others can still have issue. He is at the stage of not owning one but still taking hits from other people Juuls. He realized Juuling was an issue and tries to sparingly use it and actively tries not to at all ever since almost getting kicked out of a club when the bouncer saw him using the Juul and almost threw him out over it. Hes also seen a few others have this happen to them, where they were kicked out of places for using it, when they were so dependent on it, they could hardly go a few minutes without constantly using it wherever they go. He hoped that those who use the program and attend the forced standing in the secluded area would be able to realize the harsh reality of it early on.

What I learned: 
-From what was said between the three interviews, Juuling comes as a subtle addiction that takes over before one realizes. Unlike cigarettes where it was just seen as common. They were aware that the Juuls nicotine and liquid contents may cause issue but none believed they would use it to the point they would become addict or be dependent on it. A Juul is commonly seen as an essential party tool in the beginning much like alcohol is. But its use soon spreads beyond that, once addicted they all try to first cut spending of going through so many pods, cutting back and not allowing others to use their Juuls. The next step is try to lower dosage which until recently wasn't possible,  they recently did made pods in lower nicotine content. Previously all pods had 5 percent nicotine equal to one pack of cigarettes. They now offer ones with 3 percent nicotine. Not much else can be done except slowly fade off usage and dosage until they can go without it eventually.

This Segment:
- As a person who is also apart of this segment, I know that we all went through school being told to not smoke and to not do drugs, yet here we are with suffering the same problem in a new form. No matter how informative and knowledgeable, taking away the appeal and desire to try the product is the biggest step to prevent people from falling victim to the product and a lifetime of addiction.