Dakota was introduced in 1990 and was mainly marketed towards 18 to 24 year old blue-collar "virile females" with no education beyond high school, held entry-level service or factory jobs, had no career prospects, and had a high probability of being unemployed or employed only part time, who wear casual clothes (e.g., jeans, knit tops, sweaters, shorts, warm-up suits, and sweatshirts and sweatpants) and wore little makeup, their taste in television programs included evening soap operas and situation comedies with working-class heroines, such as Roseanne, and their music tastes centered on all-male, classic rock bands, in an attempt to displace the Marlboro brand, without diluting Reynolds' dominant Camel brand's appeal to males.

[5][10] In February 1990, details of the marketing campaign of the Dakota brand were leaked to The Washington Post and revealed that the cigarettes were narrowly targeted at a demographic described as "virile females".

Negative reactions to the tested ads occurred either among women with "traditional values" who did not aspire to the "Dakota woman's independence, assertiveness and control" or among the "more conservative/introverted respondents [who] may have felt somewhat threatened by the strong personalities conveyed".

"Party packages" custom designed for women's "hot spots" (e.g., bowling alleys, bars, apartments, and company picnics) were also proposed.

Detailed tactical plans and budgets were developed for several promotions related to the targeted women's inclination to patronize bars with rock and roll music.

Auditions would be held for a girl singer to perform as guest artist; posters in clubs, newspaper ads, and direct mail would publicize this competition.

Registration, which would be conducted in clubs, required that another person, such as a friend, sign up screen test participants so that both names could be captured for mailing lists.

Before this mega Battle of the Bands event, Dakota parties in nightclubs would award free tickets, limousines, and drinks to selected entrants.

Implementation in test markets called for weekly distribution of 500 T-shirts, 30 jackets, 1,000 Polaroid photographs and folders, 250 cassettes, 200 sweepstakes forms, and 250 posters to support the planned events.

Implementation also called for neon bar signs, as well as Dakota logos on napkins, coasters, stirrers, table tents, ashtrays, and mirrors.