The Brandcast

This article made me feel nostalgic about those quality VW ads of old:
Sales Drivers Wanted: VW Takes Marketing U-Turn
By Jean Halliday
Published: January 15, 2007

DETROIT (AdAge.com) — Great buzz isn’t enough — just ask Volkswagen. Recognizing that its envelope-pushing marketing has done wonders to boost chatter but little to boost sales, Volkswagen of America is taking a U-turn. It’s jettisoned Director-Brand Innovation Kerri Martin, who rattled its image with campaigns such as “Get to Know Your Fast” and “Unpimp Mein Ride,” and is seeking a return to an umbrella theme like its abandoned but much-loved “Drivers Wanted.”

VW’s ads have truly suffered–and that has directly impacted sales. This situation is unfortunate but interesting at the same time. I still own my 2001 red Jetta GL from college; I love the thing. With just 60,000 miles on her, ‘Lucile’, has been a great car for me. Lots of trunk space, agile turning, a sweet sound system and a plethora of other amenities made this the kind of car I had always dreamt of.

Way before I ever wanted to have anything to do with advertising, I was hooked on Volkswagen BECAUSE of the ads. I couldn’t pick between the Jetta and their then-convertible model, the Cabrio. I can still remember the advertisement for the Cabrio, some 6 years later—how’s that for memorable? A couple drove with the top down under an umbrella of stars, with the song “Pink Moon” by Nick Drake playing softly.

In every spot for VW in that 1999-2001 era, you saw a combination of fashionable, well-designed vehicles, smart looking mid-20-somethings, and a great landscape—all underscored by a popular song and that great tagline. In the most recent advertisements, I felt lost and disconnected. Rather than show the brand new Toureg surmounting unbelievably high snow banks with grace, they showed some evil little furbee creature in a Golf speaking in a demonic voice. I didn’t care for it. Gone was the upbeat, positive, happy smartness— abandoned instead for plain weirdness.

VW, as far back as five decades, was a brand built on being the cool alternative, a la Apple. VW was embraced by hippie culture, because the Beetle, followed by those classic Vanagans, established that a cool design could meet well-engineered function, unlike anything before it. That’s probably why their beautiful Karman Gia model tanked so badly—the car was and is a gorgeous gem—but the people driving VWs weren’t looking for a roadster, and the type of people looking for a roadster didn’t want to be in a Volkswagen.

I don’t think this is a situation where great ads fail, because I don’t think these ads were that great. VW lost here because they started to ignore their real audience. By trying to preach a message of safety (which is true, but not as compelling as they might think) and other messages that are just plain weird, loyal VW core customers lost interest. This brand, which can only blame it’s success on a loyal cult following, can’t suddenly try to cast a wide demographic net to generate additional sales without risking the alienation of those who would actually consider buying from VW.

The best VW ad in recent years was for the new 2005 ‘all grown up’ Jetta, where a nicely dressed young guy, presumably a junior executive, is transporting a group of stodgy old bosses somewhere. One in the passenger seat presses the dial in an attempt to hear the news or traffic (but really hits a pre-setting), and instantly the car is filled with blaring hard-core rock music. The driver switches it off in seconds, making no facial expression out of embarrassment… Which is hilarious and SO on point with who is buying a Jetta—young people who are educated and working, but not ready to be boring and old yet.

Moving forward, VW should create an aggressive series of ads which highlight the design of their many models and the engineering capabilities each has to offer. I though it was cool that my Jetta, at the time, had the smallest turning radius in it’s class, making U-turns unbelievably easy. It was neat that a beetle was air-tight, so it could float in water. People will always be in love with the marriage of form and function, which is something VW is still doing right. They should let those cars sell themselves, and leave the evil little furbees out of it.