 "Enjoy the engineering, Volkswagen tells viewers in new campaign")
[caption id=“attachment_89820” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] A still from ‘Hitchhike’[/caption]
Volkswagen India has recently released a TV-led, 360 degree brand campaign. Through this new campaign, the brand aims at highlighting its superiority of engineering. There are three commercials in the series, each highlighting a benefit such as safety, confidence and exhilaration; the campaign has been created by DDB Mudra.
Speaking about the campaign Avik Chattopadhyay, head of marketing, Volkswagen Passenger Cars, Volkswagen Group Sales India said, “We wish to communicate the brand’s core, credible and consistent truth of distinct superiority in the aspects of build quality, safety and drivability. This makes it both valuable and aspirational. Through the demonstration of our engineering that is not cold and industrial - it is engaging and rewarding. Engineering to be enjoyed!”
In the film titled ‘Hitchhike’, two boys are on a road trip and really having a great time. They are singing aloud and are in generally a great mood, when they see a girl in the middle of nowhere trying to hitchhike a lift. She is waving her thumb at them, really hopeful for a lift. The boys see her and the one driving gives her a gleeful thumbs up back, after assuming that she is cheering them for their Volkswagen car.
Watch the TVC here:
The second TVC, ‘Gift’, opens to a man at a Volkswagen showroom, talking to a sales executive. He is inside a car and asks the salesman, “What happens if I press the accelerator instead of the brake?”
“It comes with airbags, sir”, replies the salesman.
Next, the man asks, “What if I indicate right but go left?”
“It has door-impact crossbars, sir,” says the salesman.
The questions still keep coming. The man asks next, “And what if I park on a slope without the handbrake?”
At this point, the salesman asks, “Sir, you do know how to drive, right?”
“I’ll take it,” says the customer.
Cut to the scene where the man is surprising his young daughter with a brand new Volkswagen.
Watch the ad here:
‘Reunion’, the last TVC is about a really clumsy man. The film opens to him being present at a reunion party, where the hostess greets him with a hug. As they part, her string of pearls gets entangled in his shirt and he tugs at it, thereby breaking the necklace. Next, he offers a chair to someone, causing another person to fall, after which he knocks down a lamp and breaks a vase. When the hostess announces that they are out of ice cream, he volunteers to go buy some more and asks his friend for his car keys. However, the friend hands over the keys without batting an eyelid, highlighting the confidence he has in the build quality of his Volkswagen car.
Watch the ad here:
Commenting on the campaign Sonal Dabral, chairman and chief creative officer said, “Insightful human stories built around the product truth and that bring a smile to your face. That’s what Volkswagen communication is all about. This campaign delivers just that. I’m sure these films will be loved and enjoyed by the audience as much as they enjoy owning and driving a Volkswagen.”
Rahul Mathew, creative head, DDB Mudra West said, “Volkswagen has always put consumers first, in every little thing that they do.Every nut, cog and button strives to make the Volkswagen experience more enjoyable and unique. And it’s this honest engineering that makes every Volkswagen car, a pride to own. So when we had to tell our consumers about the engineering;we decided that instead of telling stories from under the bonnet, we’ll tell stories from life.”
Credits
Client: Volkswagen India
Agency: DDB Mudra West
Chairman and chief creative officer: Sonal Dabral
Office head: Rajiv Sabnis
Creative head: Rahul Mathew
National planning head: Aditya Kanthy
Business head: Anurag Tandon
Executive creative director: Venkatagiri Rao
Creativedirectors:Ashish Kharwatkar, Mandar Khatkul
Creative team: Ashish Kharwatkar, Mandar Khatkul, Pashyn Sethna, Sandesh Kambli,Swati Ravi Nain, Vinayak Kohli
Account management team: Giridhar Bhat, Shivavrata Sarkar
Account planning team: Mou Roy, Abhinit Agarwal
Films department: Vishal Agarwala
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