The new Beetles appeal was also very emotive, drawing on the huge amount of nostalgia that still existed from the its original hay day in 50’s and 60’s America where the car acheived near cult status. It had as much statement as a premium car but at the prices of a standard. Highlighting in particular its inclusivity, affordibilty, unique style/lifestyle of its consumer and top of the line German engineering. The campaign succeeded in positioning VW as a rational and emotional choice for a younger consumer.
The essence behind the VW brand very well displayed through the Drivers Wanted campaign. Question 2: What is the meaning of the VW Brand? What is the appeal of the new Beetle? Highlighting its affordable German engineering through a campaign displaying a more unique, more connected, different lifestyle. This campaign reached its young and fun, yet well informed and educated consumer by appealling both rationally and emotionally to them. VW therefore repositioned their product and the brand essence through the “Drivers Wanted” campaign. It was appealing for its affordability and approachability versus other European car brands and for its unique and indidvidualistic image versus Japanese cars. The research of VW within the industry showed how the brand was perceived. They were seen to be adventurous, experimenters, self-sufficient, creative, well informed and wanted to get the most out of life. But they found specifically, and more interesting that they all shared very similar attitudes. Arnold Communications found from their analysis that VW consumers in general were younger, slightly more affluent and more educated than the average car buyer. Hollensen 2007 suggests characteristics in which effective IMS (international market segmentation) can be based, these include general characteristics such as demography, education, economy and also specific characteristics such as culture, lifestyle, personality and attitudes. Through this up to date research it was now possible for VW to realistically define the market segments and to develop the most appropriate segment for them. Recollecting primary data was probably length but essential in my opinion as the modern car buyer and extent of affiliation to the VW brand may have change since the last time VW commission research. They set about collecting primary data through extensive interviews, visiting 95 of the top VW dealers and drving VX over 50,000 miles to experience the cars for themselves. Arnold Communications undertook extensive market research in order to understand the modern VW buyer and their position in the industry. The “Drivers Wanted” campaign, developed by Arnold Communications, I believe was successful as a result of excellent market research and positioning. It is safe to say that the the ’94 relaunch of VW on the American Market was a success. That was an increase of 178% from it’s 1993 slump. In 1993 Volkswagen had record low sales but by the end of 1997 the VW brand had sold 137,885 cars. The New Beetle Question 1: Why was the current advertising campaign a success?