Volkswagen: AUTOMATIC SKIP AD

Credits & Description:

Advertiser: VOLKSWAGEN DO BRASIL
Agency: ALMAPBBDO
Category: Best Use of Digital Media
Creative Director: Andre Kassu (AlmapBBDO)
Art Director: André Leotta (AlmapBBDO)
Creative Director: Marcos Medeiros (AlmapBBDO)
Executive Creative Director: Luiz Sanches (AlmapBBDO)
Chief Creative Officer: Marcello Serpa (AlmapBBDO)
Copywriter: Leo Avila (AlmapBBDO)
Creative Director: Bruno Prosperi (AlmapBBDO)
Creative Director: Renato Simões (AlmapBBDO)

Effectiveness
The Automatic Skip Ad had 1.2 million views. Close to 100% of the people watched 100% of the ad (for obvious reasons). The cost per view was always less than 2.5 cents of a dollar. And this 5 second-long spot contributed a lot to the final results: more than 10 thousand buying intentions (a record for a Volkswagen campaign), 2 million hits to the hotsite, and an increase of 60% in leads for the Volkswagen site. All of that by telling the audience that the New Fusca was back. But more technological than ever.

Execution
The idea was born together with a specific media execution. We used YouTube’s pre-roll ads in a new way, using just the first five seconds. And by adjusting the media format to demonstrate a feature, an idea and a creative concept, we made the understanding process much faster and relevant. This ad was part of a larger campaign, in which the nature of each channel was respected and used to a specific need. Web banners were used to communicate features. Social media started dialogues and used a viral content that broke Brazilian Facebook’s results records. And TV spots and magazine ads told everybody that the Fusca was back.

Strategy
We had to launch the New Beetle in Brazil. But, instead, we launched the most important and loved car in the history of Brazil: Fusca. The name automatically brought back an emotional bond with the audience, but didn’t keep us from showing how technological the New Fusca is. So, we focused on a unique feature: the DSG Tiptronic gearbox. But how do you bring relevance to a technological feature when talking to a young and cynical audience? You show how fun and relevant it can be. To do that, we used one of the most hated media formats in our favor: the YouTube pre-roll ads. During the infamous 5-second countdown, a mouse cursor appears. When the countdown is over, it automatically clicks on the 'skip ad' button. A fun and simple product demonstration that added modernity to the New Fusca and increased the friendliness from the public.