Browsing: Volkswagen

News
VW dips into the Olympic athlete pool again as it promotes ‘the most powerful GTI of all time’
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Volkswagen has released a new spot via FCB that shows New Zealand hockey captain Simon Child toying with the features of his Golf GTI after arriving to the hockey turf a little early. This spot follows on from VW’s recent pulled ad, which invited criticism for showing unsafe practices. And while the new spot doesn’t show any slipping and falling, it does tread into risky territory by focusing on the speed of the new vehicle.

News
Embattled Volkswagen picks FCB to help get brand back on track
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Following the news that Volkswagen New Zealand was set to part ways with its agency of around two years, Colenso BBDO, and the recent discovery of dodgy software that cheated on emissions tests, FCB New Zealand has been handed the creative business—and been given a pretty big challenge to help the brand win back people’s trust.

News
Coming clean: is getting Volkswagened worth the risk?
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When it comes to corporations, history shows that consumers tend to forgive accidents—and even stupidity. But willful deception is another kettle of fish. And Volkswagen inventing technology to cheat on its emissions tests is about as willful and deceptive as it gets (if it wasn’t so evil, you could almost applaud their inventiveness). So far, it has had a major impact on Volkswagen’s share price (and other car brands’ share prices), it is getting ready for a recall of 11 million cars, billions of dollars in fines are on the cards and the first of what could be many lawsuits have already been filed. Some believe it could bring Volkswagen to its knees. So can the company recover from this reputational car crash? And what can marketers learn from the saga?

News
Russia’s current-based currency
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The marketing world is keen on vending machine stunts, with stunts allowing them to accept everything from hugs to Canadian passports to piano playing to motionlessness (this trend was skewered nicely by Taxi). Now, in an effort to tackle pollution, Volkswagen has created one that accepts batteries instead of currency in Russia.

News
Deadly consequences
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Now, if we had seen an ad, say 10 years ago that said “don’t selfie and drive” no one would have had a clue what that was about. But with new technology (and front-facing cameras) comes new dangers, and now Volkswagen has released a campaign which aims to stop drivers taking selfies while on the road.

News
How to improve the world’s best ad
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DDB’s ads for Volkswagen back in the 1960s are regarded as some of the best ever made, as evidenced by Think Small’s first place on Ad Age’s top 100 campaigns of the last century. And, as this parody called ‘nine ways to improve an ad’ from 1963 shows, it pays to remember that simplicity is still the best approach.

News
When colonialism meets commercialism: Sky and ANZ aim to spark interest in the Commonwealth Games—UPDATED
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There’s no better way to celebrate centuries of oppressive colonialism than with a series of sporting contests. Thankfully, we’ve got the Commonwealth Games for that. And while they might not be quite as prestigious (or popular) as the Olympics, official broadcaster Sky TV and NZ Olympic Committee sponsor ANZ are doing all they can to draw attention to the upcoming Glasgow games.

News
Volkswagen takes some new agencies for a test drive
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Not long after one seemingly solid agency-client partnership came to an end when 2degrees shifted from TBWA\ to Special, another seemingly solid agency-client partnership is also up in the air, with Volkswagen putting its business up for pitch. Plus: Hyundai’s recent move.

News
Awards rewards: Denise Goodwin
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As part of our push to remind you marcomms folk to get your entries in for the 2013 TVNZ-NZ Marketing Awards (entries close 5pm Friday 24 May), we’re asking some past winners to tell us about their glorious victory, what it meant to the business and why these awards are different. Hello there Denise Goodwin, ex-Volkswagen marketing chief and now head of marketing at Flooring Brands.

Opinion
The Year in Review: Annie Dow and Jenny McMillan
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Dow Design is on a mission to prove the commercial value of good design. And with a win in the TVNZ-NZ Marketing Awards for Fonterra, a finalist in the new Best Effect Award for Hellers, a number of big redesigns for big FMCG brands, it seems to be doing a good job of it. Founder Annie Dow and business development director Jenny McMillan speak their piece.

Opinion
The Year in Review: Denise Goodwin
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While Volkswagen dominates overseas, research showed that Kiwis thought the brand was too cold, too bland and too European. So to change that, it invested heavily in indigenous research and advertising, launched some very successful new products and quickly went from ‘niche street to main street’. National marketing manager Denise Goodwin opines on the year that was.

News
Supreme + Automotive: Volkswagen New Zealand
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We’ll be showcasing all the winners of the TVNZ-NZ Marketing Awards on StopPress over the coming days. And we’re kicking things off with big winner Volkswagen, which invested heavily in indigenous research and advertising to better connect the brand with Kiwis, launched some very successful new products and quickly went from ‘niche street to main street’.

News
From sluggish German to lively local: Volkswagen drives off with supreme TVNZ-NZ Marketing award in the boot
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2012 marks the 21st anniversary of the TVNZ-NZ Marketing Awards. And, in keeping with the traditions of the land, it emerged into adulthood this year with a new central theme of Everything Marketing and eight new categories, including financial, technology, automotive, utilities/communications, lifestyle/travel/leisure and sponsorship. And coming out at the head of the field with the supreme award was Volkswagen, with ex-Westpac and soon-to-be BNZ head of brand Ian Moody named as marketer of the year, Whittaker’s Jasmine Griffin named as rookie marketer of the year, Air New Zealand taking the marketing excellence award and Pfizer, Z Energy and Red Witch both picking up multiple awards.

Movings & Shakings
Movings/Shakings: 6 July
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Skinny welcomes a new Paul, Jo Hartley trades OMD for Carat, Studio Alexander appoints a general manager, Acumen Republic ups its events firepower, Volkswagen goes human hunting, and iStart and Software Shortlist get together to embrace the pay-per-lead model.

News
Ja, das ist gut: VW brings the weather with it, reaps rewards from more localised approach
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Not too long ago, Volkswagen was seen by Kiwis as a brand that was too expensive, too Germanic and too standoffish. So the European car maker set about changing that and, with the help of DDB NZ, it’s been making some serious inroads into the Kiwi market, with the 2011 results achieving records for both its passenger and commercial vehicles. Now the pair are hoping to continue the upward trajectory with a new series of ‘the same, but different’ TVCs running in the pre-weather spot on ONE News.

News
Spark kicks off 2012 with bevy of new clients
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Lucky seven, God’s in heaven, one little crutch, a David Beckham, one hockey stick, a slice of heaven. There, 7 ways to say seven, with out mentioning dwarves once. Why? Well seven’s obviously the lucky number for Spark PR & Activate, as they start the New Year with a seventh brand new client, Weight Watchers NZ. The win tops off a hugely successful 2011 for the Auckland-based agency. In recent months, Spark PR & Activate has also been appointed as PR agency for Electrolux Cookware and Laundry, Dermalogica NZ, boutique stationery store Red Letter Day and Mambo apparel.

News
The gospel according to Cannes: the world’s 25 best TV ads?
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Despite continuing media fragmentation and the rise of digital, TV remains the undoubted glamourpuss of advertising. And the boffins on the Film jury at Cannes, an awards ceremony widely regarded as the gold standard for the creative industries, chose what they deemed to be the best TV ads in the world recently. So here they are, in all their glory. 

News
Dogs, velocity and cars
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Get your physics hat on for this week’s TVC

Who’s it for: Volkswagen by DDB and Robber’s Dog

Why we like it: As Volkswagen seeks to deliver its first ever ute into the New Zealand market, and with Toyota the dominant player in the market …

News
Television Commercial Single: DDB, Colenso + Saatchi & Saatchi
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DDB, Sky and Capital City Films’ ‘Leafblower’ spot took home the most metal of any TVC on the night, with a gold in the single television commercial category adding to its impressive haul. DDB also picked up a silver for Lotto’s ‘Lucky Dog’ (which has over 750,000 views on YouTube) and a bronze for Volkswagen’s ‘Milk Run’; Colenso picked up a silver for Vodafone’s ‘Double Back’ spot and a bronze for Frucor’s ‘Ladders’; and Saatchi & Saatchi picked up a bronze for Telecom’s ‘Sunrise, Sunset’.

Opinion
Mystery, intrigue and subterfuge as Cannes cheats push their luck
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In this week’s installment, Monsieur Pound wonders whether recycled ads in this year’s Cannes Lions are an indication of declining creativity, immoral agencies or unobservant organisers. And he also looks at the similarities between Good Health magazine’s viral video and a similar Volkswagen experiment conducted in Sweden.

News
Volkswagen puts one in the back of the net
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Twenty three of New Zealand’s top footballers received some good news this week when the All Whites squad was named to play at the Football World Cup in South Africa. And the sport as a whole also got some good news after Volkswagen signed on as a major partner of football in New Zealand.