Ad Campaign of the Week: Volkswagen Ad Features Art from Blind Photographer

The new Volkswagen Arteon is like a work of art -- at least that’s what the company wants to convey with a new ad campaign. The campaign features photographer Pete Eckert, who lost his sight nearly 30 years ago. Eckert created “light paintings” around the car to show off its beauty and unique look. So what do potential car buyers think about the campaign? We asked 1,000 respondents about their thoughts on the Volkswagen brand and then tested the impact of the ad.

Automotive Consumers

In Ask Your Target Market’s latest online survey, 83% of respondents said that they currently own or lease a vehicle. And another 6% have in the past. Of those respondents, 20% said that they’ve driven a Volkswagen vehicle at some point. But just 4% currently own or lease one.Looking forward, 72% of respondents said they are at least somewhat likely to buy or lease another vehicle at some point in the future. And it seems likely that advertising will make some impact on those decisions, as 68% said that they’ve seen commercials or video ads for vehicle brands within the past week.

Volkswagen Ad

Overall, just 4% of those likely to buy or lease a vehicle in the future said they would be certain or practically certain about choosing Volkswagen. And 11% said it would be very probable. Of those who viewed the Volkswagen ad, 6% said they would be certain or practically certain about choosing Volkswagen for their next automotive purchase. And 14% said it would be very probable.In addition, 81% of respondents who viewed the ad said they’ve visited art museums in the past. And of those respondents, 7% said they would be certain or practically certain about choosing Volkswagen for their next car purchase. And 14% said it would be very probable.

Brand Attributes

In general, consumers seem to view Volkswagen as a brand that is reliable, expensive, quality, dependable and innovative. Those who viewed the Volkswagen ad were a bit more likely to use words like unique, sleek, modern and innovative to describe the brand.

Key Takeaways

The Volkswagen ad featuring Pete Eckert did seem to make a small impact on consumers’ opinions of Volkswagen and their chances of actually purchasing one in the future. It was a small impact, but it does demonstrate that the visuals and style behind the ad could help people see the brand as more modern and innovative. In addition, those who have visited art museums were a bit more likely to be impacted by the ad, but only slightly. So it wouldn’t even be necessary for the brand to target the campaign only to consumers who appreciate art. The style and theme of the ad seem to communicate well to a wide range of consumers.You can view the complete survey results in the widget below and be sure to click “Open Full Report” to take advantage of all the chart and filter options.Photo Credit: vw arteon by Werner Bayer under Public DomainWhat do you want to know? If you need some consumer insights on a particular topic, let us know in the comments below and we’ll consider it for an upcoming survey post.

Results were collected on August 16 via AYTM’s online survey panel.