Volkswagen

Since 1937, Volkswagen (VW) has stood at the forefront of automotive tradition. This is where quality German engineering meets class and style, catering to a wide variety of drivers in various segments.

Amongst all of its brands, the most iconic model in the line-up is, undoubtedly, the VW Golf. Launched in 1974 and renowned for its versatility and performance, it quickly became one of the most beloved cars around the world.

Five decades on, the compact car has lost not one bit of its enduring appeal.

The Objective

And there’s plenty to celebrate over those 50 years – across generations and across model variants, be it the sporty GTI or the eco-friendly e-Golf. VW decided to honor this tremendous milestone with a special anniversary campaign in Germany.

The aim was to drive results in three key areas: brand awareness, audience engagement, and user-generated content (UGC).

VW sought to develop a campaign that – beyond simply informing and impressing its audience – would stimulate active participation from Golf owners and fans: an excellent approach in an era of advertising where authenticity is key. But mastering this approach requires a smart mix of media channels, planning, and creative solutions.

The Solution

Volkswagen rose to the challenge in impressive style. Working with several creators via TikTok’s Creative Exchange (TTCX), the brand developed a number of creatives highlighting the car’s legacy and evolution, targeted at a broad viewership on the platform. The content sparked heaps of enthusiasm, which a Branded Mission successfully converted into an array of user-generated videos. In these, users shared their personal stories and experiences with the iconic model and in turn spread the word – as well as VW Golf buzz – across an even larger audience.

But that wasn’t all. UGC emanating from the campaign was prominently and proudly brought to life via one of the most prime out-of-home outlets in all of Germany: an LED screen on Berlin’s magnificent Kurfürstendamm avenue.

"TikTok Branded Mission ignited our Golf community, driving bold user content that redefined the 50-year Volkswagen Golf legacy."

Mark van der Ploeg, Head of Marketing Communication & Retail - Germany, Volkswagen AG

The Results

Volkswagen managed to inspire a whopping 181 creators to generate 272 videos – an impressive yardstick in its own right – while the overall campaign generated 20.2 million impressions and 1.2 million engagements. The Branded Mission enabled 20 million video views with a six-second view-through rate of 21%, 7000 shares, and 6000 comments.

A Brand Lift Study revealed that ad recall was up by 14.7%, substantially exceeding the benchmark both for Germany (8.1%) and for Europe in the automotive segment (8.4%). The same was true for brand awareness, with an increase of 7.7% (Germany benchmark: 2.8%), and for attitude towards the brand, at a 3.2% improvement (Germany benchmark: 0.9%).

The data goes to show how powerful it can be to foster a sense of community and collective celebration in a brand campaign via TikTok, something that is often difficult to achieve through polished, traditional advertising.