Iris > Case Studies > Amarok's Innovative IoT Advertising Strategy: A Case Study

Amarok's Innovative IoT Advertising Strategy: A Case Study

Applicable Industries

Consumer Goods
Electrical Grids

Applicable Functions

Sales & Marketing

Use Cases

Experimentation Automation

Services

Testing & Certification

About The Customer

The customer in this case study is Volkswagen (VW), a renowned German automaker known for its innovative and high-quality vehicles. VW was launching Amarok, their first pick-up truck, designed with a smaller, more intelligent engine. The target audience for Amarok was a macho demographic that values power and brute force in their vehicles. VW needed a unique and compelling advertising strategy that would not only demonstrate the power and efficiency of Amarok's engine but also resonate with their target audience and create a buzz around the product.

The Challenge

Amarok, Volkswagen's first pick-up truck, was designed to deliver 2.5 litres of power from a 2-litre engine. The challenge was to market this smaller, more intelligent engine to a target audience that values brute force and larger engines. The traditional method of explaining the power of an intelligently designed engine was not going to be sufficient to convince this macho audience. The company needed a unique and compelling way to demonstrate the power and efficiency of the Amarok's engine, in a manner that would resonate with their target audience and create a buzz around the product. The goal was not just to sell the product, but to create social currency amongst consumers and provide instant power credentials for the vehicle.

The Solution

Amarok decided to prove the power of their intelligently designed engine through an extraordinary experiment. They constructed a 67ft steel tower weighing 150 tonnes and used four unmodified Amaroks, demolition experts, and strong ropes to pull it down. This dramatic demonstration linked knowledge with power in a way that resonated with their target audience. The experiment was filmed and shared on social media platforms, generating significant coverage and views. It formed the substance of an integrated campaign, creating news and content to amplify the key claim of the launch advertising. The experiment generated 97 pieces of coverage and over 250,000 video views on YouTube, entering the top 10 most viewed videos on their launch day.

Operational Impact

The innovative advertising strategy adopted by Amarok was a resounding success. The dramatic experiment of pulling down a 150-tonne steel tower with four Amaroks not only demonstrated the power of the vehicle's engine but also created a significant buzz around the product. The campaign resonated with the target audience, creating social currency amongst consumers and providing instant power credentials for the vehicle. The experiment was a key part of an integrated campaign that amplified the launch advertising's key claim. The campaign's success was evident in the significant media coverage it received and the high number of video views on YouTube. The strategy also resulted in a record number of test drive requests, further demonstrating the campaign's effectiveness.

Quantitative Benefit