Volkswagen Passat Advertisement Critique

May the Force Be With You

Rohan Pant - A036

ADPLAN – Attention

The ad features a pint-sized dressed as mini–Darth Vader(the villain in Star Wars) trying to use “The-Force” to move animate and inanimate object. He fails to elicit a response until a very Teutonic-looking “dad” comes home in a VW Passat. The kid rushes past him to try his luck on the shiny sedan and, as if by magic, he manages to start the car. The Force?

The Ad was very charming, funny and endearing with mini Darth Vader stealing the show. It’s particularly appealing to people who have seen the Star Wars Movie

9/10

ADPLAN - Distinction

The Ad was launched on the Super Bowl in America with several other advertisements and it stood out for using the iconic character of Darth Vader in a very humorous way.

Even though for most of the other brands the focus was on their products, not even once did the VW have its logo or brand shown anywhere in the advertisement until the end. Most of the viewers would have had no clue what the ad is all about until the end where they subtly use the product(VW Passat) showing one of its features(remote start)

Unlike other ads which try to fill the 30 sec slots with all the information they can about the product this little add had a story and a climax making it very captive

10/10

ADPLAN - Positioning

This commercial was intended to aim for two

kinds of viewers. The first are for those who

are Star wars fans and understand the reference that is being used for The

Force

The second audience was for those potential buyers and fans of VW who were watching the

super bowl

In order to grab the attention of potential car buyers, Volkswagen not

only needed to show their new car model, but

also show a price tag that they can catch future Volkswagen owners and a brief preview of what the new model had to

offer

By using Star Wars as a backdrop and also

making the advertisement centred around a family, VW is

trying to give a message to the potential buyers that VW Passat is not

only a powerful car (“The Force”) but also a family

car

Volkswagen transmits the information of their car

through images and words. They convey the new model and pricing

through the commercial, but the image of the car and its package shines

briefly and yet powerfully in what future Passat car owners could expect in

this model

10/10

ADPLAN - Linkage

Though the ad seems to be very charming with high recall value but it actually does more for the brand of

Star Wars than for Volkswagen

This advertisement actually tries to connect that thought through the depiction of the little boy trying to

move objects through the power of his mind

Volkswagen has always prided itself on its superior German engineering that makes the impossible

possible7.5 /10

ADPLAN - Amplification

This was the most loved and adored ad in super

bowl 2011

In fact this ad went viral on YouTube and is one

of the most watched advertisement ever on

YouTube with more than 60 Million views

This ad was also rated as A by Kellogg's on the

ADPLAN Framework

10/10

ADPLAN – Net Equity

This advertisement is centered around a family and VW Passat is shown as a family car with new innovative features . This advertisement typically relates to the Volkswagen slogan tagline “Das Auto” which means “People’s Car”.

Also by relating to star wars which has been one of the most iconic movies watched by nearly everyone in America, it tries to send the message to people that a classic is always a classic

8/10

Thank You