Brand Love Hate

Car 3.0

My inner Volkswagen fanboy has come out via this blog numerous times - on background, both my first (1996 Jetta) and second (2002 Golf) cars have been VWs. Lately I've been thinking about what's next for me vehicle-wise. So I put together a list of cars that I find interesting based on brand, look, reputation and perceived performance - some of them I've experienced in person and others I have not.

• VW Rabbit (of course!)
• Mini Cooper
• Honda Fit
• Toyota Prius
• Toyota Yaris
• Toyota Matrix
• Scion xA
• Smart Fourtwo

Any experiences, thoughts or comments to share?

Kidrobot in Fast Company

When I moved to New York, one of the coolest stores I discovered was Kidrobot in Soho. Since then, Kidrobot has been a favorite stop and included in my New York City tour when friends come to town. So I was excited to see Kidrobot profiled in the March issue of Fast Company. Also check out the 2007 Dunny Edition Rabbit from Volkswagen and Kidrobot with its glow-in-the-dark seats and green LEDs!

VW GTI: Automobile of the Year

As a Volkswagen fan and Golf owner, I was excited to see that the VW GTI had been named 2007 Automobile of the Year by Automobile Magazine. The online feature has some great content, including GTI desktop wallpaper and a GTI owners' forum. There, owners are sharing their own GTI photos and specs. I like that the magazine did more than just the article and press release - these added online features and user-provided content are perfect for a lifestyle brand like Volkswagen.

CP+B and the Return of the Rabbit

BusinessWeek recently featured agency Crispin, Porter + Bogusky on its cover, with a good article on the history of the Volkswagen advertising account and CP+B's steps and ideas to revitalize the brand.  The wildest news from the article is that my beloved Golf is being relaunched this summer with the retro VW Rabbit name and logo.

Volkswagen "Make Friends with Your Fast" Rocks

I am loving the new campaign from Volkswagen for its redesigned GTI. The TV ads for "Make Friends with Your Fast" are running heavy during the Winter Olympics coverage on NBC and feature a little gremlin dude (above) that represents and communicates the GTI owners' need for speed. Some viewers have found the ads a little creepy, but I think they are hilarious, more "weird" work from CP+B, the agency whose campaigns for Burger King and Mini Cooper (among others) have brought a lot of attention.

The fast gremlin talks guys into some funny things in the TV spots, including locking a girlfriend out of the car to "stay streamlined," driving with the windows down to "hear the engine" and picking up takeout in a rainstorm because "delivery is for the weak."

My only disappointment so far is that CP+B hasn't taken this campaign to the insane levels it has for other clients such as Mini. Although there is a Web site for the new GTI that features the fast gremlin, the TV spots are nowhere to be found on the Volkswagen Web site, although they are on Google Video, maybe posted there by CP+B itself (recall The King and Brooke Burke footage)?

But as a VW fan, I want more. I want fast gremlin desktop images for my computer. I want to get a little fast gremlin figure in the mail from Volkswagen. I want a Web site where I can feed the gremlin some text and have him speak my need for speed.

CP+B, take it further for us!

Related: AdWeek, Fast Company

Volkswagen Brand Love

Three years ago this past month, I purchased and drove home my beloved 2002 Volkswagen Golf.  Since then, I have enjoyed it thoroughly and even brought it cross-country in my move from Wisconsin to New York City.  Even before the Golf, I was a Volkswagen enthusiast with my 1996 Jetta, but the Golf sealed the deal - I basically decided to not own cars other than VWs.  I think like Apple, Nike and others, Volkswagen is a lifestyle brand and can really drive loyalty if the products are great and the customer is treated right.

So today I was greeted with a card from Volkswagen in the mail congratulating me on my three years of Volkswagen ownership.  It's nothing fancy, just a piece of cardboard with a fun air freshener inside as a freebie, but what it means to me as a customer and my brand loyalty is huge.  Thanks Volkswagen!