Volkswagen: Is great advertising enough to make people stick with a brand despite major PR disasters?
Having bought his first VW at the age of 18 and stuck with the brand ever since, Mumbrella’s Dean Carroll examines whether the emissions scandal would make him buy differently next time around.
The arrest of Audi chief executive officer Rupert Stadler earlier this week over the Volkswagen emissions scandal got me thinking. As a VW-Audi fanboy of sorts (my first car, so to speak, at the age of 18 was a classic 1972 VW Camper Van and I’ve since owned a VW Polo, a VW Golf GTI and an Audi TT), I asked myself: would I buy another vehicle from the Wolfsburg-based auto giant, given the alleged fraud seemingly designed to deceive customers, dealers and regulators?
It was not an easy question for me to answer.
The fact that I would have to ponder further and didn’t have an immediate answer led to even more interesting questions. Why am I hesitating? Is it because VW products are so good? Is it because my closest friends loved the firm’s vehicles too and I gave into peer pressure without even knowing it?
You didn’t answer the premise of your article, Dean. This just comes across as a puff piece to support/promote Volkswagen advertising.
Haha. The whole article is about how much he loves VW ads. Havn’t mentioned that he uses his personal experience to back up the argument.
A quality product will enable them to stay healthy. If you Google search a VW model and it is better than the competition, it will be bought. If it is amongst the competition, then some very smart branding online first, will ensure that buyers are being targeted when they are researching. Quality product and quality search related branding and content is key first.
I owned VW’s for 20 odd years in the 90’s and 00’s. Brilliant cars. Then. My sister bought a new Golf in 2010. 60K on the clock. Regularly serviced. Complete engine fail. VW response, essentially, tell someone who cares. They were great. They’re not now.
Isn’t the core issue simply about betrayal of brand faith? ‘Think small’ and ‘Lemon’ firmly established the VW brand as standing for Honesty. The emissions fudging debacle trashed that trust.
VW cars offer much better construction quality than other equivalents and thats one of the primary reasons its existing owners are loyal to it. Its something they don’t highlight in advertising but their chassis is made using laser seam welding technology which seals any openings and prevents elements such as air or water from coming in around door area at higher speeds. Most cars have this rubber strip running on top near roof along the front to rear door. Volkswagen cars dont have that, even their entry level hatchbacks. Other than that, if you compare its components such as dashboard material, steering, everything feels more robust (although not as robust as bmw).
A simple and timely reminder of the importance of brand equity. Thanks Dean. Got my week off to the right start.
What they did is criminal and well-known, though it’s not the first or only time an auto has engaged in unconscionable conduct. In a very practical way however, when taking about the emissions issues, they did nothing to compromise the safety of the cars or the well-being of the people in them. They lied, that’s for sure, but not about something like leaving all the wheel nuts off. The cars still ran. The point is, it will affect people’s decision who already had a shred of doubt to start with. It will be a vindication in their hearts and minds of the negativity they felt. In the short term, it may (and has) affect sales to loyalists and owners, but not over the longer term. Even if some don’t stay or return, there’ll be new buyers who’ll take their place. And this has everything to do with the brand, company, advertising and experience.