VW to become 'more emotional' 04 | 10 | 2016

VOLKSWAGEN HAS INITIATED what it believes will be a new era for the company, still being haunted by the political fallout from the Dieselgate scandal, with the reveal of its all-electric ID concept at Paris last week.

According to the German manufacturer, the campaign built around a fresh advertising catchphrase — ‘Think New’ — signals a “more emotional” brand strategy which it says will influence its future business decisions.

And according to sales and marketing boss Jürgen Stackmann, the campaign will also help VW reconnect with its vast customer base and refocus on its heartland of the global middle class.

“Our biggest asset is our 40 million customers we have around the world,” Stackmann said, “and it’s important we stay warm and close to them. We might be making breakthroughs with technology, but we won’t become a cold and technical brand.”

As VW builds on its well-publicised strategic shift towards electric vehicles, the ‘Think New’ tag line coincides with the unveiling of its all-electric ID concept. It also sits with matched to imagery of the Beetle and Golf Mk1.

“Think New is not about a fix, but a lighthouse for where we are heading as a brand,” Stackmann continued. “Innovation and change are facets Volkswagen has always been know for.

“The change from Beetle to Golf was significant. The VW Paris show stand features the new image Now we are changing to electric vehicles. That’s just as significant.”

According to Stackmann, VW wants to further engage with ‘Generation Golf’, the European middle class that grew up in the Seventies, Eighties and Nineties with VW’s iconic hatchback through a new brand pillar, ‘Moving People’.

VW is building its new marketing strategy around six new ‘customer promises’: smart sustainability, human excitement, intuitive usability, connected community, always up to date and safe choice.

Related: VW resale values remain high

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Jim McGill