Volkswagen: backward and forward at the same time
Nostalgia is the longing for another time; a spin away from the pain, confusion and doubt of an era. At the end of the twentieth century, American consumers are embracing nostalgia as if there is no tomorrow and some about a thousand years ago believed there might not be a tomorrow! While divorce rates remain high and job security wanes, yes It's a wonder Americansof all ages long for in the past.
Seizing a moment, marketers have revived dead brands and revived moribundones. Burmese shaving signs are lining roads again; Charlie Tuna may still be finding good taste in the twentieth century; Coke has its time leaking figure back, and Volkswagen has brought the Beetle- quintessence out of the back Hippie’s beloved car is at hand. Nothing reminds us of the 1960s like the beetle and daisies, so it's not surprising that VW has used a daisy on the TVscreen to advertise its new beetle on each petal.
Consumer response to the new Beetle has been wildly enthusiastic. Buyers pressed their noses into the windows of dealers to see it inside the country at car introductions more than three months before it went on sale and had a long list of agents.
The incredible story of Beetlemania circulates in the media. A woman in Ohio followed a dealer in Livonia, Miss., with a truck all the way and refused to leave until the deliveryman was allowed to buy one. Plaything Gray Filter, Tennessee bought a gift for his 16-year-old son at a standard price. Two days later someone offered him $27,000 for the car and another pretend buyer offered $23,000. When the plaything stopped telling him, the buyer responded "Can I give you more?"
When introduced in March 1998 VW sold 2,365 new bets and 4, 870 in April. Since then the new Turtle has been fueled by surging sales of all VW products as buyers clamored for Passats, Jettas and Audis too. VW increased sales to more than 202,000 vehicles in November 1998. For a carmaker that had withdrawn from the U.S. market almost six years ago it wasn't bad when sales dropped to
50,000 vehicles.
To help maintain sales momentum there is a limited supply of new Beetles. They are only made in Puebla, Mexico, with a single production of 107,090 units in 1998 in one plant with 55,842 landholdings in the United States. Although plant capacity will be increased to 160,000 in 1999, there may still be a backlog of requirements for these cars.
What is so fascinating about the Golden Turtle? "Trademark has a unique and wonderful history as this trusted friend - more than a car, and people have such a love for it, with a fondness for the Rabbit People with flat experiences," says John Slaven, a former VW advertising executive. "No other car brand in this country has that 'magic,'" while noting that no other car marketer can be proud to have one of its models decorated with stars in a Walt Disney movie. time, he said. (Lovebug and Herbie ride again)