Volkswagen Beetle Gets ‘Juiced Up’ with Augmented Reality
Volkswagen Canada has recently launched a large-scale augmented reality campaign to reintroduce a fully redesigned model of the Beetle to Canada. The campaign represents one of the most ambitious implementations of augmented reality for an advertising campaign ever created.
The campaign consists of a series of billboards in Toronto’s Dundas Square in addition to posters on transit shelters throughout Toronto and Vancouver. Once a passersby downloads the free app, they can then point their iPhone or iPad at the billboard or poster to watch the car ads come to life.
The animations in Dundas Square feature the car leaping from one billboard to the next. In the transit shelters, the posters drop away to reveal the car racing along a tunnel, then crashing through the shelter itself.
The ‘big idea’ of the campaign is to emphasize the performance aspect of the new Beetle. Volkswagen wanted to reposition it from the last version of the car, which was more feminine and design-focused. They want it to hearken back to the original Beetle, to bring out innovation, which is central to the brand personality.
Currently, the app is only available for Apple products. Red Urban, a digital shop in Toronto, created the augmented reality aspect of the campaign.
Sources
Macleod, D. (2011, October 25). Volkswagen Beetle Juiced Up with AR | The Inspiration Room. The Inspiration Room | Advertising creativity from around the world. Retrieved October 25, 2011, from http://theinspirationroom.com/daily/2011/volkswagen-beetle-juiced-up-with-ar/
