Volkswagen’s #VWithPurpose campaign: For the people’s purpose

This post is sponsored by UNIFORM.

The pandemic has encouraged all brands to take a closer look at what’s truly important – not just achieving sales targets or business objectives, but to also find ways to support people in need. Volkswagen’s #VWithPurpose campaign did just that – by showing what’s important to the community was also important to it.

The campaign empowered different communities and causes by giving back to individuals and organisations that have been doing good, and raised awareness about issues that were brought to light by the virus.

After conducting research, specific areas of need were identified and matched with four car models that could support the various causes.

1. Art – as we’ve all been stuck at home, we’ve consumed much more creative content than ever before. How about giving back for what the arts has given to us? Artist Sam Lo used the spacious sporty Tiguan to visit other artist studios, helping to transport bulky art materials where necessary.
2. F&B – hawker heroes Beng Who Cooks gave away free food during the circuit breaker. With its powerful engine, the Volkswagen Golf would come in handy for Jason Chua and Hung Zhen Long’s ongoing deliveries.
3. Animal welfare – with low funding already a prevalent problem, circuit breaker measures meant that volunteers could no longer help out. Thenuga Vijakumar, president of the Cat Welfare Society, used the Touran’s van-like capacity to transport stray cats to and from their sterilisation appointments, and also to deliver orders of cat food to customers.
4. Food security – with emptied-out supermarket shelves, there was a growth in interest in sustainable farming and living. Bjorn Low, co-founder of Edible Garden City, and his team transformed the boot of the Passat into a mobile gardening station, which served practical and educational purposes. They also used the Passat to deliver orders of their locally grown fruits and vegetables.

Each of these key opinion leaders (KOLs) weren’t tasked to just test drive the car models and talk about the different car features – instead, the #VWithPurpose campaign was meant to be a fuller collaboration to empower and enable them to do good. They were each loaned a Volkswagen car for three weeks for their own use – a vehicle for not only an expression of their passion, but also a means to reach out to – and give back to – their individual communities to further their causes and pursue their purposes.

Lo and Edible Garden City designed stickers that embellished their Tiguan and Passat respectively, while the essence of Beng Who Cooks and the Cat Welfare Society were translated into designs for their Golf and Touran models. These eye-catching looks transformed the Volkswagen cars, creating buzz on the roads as each KOL made their way around Singapore.

A series of teaser videos and Instagram Story templates were shared at the start of the campaign to highlight Volkswagen’s new, human approach, while work-in-progress images from Lo, Beng Who Cooks, Edible Garden City, and the Cat Welfare Society helped to drive initial interest and engagement for the campaign.

Each KOL was photographed alongside their cars, and interviewed, with their stories shared on the Volkswagen campaign website alongside lead-generation forms. This was adapted into social media posts and branded content ads as a softer, human-centric approach to “selling” the cars. The KOLs also created and shared a series of Instagram Stories, showing how each car helped to empower their purpose.

In the final part of the campaign, the KOLs helped drive traffic to the Volkswagen showroom once it had reopened. To do so, the KOLs took their causes off the streets and into the showroom.

Lo showcased their sticker design, featuring their artwork alongside other local artists, through an installation in the showroom. Edible Garden City transformed the boot of the Volkswagen Passat into a mobile gardening station, and introduced edible plants to the showroom – visitors could learn more about the plants through informative signs, and bring home their own packets of chia seeds to start their own edible garden.

The Cat Welfare Society brought its Cat Mama Shop, along with some special furry guests, to the showroom for one weekend, while Beng Who Cooks created a one-off dish for Volkswagen, selling seafood rolls to raise funds for its Beng Who Cares Foundation.

As a result of the campaign, Volkswagen saw an uptick in positive brand sentiments in the form of comments and engagements. The period of active social media posting for the campaign saw follower growth that was 80% higher than the growth in the previous two months, while audience engagement was at its peak for the year during the same period.

The #VWithPurpose campaign helped Volkswagen to be relevant, human and inspiring. By putting the focus on the community and doing good, rather than on the product and the KOLs themselves, Volkswagen was seen as being open, honest and real, supporting and empowering people and communities it believed in.