YouTube test-drive

Background

In a market with rising petrol prices, the task was to launch the new Jetta TSI, demonstrating its prowess on the roads and driving potential buyers into the showrooms.

Idea

Despite a 1.4L engine, the Jetta TSI delivers 122PS of power, averaging 14.69 kmpl, inspiring the thought of “Maximum Power with Minimum Consumption”. From this emerged the creative route of “Maximum knowledge, minimal effort.”

A customised channel was designed for YouTube, where visitors could ask specific questions about the Jetta and get a specific response.

To ask a question, users had to login via their social networks and were responded to via a tweet or Facebook wall-post with a link to their custom video.

This ensured the campaign had scale via re-tweets and shares.

The algorithm allowed users to ask a previously asked question or to ask their own unique question and share it. Each question had an immediate appropriate response.

Results

1. A total of 762,703 video views over 21 days and 65 videos.
2. A total of 441,944 hours of video viewing.
3. Unique numbers of questions: 517.
4. 700% increase in channel subscribers making it one with the highest subscribers in the category in India.
5. Organic Spread: 363,355 video views
6. 1,200% increase in the number of enquiries for the Jetta on the day of the campaign launch with an increase of 300% per day through the campaign period, compared to periods from before the launch.
7. Total Jetta impressions of FB: 24,25,562

Our Thoughts

YouTube as a response medium is a really interesting development. Up until now, what the channel has done is give traditional agencies numbers to show that what they do for their clients actually works in that people click and view. The YouTube page takeovers were fun (Wario Game, the VW Beetle etc) and this idea has nothing of that creative bravura. However, it is the first example of genuine interactivity onYouTube we have come across. It turns YouTube into a platform that can encourage brands to start and maintain real dialogue with their customers.

Last time I counted, in the run-in to the Presidential election, the Obama team had posted up 3,000 videos. Rather than all those disconnected films, imagine being able to ask the candidate any question you wanted as if he was on the stump – and getting an answer?