“How could
Volkswagen sell Hitler’s favorite car to the American people only a decade and
a half after World War II?”
It is hard
to imagine that the beloved Volswagen Beetle was designed under the cruel
ruling of Hitler’s regime. The need for an affordable but powerful escape
vehicle for the German people during the holocaust, is the reason this car came
to be. So how is it that this car became a large part of US advertisement
history only 15 years after the tragic events.
“Direct
and to the point with a touch of humor, the ad has stood the test of time and
will be remembered for many generations as a breakthrough in product to
consumer relations.”
In simpler terms, in a time when advertisements were outrageous
and their number one technique was “more is more.” This company basically took
it back to the basics and made you feel like you didn’t need the glitz and
glamour. You didn’t even need to have color in their advertisement in order to
see the excellence of their brand.
Their whole story was that the car in the photo, that car
was no good, and the reason? Well the reason was a minor blemish on the glove compartment,
but even that minor blemish was not acceptable for you, the reader, for you,
the consumer. See only the best could be made for you.
“This preoccupation with detail means the VW lasts longer
and requires less maintenance, by and large, than other cars. (It also means a
used VW depreciates less than any other car.)”
And by other cars, they mean
American cars. So instead of buying these large, mass produced- over looked and
under inspected cars, get a Volkswagen.
“We pluck the lemons; you get the
plums.”
“the car was manufactured in Wolfsburg, Germany, at a plant
built by the Nazis.
Given that World War II had ended only 15 years earlier,
it's easy to envision a public relations nightmare.
It was in this environment that DDB introduced the Beetle
with a radical ad campaign that perfectly positioned the product and won the
hearts and minds of the masses.”
DDB was a Jewish Ad company, and if there was any resentment
left in the US against the Germans, Volkswagen’s decision to hire a Jewish
advertiser wouldn’t be anything less than a brilliant scheme. If they could
sell you this car, then those against the germans would trust them.
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