When the Volkswagen Beetle came to market, it was the antithesis of everything the motor industry represented, especially in the United States. It was compact, practical, and fuel efficient, but its roots in Nazi Germany posed a major problem for Doyle Dane Bernbach (DDB), the Manhattan advertising agency responsible for promoting the car in America.
DDB were focused on finding an intelligent, respectful way to sell the VW in stark contrast to the sickly sweet, base advertising of their competitors. Having a good-old American girl in a bikini posing delicately against the hood was simply not going to cut it.
What came as a result of their push to stand out was the iconic Think Small campaign, revered to this day as the best North American advertising campaign of all time. Often referred to as anti-advertising, the simple, honest, and hilarious way DDB portrayed the car became a talking point both in and out of the industry. These days, anti-advertising is a common practice, but few agencies have managed to do it quite so well.
Remember Those Great Volkswagen Ads? is a short documentary that brings many of those involved in the project together with a range of contemporary advertisers to reveal their initial concerns about the campaign, how the concept came together, and its long-term impact on the industry as a whole. It’s an insightful look into truly awe-inspiring marketing, and the power of concept over content.