The Audi “Putting Old Luxury on Notice” advertising campaign won gold in The Advertising Research Foundation 2009 David Ogilvy Award for automotive advertising.
The prestigious award, presented this week in New York, recognizes the role of consumer research in creating successful advertising. The awards are based upon the application of research in four creative marketing elements: strategy development, creative development and refinement, the direction of media exposure, and demonstration of marketplace effectiveness.
The winning Audi ads were part of a larger Audi marketing message called “Truth in Engineering.” The winning ads began with the Audi R8 commercial that debuted during the 2008 Super Bowl, carried through the ad launch for the Audi A5 during the Academy Awards last year and transitioned into the proof of progress story built into the advertising for the new Audi A4 in the second half of 2008.
The Audi “Putting Old Luxury on Notice” campaign recognized that automotive luxury car consumers need to view Audi’s progress in a new context when compared to the segment’s leading brands. The integration of consumer and marketing research helped tailor the messaging and follow-up activities. Audi developed the campaign with Venables Bell & Partners, its San Francisco-based advertising and marketing agency. MediaCom was integral to the execution of the advertising. Audi and its agency partners used research from GfK, TNS, and Nielsen Buzz Metrics to hone the message.
“The aim of this campaign was to take the Audi brand from being a great unknown to a great known,” said Scott Keogh, Chief Marketing Officer, Audi of America. “Using a research orientation helped us achieve that goal. Now there’s little question that Audi is firmly in the luxury car conversation.”
Following the winning ad campaign Audi brand awareness as measured by GfK hit an all-time high, brand opinion jumped 18 percentage points with excellent opinions rising by nearly one-third. And the Audi share of the U.S. luxury imported auto market rose 33%.
