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Old 11th November 2009, 11:30   #46
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Any inputs on ad rates charged by newspapers actually?
How much do advertisements cover the costs of production - opex on printing machinery, newsprint, ink, salaries of staff and so on, for a fully depreciated plant?

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Old 11th November 2009, 11:34   #47
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They kind of over did it. Impressive way to garner attention but think of the amount of time it will take them to get a decent ROI on this investment they have made.

1 single point. Their vehicles are priced in the upper 10 lac segment. How many numbers could this account for per year and whats the margin on these vehicles.

Just assumed that 50000 is the margin per car and 80 crores is this ad blitz. They would have to sell 1600 cars to get this back. Impressive for them to take such a bet even though they dont have a great market share at the moment.

Best of luck VW. I really hoped that Jetta would be priced cheaper and atleast price Polo and Golf which is awesome in the hatchback range and dont try compete with Fabia on pricing
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Old 11th November 2009, 11:38   #48
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Whats the point of introducing the toureag so late into its life cycle when an all new model is coming within one year?
And the beetle with just 115ps from a 2.0 L petrol?
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Old 11th November 2009, 11:38   #49
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What a start of my day... heavy rains... dry newspaper... "Folkswagon", yeah read it all!! Am being pushed to test drive Jetta and my wife wants a 2.0L beetle!!! I will be bankrupt .

This campaign led me to do the biggest sin of all.... first time I had to open Team-BHP in office....

And those who are discussion adv wastage... this thread is already 4 pages long. They have succeeded!

Note from the Team-BHP Support Team : Please take the time to use proper punctuation as per Team-BHP rules. Avoid...typing...like...this. Thanks.

Last edited by Technocrat : 11th November 2009 at 13:20. Reason: Please read the note in your post, thanks
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Old 11th November 2009, 11:41   #50
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Achtung ! The Germans are here . After initial attacks and skirmishes by Skoda the full might of the Germans read VW is here . They have launched a Blitzkreig attack on India .

Now that was a very overwhelming advertisement in the Times of India today . It was more of Times of VW India . The company has now made its intentions very clear , brace up Maruti , Huyndai , Honda , Toyota . VW has an arsenal consisting of the formidable Polo , Up! , Jetta , Passat , Beetle and Touareg .

What a statement of intent ! and brand awareness . All I read today was VW , VW and more VW , no other news .

Skoda move over Big Brother is here .
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Old 11th November 2009, 11:47   #51
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rudra Sen View Post
Deep sigh! What they'll think if they hear this?

My guesstimate is the cost would be around 75 -80 crore for today. Considering all edition TOI. This is plus minus the rack rate. Difficult to fathom what cost deal they got though.
Nah thats way too high, maybe half of that. When you do a big bang of this sort you command much better rates.

I'll get the approx actual cost in due time.
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Old 11th November 2009, 11:50   #52
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sahil View Post
Nah thats way too high, maybe half of that. When you do a big bang of this sort you command much better rates.

I'll get the approx actual cost in due time.
20 - 25 cr.

cheers,
ac
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Old 11th November 2009, 11:52   #53
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KRf1 View Post
Achtung ! The Germans are here . After initial attacks and skirmishes by Skoda the full might of the Germans read VW is here . They have launched a Blitzkreig attack on India .

Now that was a very overwhelming advertisement in the Times of India today . It was more of Times of VW India . The company has now made its intentions very clear , brace up Maruti , Huyndai , Honda , Toyota . VW has an arsenal consisting of the formidable Polo , Up! , Jetta , Passat , Beetle and Touareg .

What a statement of intent ! and brand awareness . All I read today was VW , VW and more VW , no other news .

Skoda move over Big Brother is here .
Well said.

It's VW everywhere except the sports page.
Maybe thats how world's largest car manufacturer says "Move over kiddos, papa's here."
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Old 11th November 2009, 12:05   #54
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In the page where they showed Top View of the Chakan plant, did anyone notice that the cars parked in the yard all looked like hatches? Meaning Polo isn't as far away as being made out to be.
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Old 11th November 2009, 12:06   #55
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Surprisingly, the Polo wasn't featured in any of the ad's, so I think another Ad Blitz is in the offing for that.

This sure is an impressive ad campaign, but like all proper marketing, it should be backed up by service/product delivery or else it'll fall flat. But I liked the message - we're here to stay!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Spitfire View Post
VW spoiled my morning breakfast.

7th page - I pay for this NONSENSE?
8th page - Newspaper in the dustbin.

I hated it.
Luckily, I also subscribe to HT, so I got my daily news fix.
Increasingly TOI has become akin to local rags, but thats a topic for a different thread.
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Old 11th November 2009, 12:07   #56
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Originally Posted by StarVegabond View Post
Brilliantly executed, might have costed few Crores (atleast a couple for sure), a True Marketeer's Delight

the key is

1. maintaining the consistancy of this positioning and messaging
2. truely delivering the promise of innovation, performance, comfort, safety, fuel efficiency, ease of drive, cost of ownership, customer expereince
3. Continue to build trust with consumers by doing above two again and again
+1. This is a marketing blitzkrieg!!!


Quote:
Originally Posted by GTO View Post
This seems to be the start of a massive brand building exercise. What's up? Polo coming soon? Only a mass appeal product (read hatchback) needs this kind of mass advertising. VW folding up its sleeves for an attack on the market? Showing Audi & Skoda who is the real boss?
They do claim Polo is here in 2009. The Real story would be to show Skoda et al who's the boss. I guess the numbers are better for Skoda and VW wants to correct it. (laura beats Jetta big time and Passat is not even in the reckoning)


Quote:
Originally Posted by GTO View Post
Ah, you beat me to this thread, Skywalker!! I've just merged my post into your thread.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ac 427 View Post
@ skywallker, good thread, wanted to start this one but you beat me to this
Apparently quite a few people were blown away by the sheer impact of this ads.

Quote:
Originally Posted by aaggoswami View Post
Rather than these ads, I would appreciate if VW took steps to sort out Skoda issues and really consider themselves as normal car makers, not upper end premium car maker.
Read the comments above aaggoswami, i don't think VW is particularly interested in boosting Skoda sales now.


Quote:
Originally Posted by KRf1 View Post
The company has now made its intentions very clear , brace up Maruti , Huyndai , Honda , Toyota . VW has an arsenal consisting of the formidable Polo , Up! , Jetta , Passat , Beetle and Touareg .

Skoda move over Big Brother is here .
Hope VW delivers on the promise. The Chakan plant would mean Polo could compete in price against come hatch rivals like Huyndai & Maruti. So far their product strategy has been very lethargic - where are the TSIs for Jetta? Where's a Passat that can come close to Superb? I hope their product management catches up with their marketing team
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Old 11th November 2009, 12:10   #57
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Advertisement -rates and ROI

Quote:
Originally Posted by issigonis View Post
Any inputs on ad rates charged by newspapers actually?
How much do advertisements cover the costs of production - opex on printing machinery, newsprint, ink, salaries of staff and so on, for a fully depreciated plant?

Regards
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sahil View Post
Nah thats way too high, maybe half of that. When you do a big bang of this sort you command much better rates.

I'll get the approx actual cost in due time.
Sahil,

If you can share this with us, especially in the context of what I've highlighted in the quoted post above.

Regards
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Old 11th November 2009, 12:14   #58
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Es ist nicht nur ein Auto. Es ist Das Auto

Wanted to start this thread in TBHP, but things at work delayed me majorly. I decided to exercise some restrain and go through the whole thread before putting in my views lest they repeat.

Firstly, to answer the biggest question here. Yes, VW are not understanding that Indians are not understanding the significance of Das Auto. Let me tell you about it. But first...

Print media cannot really bring out emotions like a video, so I would recommend you to check out the youtube video of the Porsche Cayenne. No car ad has ever given me goosebumps and a testosterone charge like this cayenne ad. I would save up all my life and go buy a Cayenne just for this ad. See it here -> . Needless to say, it is a video, and I expect you to turn on your speaker or wear your headphones.

These words will always ring in my ear - "It is not just another SUV, it is another Porsche".

Similarly here, VW are making a statement. Auto in German means Car. Das Auto means 'The Car'. VW are 'THE' car makers and that is indeed true if you look back at their history and how they made the first affordable car for the masses. However the significance is lost on us, since Das is an Indian surname and Auto is a english word and also a very popular mode of transport in India. :P

No one complained when Audi advertises their cars as 'Vorsprung durch Technik' though I am sure 90% of the junta didn't understand what that meant and 90% of those didn't even bother looking up what it meant.

Anyway, now that I have, hopefully, answered the question on why das auto, let me move on to my thoughts.

1) Mein Gott (my god!!!), how much is the advertising budget of VW?
2) What is the margin that they are making given such unimaginable advertising expenditure.
3) Yes, the ads were too much and TOI felt more like a flyer than a newspaper. But for an auto head, reading through the paper would have been fun. In fact this is the first time I flipped through each and every page of the paper looking for the next teaser ad.
4) I am sure each and every one of you who saw the paper now know that VW is in India. Whether you liked the paper or hated it, whether you hate or love VW or TOI, you know VW is here in India to stay. That is the impact that the ad has made. You might ask for justification for splurging this way on ads, but if you didn't know VW and now you know, then the ad has done just what it was out to do. Ask your parents or children who are(were) not too auto savvy, but had a look at todays paper, and if they know that VW makes cars for India, then tip your hat off for VW.

Secondly, if you know even a little bit about cars and you had the patience to go through the entire paper (the VW ads I mean), and you are thinking that your next car should have ABS, then the ad has done its job. If you are picturing that awesome DSG auto box in your head, then the ad has done its job. And by god, if you have not had even one thought of that stunning, aweswome, s**y(forgive me for not having the courage to type this word in the forum) red Beetle that they plan to dole out this year end, then do me a favour and go and throw the paper in the dustbin, for you don't deserve the pleasure of witnessing such aggressive advertising.

5) Finally, now that I have calmed myself down after the shock that I got seeing today's paper, I have a question. Did you observe the red and white cars parked outside the VW manufacturing plant? They look so similar to the Swift. Obviously it can't be a Swift, so I am thinking it is a similar looking car, which could only be the Fabia(or the Mini, which is a Beemer). AFAIK, Skoda is owned by VW, so are these indeed the Fabia? I am not sure how the polo/golf looks, but from what I remember, they are more Zen'esque than Swift'esque.

All in all... TOI has lived up to its glamorous image and its image of not being a newspaper, but an adpaper. VW has made its presence felt. Now I feel like going out and TDing a Jetta.

PS: This is what the title of this reply meant -> Google Translate
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Old 11th November 2009, 12:18   #59
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This is good to hear. The Indian Car scene needs some shake up like this. But like someone said, where is the car for the masses ? This kind of publicity is only to get to the masses. Hope they price the beetle very low here.


Quote:
Originally Posted by Spitfire View Post
7th page - I pay for this NONSENSE?
8th page - Newspaper in the dustbin.

I hated it.
No, someone else has already paid for this. Thanks
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Old 11th November 2009, 12:19   #60
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OMG its an invasion and a German one at that !!!

my whole work place was abuzz with the how big that advert was and speculation is ripe about the price tags of the Cars.
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