The ad is for the recently-launched VW Sagitar, Volkswagen's pitch for the fast growing mid-range segment presently occupied by rival marques Honda, Mazda, Audi and BMW, targeting modern, up-and-coming 25 to 35-year-old professionals.
The spot, running nationwide, eschews traditional images of business success often used to sell cars to this segment in favour of something different to appeal to a new generation of young Chinese for whom making money is overtaking social status as a personal priority.
"The key element is that these people are more competitive -- that's the insight," said Dan Mintz, chief creative officer of through-the-line agency DMG, which handled the launch. The ad shows the new Sagitar taking on a mysterious black car for parking spaces, effectively turning the city into a massive game of musical chairs, capturing a feeling of liveliness and excitement for a target market open to trying something new. The Sagitar brand is a new name inspired by Chiron, a mythological centaur immortalised in the Sagittarius constellation, referencing a passion that reflects the target market's attitude to life.
"The tell-tale signs of this model is thrilling and exciting," Mintz said. "It's all about that level of professional who is not necessarily a thrill-seeker but definitely someone who doesn't want the same-old, same-old."
Many cars targeting this market are designed to appeal to everybody, losing much of their individuality, Mintz said, while the Sagitar, while still a mass market car, retains a bit of character that the ad helps convey.
The new launch, Volkswagen's first sedan roll-out in China for two years, forms part of a general marketing review for the German carmaker, giving each car in its China portfolio a distinctive positioning with an emotional tag, prompted by fierce competition from rival firms.
"Sagitar is the car for Volkswagen this year," Mintz said. "It's a really good looking car and they're putting a lot of emphasis on it -- it's a big push for the brand." The push includes print, outdoor, online and PR, also handled by DMG.
