How Quick Can You Click? Volkswagen Races Into Your Web Banner

Volkswagen GTi Bannenbahn

Banner Blindness is the name given to explain one of the reasons that internet users ignore banner ads. In fact Doubleclick has reported that the average click through rate for banner ads in the U.S. is a measly 0.11%.

However, this Friday (Sept 13) ad agency ACHTUNG! and Volkswagen will have internet users in the Netherlands paying extra attention to the banner ads on 4 of the country’s most popular web sites, including nu.nl, telegraaf.nl, autoweek.nl, and geenstijl.nl.

The agency will bring the banners to life with a live video feed from a local airport runway where 20 x 25 metre versions of the web pages have been reproduced. On Friday from noon to 4pm (Netherlands time) a stunt driver will pilot a Volkswagen GTi around the runway, speeding and sliding across the reproductions of the web page and through the banner ads. Internet users with quick reflexes have to click on the car when it appears. At the end of the day, the user with the quickest reflexes wins the car in real life.

While only people in the Netherlands can win the car, everyone can test their reflexes at gtibannerbahn.nl.

The Making of Bannerbahn

[via http://www.digitalbuzzblog.com/volkswagen-bannerbahn-live-banner-challenge/]

Netherlands

KLM Celebrates Comic Sans Day With Website Font Switcheroo

KLM - Comic Sans Day

Comic Sans is one of the most widely ridiculed fonts in existence. Since it’s creation by Microsoft designer Vincent Connare in 1994, and its inclusion with Windows 95, it has been widely used and misused (someone would argue there is no proper use) by tens of thousands of would-be desktop publishers around the world.

In 2009, Dutch radio hosts Coen Swijnenberg and Sander Lantinga began celebrating the font by hosting Comic Sans Day on the first Friday of July.

Some Dutch companies, including KLM have joined in on the joke. The airline’s website features a one-day Comic Sans makeover, but they didn’t stop there. They held a special contest, whereby anyone who was named C. Sans was given the chance to win two return flight tickets from the Netherlands to Paris. To enter, particpants

[via Simply Zesty]

Netherlands

Dog Pretends To Be a Car in Dutch Volkswagen Ad

Volkswagen Dog

A new ad from Volkswagen Netherlands features a cute Jack Russell Terrier (possibly a Jackapoo), that is so impressed by the neighbour’s VW that he spends his day pretending to be one, much to the chagrin of his beleaguered owner.

The dog makes engine revving sounds at the crosswalk, makes tire suealing sounds in the park, beeps as it’s backing up, and when startled out of a sound sleep, it begins to bark like a car alarm.

The spot was created by DDB & Tribal Amsterdam, and directed by Mattias Schut at Czar.

Netherlands

Family Bonds with ‘Sound of Music’ Sing-a-long for Dutch Auto Insurance Ad

Nationale-Nederlanden - do-re-mi

While car fires are no cause for celebration, it’s refreshing to see this family to turn a difficult situation into a fun, bonding experience for everyone. The family gleefully scoop and pass water hand-to-hand, to douse their burning minivan, all the while singing ‘Do-Re-Mi’ from The Sound of Music.

Dutch insurance company Nationale-Nederlanden is using the ad to promote a 100% satisfaction guarantee on their car insurance. If policyholders are not satisfied with how the company handles the claim, they receive 4 months of relief from premium payments.

The ad was created by JWT Amsterdam, directed by Sam Cadman for Rogue Films.

[via Amsterdam Ad Blog]

Netherlands

Dutch Orchestra Raises Awareness by Performing Fan-Created Tweetphonies

Metropole TweetphonyThe Metropole Orchestra is a Dutch jazz and pop orchestra created in 1946 by the Netherlands Public Broadcasting. However the Metropole Orchestra is no longer subsidized and faces budget cuts.

To help raise awareness of the Orchestra, creative agencies Havas and Perfect Fools have created Tweetphony, a website where visitors can use a keyboard to compose their own 140 character symphony.

The best ‘tweetphonies’ will actually be performed by the orchestra on October 26 and posted on YouTube. Listen and see if you recognize any of the melodies.

Netherlands

VW Netherlands Promotes Commercial Vehicle Sale with One-of-a-Kind BBQ Van

Volkswagen BBQ Bus

Until November 2, Volkswagen Netherlands is offering special discounts on their commercial vehicles during Vriendenprijsweken (Friends Price Week). To further promote the campaign, Dutch metal-artist and designer Thierry van Raay was recruited to create a fully functional BBQ in the form of a classic Volkswagen Transporter T1.

To win the van, eligible participants (i.e., residents of The Netherlands 18+) allow the BBQ-BUS Facebook app to scan their most recent 50 photos to determine how many friends are recognized in the photos (my scan found 20 faces, several of which were my own).

The images that the application locates, are then displayed on bodies of a line-up of hungry construction workers, which can then be shared on the user’s Facebook timeline.

On October 17, a winner will be randomly selected from eligible participants to take home the one-of-a-kind BBQ bus.

The campaign was created by Amsterdam-based creative agency Achtung!

[via marcobulters.nl]

Netherlands

MINI Netherlands Analyzes Test Drive Style for the Perfect Coffee Blend

MINI - How do you drive your coffee?

MINI is extending an offer of free coffee delivery to businesses in the Netherlands. Besides the customized coffee bar built into the back of a MINI Countryman; MINI will bring along a fleet of 6 coffee-coloured cars for employees to test drive.

Data from each person’s test drive will be recorded, analyzed and used to determine the perfect coffee-blend match to their driving style.

The ‘How do you drive your coffee‘ initiative was put together by JWT, Amsterdam.

Netherlands

[via AdRants]

Freshmen at Dutch University Create Student-Powered Street View

Wageningen University Student Streetview

During introduction week, a thousand freshmen students at Wageningen University were recruited to create a Street View-like tour to help prospective and newly enrolled students explore the Dutch school’s campus. The students were strategically placed in one line, 15 miles long across the campus, covering the outside facilities and 11 floors of 3 of the school’s buildings.

At the exact moment, the strategically placed students captured the view directly in front of them, then turned to capture the image behind them. The images were then assembled into a Facebook application resembling the familiar interface of Google’s Street View.

The project concept and strategy for the project come from Utrecht-based agency Tribewise, and was developed by Rhinofly.

Netherlands

Dutch Olympic Fans Power a Volkswagen With Their Cheers

Volkswagen - Up! Holland Up!

Volkswagen Holland‘s Up! Holland Up! campaign is giving Dutch Olympic fans something to scream and yell about. And, if those fans cheer loud enough they can earn a trip to London and tickets for the Olympic Games.

Volkswagen’s Dutch agency ACHTUNG! and application developer B-Lex worked together to modify a new Volkswagen Up! by removing the accelerator pedal and configuring the engine to accelerate based on the sound inside the car.

People were invited to register for the challenge, and would be contacted when the car was in their area. Their challenge was to scream as loud as they could to make the car travel 100 metres. The louder they cheered, the faster the car would go. The fastest time each day would win the tickets to London. There are more tickets available for the people in the 10 videos that are voted the funniest.

Netherlands

AFC Ajax Fans Get Fitting Room Surprise Party

AFC Ajax Fitting Room Surprise Party

AFC Ajax is one of the most longest-running and successful football teams in The Netherlands. To give their fans an extra surprise at the launch of their new home jersey, a series of fake fitting rooms were installed inside the Ajax Experience store in Amsterdam. Once the fan had pulled on the jersey, the wall-length mirror was pulled away to reveal a private party including Ajax players Vurnon Anita, Kolbeinn Sigthorsson, Daley Blind, Jasper Cillessen, team captain Siem de Jong and women’s team players Leonne Stentler and Babiche Roof.

As seen in the video, the fans reacted with a wide range of mixed reactions from absolute terror to delight.

The experience was created by Iris Amsterdam.

Netherlands