At the start of 2016, not that many people were familiar with the My Volkswagen app, despite being released early 2015. Technical product demonstrations fell short in gathering the interest of the bigger crowd. We looked to create an online content piece that would help people understand what Connected Car technology can do for them, but also make something they would want to watch. We started digging into Volkswagen’s active social community and stumbled upon an interesting insight: Volkswagen owners are dog lovers. On average, Volkswagen drivers own more dogs than the average Dutch person. We presented the My Volkswagen features not by humanizing them, but rather by translating them to dogs. The resulting film, The Connected Dog, became a lighthearted online film that tells the story of a dog owner using Volkswagen technology to create a wireless dog that can walk himself and listens to commands from a distance.

The main benefit of the My Volkswagen app is that it gives owners certainty from a distance. The certainty to always know where your car is and how your car’s doing. We decided to tell the story in a documentary style about a dog’s day out, while his owner is at work. Each scene highlights a specific feature of the My Volkswagen app: from the GPS tracker that shows the dog running in the park to energy level indicators that check if the dog needs food. The fact that the dog can walk itself shows the benefits for car owners: he’s relaxed and in control.

We presented the online film to millions of Dutch Volkswagen fans on Facebook with a guest appearance by Dutch dog whisperer Martin Gaus. We outlined a specific PR strategy for an audience of each elements of the film: technology fans, dog lovers and car enthusiasts. The

Initially, the Connected Dog was meant for the Dutch market. The kick-off, a social post on the Dutch Volkswagen Facebook page, gathered over 3 million views. The online film continued to travel beyond Dutch borders, making its way to front page news in Turkey, Colombia, Japan and many other countries. The Connected Dog got covered on Contagious, PSFK, Adweek, tech and dog related sites. Volkswagen is now considering to roll out the My Volkswagen app in other countries.