A 'classic': invite people who infuence/make decisions about fleet purchases on a trip to create close professional friendships. Create a list of Passat buyers who also happen to be top executives of corporations that purchase fleets. NOT SO CLASSIC: Obtain free accommodation, meals, wine tastings, etc., for the travellers through a comarketing agreement with MasterWine magazine.

Via a very elegant dimensional mailing and telemarketing follow-up, the prospects were invited to participate in the PASSAT WINE TOUR. Each participant and his/her companion drove their own Passat in a caravan from Buenos Aires to the heart of Argentine wine country, for an unforgettable five days with VW.

Five Passat Wine Tours were held between March and December 2002, with a total of 35 executives participating. The program has been so successful that six more Tours are planned for 2003. Although this is seen as a long-term relationship strategy, fleet sales to the executives’ companies (taking into account ONLY the firms that had never purchased directly from Volkswagen before) had ALREADY surpassed US$ 500,000 by March 2003. The total cost of the five Tours to VW was a mere $558 (only the mailing and telemarketing costs, since the tour services were free). This represents a ROI of over 89,600%!