To engage its core audience, Volkswagen needed an idea to promote how it makes car journeys more enjoyable for families. Children are increasingly looking at screens for entertainment in car journeys, so how could the automotive brand use technology to stimulate children’s imagination while traveling?

We created a digital product and a campaign that used location-based interactive audiobooks to transform ordinary road objects into a story’s magical characters. ‘Road Tales’ uses a custom-developed story-engine that creates unique tales based on the user’s location. To ensure the stories react to the environment, the team scanned all Dutch highways to identify objects like bridges, windmills, trees, petrol stations, and other prominent objects to transform them into story elements.

The app reached number one in the app store within 24 hours and won six Silver Cannes Lions in Entertainment, Brand Experience, Audio, Digital Craft, and Mobile.

Credits
Manager Marketing Communication Volkswagen: Berno Schokker
Team Manager Marketing Communication: Eric Bun
Brand Communication Manager: Laura Derks, Karin Sijbring
Agency: ACHTUNG! mcgarrybowen & Kraftwerk – Linked by Isobar
Executive Creative Director: Mervyn Ten Dam, Daniel Sytsma
Creative Director: Samyr Souen & Kika Douglas
Senior Creative: Wilmar Versprille & Matthijs Groos
Junior Creative: Lieve Eek
Account Manager: Dirk Jan de Krom
Strategy Director: Boris Nihom
Strategy: Gerben van der Zwaard
Head of Production: Sam van der Zanden
Content Producer: Souraya El-Far
Digital Producer: Kim Do
Designer: Joost Huver & Jack McAuliffe
Design director: Roy van Dijk
UX design: Falco Negenman
Illustrator: Mario Niveo
Production Company: Since ‘88, Round Trip, Robot Kittens
Sound design: Big Orange
Writers: Joke van Leeuwen, Daan Remmerts de Vries, Babette van Veen & Herman van Veen, Wilmar Versprille & Matthijs Groos

This campaign is about:
Volkswagen Road Tales, Volkswagen Snelweg Sprookjes, dentsuACHTUNG!, Netherlands, Innovation, Education