The Volkswagen “Lemon” advertisement of the ’60’s was
revolutionary. Not because of the car, but because of the obscurity of the advertisement.
This ad featured no color, no pricing, no detail or hooks, in fact the only
thing the ad showed was the car. Why was this ad so odd? “Ads before it were
either information-based and lacking in persuasion, more fantasy than reality,
or reliant on the medium's ability to deliver repeated exposure.” (Ogden) The “Lemon”
advertisement had no one of these. It contained a raw image of the Beetle and
the punch line of “Lemon”. It was so basic yet so effective in its purpose.
One reason for the over simplified advertisement was because
of the Ad Agency that VW used. “This was a
post-WWII German car, “the people’s car,” a Nazi car
whose development was tied to Adolf Hitler himself.” (Johnson)
The ad agency used was Jewish, and at the time of this ad there was a
historical problem between Hitler and the Jews. Beside the point, this was a
revolutionary ad because it showed the truth of the car in all aspects. It was
simply simple. Simple enough to grab the eye of many viewers. "Think small," "Lemon"
and "Impossible"
all presented the Bug as "an amusing, lovable, and curious automobile that
signaled a quality product in a materialistic society abounding with false
promises," Rieger explains. (Grose). These iconic advertisements
helped this car to become the iconic Volkswagen Beetle that know and love
today.
http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/stories/1999/11/22/smallb7.html?page=all
http://designshack.net/articles/graphics/the-greatest-print-campaigns-of-all-time-volkswagen-think-small/
http://www.fastcocreate.com/1682699/see-a-brief-cultural-history-of-an-auto-giant-the-volkswagen-beetle
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