DDB and Tribal DDB recently launched a Volkswagen campaign in the UK to showcase the company’s two new MPV models, the Touran and Sharan, and if you enter the contest we’re pretty sure you’ll have good odds of winning.
The program invites families to nominate their “Ultimate Family Hero” by uploading photos of the nominee to the site, which can then be “hero-ized” by adding masks, symbols and sound effects. The personalized comic book covers can then be shared via email or Facebook. With parents outfitted to look like extras in Kiss-Ass, you’re then asked to write why your nominee is truly the Ultimate Family Hero.
Here’s the twist: the three finalists (read: the two willing participants and the cousin of someone at DDB who was begged to enter) will undertake “special,” videotaped missions in the Touran and Sharan that will be posted on the site. The finalists’ videos will go live on October 11th to be voted for by the public (employees at DDB) with the winner receiving a car and £5,000 for the charity or local organization of their choice.
You gotta give it to DDB, they do cover the digital campaign checklist: user submitted images, basic image manipulation, Facebook integration, crowdsourced voting and charity.
“Whether you’re just playing with the Heroiser superhero maker, entering the competition or voting for and supporting your favorite finalist, there’s always something to keep you engaged and entertained,” Simon Richings, CD at DDB UK said in a statement. “Throughout there’s a clear message: Volkswagen has made these ultimate family cars.”
Is that the message? Or is it the following: we think you’re this desperate to be entertained.