The biggest names in the movie industry arrived in fitting style last night for the 81st Academy Awards ceremony: A fleet of 40 white Audi Q7 TDI Clean Diesel cars chauffeured the stars to the red carpet in front of the Kodak Theater in Los Angeles. With its presence at the Oscars, Audi supports yet another major event as part of a major US marketing initiative. The German premium brand already presented the TV transmission of the inauguration of President Barack Obama and launched a major commercial during the Super Bowl - the annual sports event with the most TV viewers in the US.
"Thanks to new models such as the A4 and top models such as the Audi R8, Audi in the US reached the highest brand awareness and best image in its history last year. In order now to further gain market share, we are increasing our marketing budget for the USA," said Peter Schwarzenbauer, Member of the Board of Management for Marketing and Sales of AUDI AG. A full 15 to 20 percent more is to be invested in the brand this year in order to transform this crisis into an opportunity. "While others are hitting the brakes, we continue our extensive marketing initiative," said Schwarzenbauer. "Behaving counter-cyclical will further strengthen us in these times." This also explains how Audi was able to further expand its market share during January 2009 when compared with its competitors (from 6,7% to 7,2% of the Import High Group).
Audi also accelerated its efforts last week in Los Angeles. Starting last Tuesday, white Audi Q7 TDI Clean Diesel cars featuring clean diesel technology began transporting stars like Michael Douglas, Debra Messing, Angela Bassett, Sheryl Crow, Gwen Stefani, Marisa Tomei, Kristin Davis and Kate Winslet. The entire fleet of 40 Audi Q7 cars stood at the ready last night to chauffeur the celebrities to the red carpet at the Kodak Theater, where the 81st Academy Awards ceremony was held.
The presence at the Oscars of the brand with the four rings is only the latest step in the company's marketing campaign in the USA. Audi's 2009 commercial during the Super Bowl, for example, was the second time that the company advertised during that major American sporting event. This event offers high impact: both 60-second commercials were seen by an audience of about one billion viewers who tune into the football spectacular each year.
When Barack Obama was inaugurated as president on January 20, 2009, Audi acted as a partner to the United States' three biggest TV networks - ABC, CBS and NBC - to enable them to broadcast this historic moment with almost no commercial breaks. This was the first time a cooperation with the media of this type was struck - and Audi reached out to more than 19 million viewers on TV that day. For the Internet broadcast of the inauguration, Audi was even the exclusive sponsor. In addition, an eight-page advertisement placed in major newspapers including USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and The Boston Globe reached more than 8.6 million readers.
2009 BMW 7-Series USA Press Launch Photo Gallery
2009 BMW 7-Series European Press Launch Photo Gallery
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