Volkswagen drives 52% incremental reach with omnichannel strategy

BUSINESS OBJECTIVE 

Driving awareness and consideration for its economy service offering

Volkswagen Germany strives to make sure its customers ride off with a guarantee of “reliability, performance, and peace of mind on every drive.” This brand promise holds true over time through Volkswagen’s nationwide after-sales offering — specialised, cost-effective repairs and inspections for vehicles older than four years. And as a bonus — the older the car, the higher the discount. 

But competition from independent automotive repair shops impacts Volkswagen Germany’s maintenance business. To preserve its leading position, Volkswagen wanted to increase awareness and consideration of its Volkswagen Economy Service and deliver messaging consistently across channels without overexposing consumers. Doing so could help drive traffic to its dedicated website landing page and generate measurable conversions. 

To achieve these objectives, the leading car brand worked with its agency, PHD Media, to design a strategy focused on more efficient cross-channel engagement with car owners. By connecting media channels holistically, the approach maximised unique reach and drove measurable impact across brand lift and performance metrics. 

The team partnered with The Trade Desk to implement a unified omnichannel strategy on our platform that would connect awareness and performance across the marketing funnel.

SOLUTION 

Building a phased omnichannel strategy for scalable impact

Volkswagen and PHD Media activated a unified omnichannel strategy using a phased approach. Using campaign creative that spoke directly to the customer benefit of its after-sales offering, the team coordinated activity across channels, controlled cross-channel frequency, managed frequency holistically, and focused on expanding incremental reach while improving media efficiency throughout the customer journey.

The campaign began as a proof of concept to validate omnichannel activation across formats and environments. 

Building on early learnings, the team expanded the strategy to five channels — audio, connected TV, online video, display, and digital out-of-home (DOOH) — helping align messaging across devices and moments to create a more cohesive consumer journey from awareness through conversion. 

To reach high-value audiences, the team activated first-party data seeds, including data from Volkswagen’s online car configurator and its website’s universal pixel. This data allowed the team to optimise its campaign toward high-value users. Third-party data segments were also used to reach used-car owners and dealership loyalists seeking servicing or repairs. The campaign retargeted previously exposed consumers, reinforcing its messaging and optimising the path to conversion. 

Identity Alliance, the cross-device identity solution, further helped manage exposure across channels, reduce waste, and maximise incremental reach. For DOOH specifically, the team used our Audience Reach Percentage (ARP) to optimise delivery based on real-time audience presence near screens — improving relevance and impact without increasing spend. Integrated path-to-conversion reporting alongside an independent brand lift study measured campaign performance, helping to assess results across both brand and performance metrics.

RESULTS 

Delivering incremental reach and measurable efficiency gains

Over six weeks, Volkswagen’s omnichannel strategy reached more than 20 million unique people and generated over 625,000 visits to its economy service landing page. 

Using our holistic frequency management across channels and publishers helped deliver a 52% incremental reach, equating to nearly 7 million additional unique users. ARP-optimised DOOH activity further extended effectiveness, delivering an additional 15% increase in reach across target audiences. 

The campaign also improved efficiency, with display activity achieving a 57% lower cost per acquisition (CPA) compared with previous economy service campaigns. Brand impact was equally strong, with consideration increasing by 34 percentage points overall, outperforming benchmark results by 14 points. 

The results proved how a connected omnichannel strategy — grounded in unified measurement and frequency control — can help expand reach, strengthen consideration, and improve cost-efficiency. As a result, Volkswagen and PHD established omnichannel activation as a scalable model for future marketing efforts. 

Discover how an omnichannel approach can help work towards maximising unique reach and delivering measurable impact across brand lift and performance metrics. Contact us or reach out to your account manager at The Trade Desk today.