Volkswagen
Volkswagen launched its new T-Roc with a first-of-its-kind Pinterest campaign, combining Premiere Spotlight, Editorial Sponsorship, a keyword takeover, and immersive creative formats. Want to see how they accelerated awareness and action? Take a seat, belt up—we’re about to d(r)ive in.
Goal
In a competitive automotive market, standing out takes more than a standout product alone. For Volkswagen, launching its new T-Roc meant creating excitement, building connections, and reaching car shoppers during key moments of discovery—while ideas were forming and decisions were taking shape.
With a goal to capture the attention (and hearts) of compact SUV intenders, Volkswagen wanted to connect with an audience driven by design, innovation, and brand experiences that reflect their values and everything they seek in a car.
And with people turning to Pinterest to discover, compare, and research important decisions, the platform offered the ideal environment to introduce the T-Roc to those getting a new car.
To bring this vision to life, Volkswagen teamed up with PHD Germany and Pinterest to create a first-of-its-kind launch strategy.
Strategy
With their audience identified and ambitions set, Volkswagen needed a launch strategy that would match the energy of the new T-Roc, and meet the expectations of today’s car shoppers.
To drive visibility and reach, Volkswagen used Premiere Spotlight placements across the home feed and search landing pages, securing the most premium space on Pinterest. Then, using Creative Connect, the team repurposed the campaign's master creative into additional assets, including Breakthrough Videos—all designed to grab attention and maximize impact.
Bringing their storytelling to life, they ran an Editorial Sponsorship infused with a music lover aesthetic, extending the campaign narrative and highlighting the T-Roc's unique appeal. Then, a “Color & Rock” keyword takeover connected Volkswagen with high-intent audiences through culturally relevant searches. Whether someone was looking for Freddie Mercury, rock legends or a drum setup, their results featured inspirational content alongside a native, contextually relevant Volkswagen T-Roc ad.
Building on this further, Volkswagen diversified its creative mix with videos, Breakthrough Videos, static formats, and product-feature Pins. Together, these created a seamless, connected, and overall immersive experience—it took people on a journey—all the while driving awareness, inspiring engagement, and prompting action.
And finally, to maximise performance and campaign efficiency, Volkswagen also used Pinterest Performance+. By tapping into Pinterest’s automation and AI-powered optimisation, they delivered the right creative to the right audience at the right moment.
“
This campaign set a new benchmark. Together with Volkswagen and Pinterest, we translated the initial brief into a fully integrated launch strategy that was seamlessly executed at go-live. The T-Roc ‘total takeover’ was not only first in its kind on Pinterest, it also showed how innovative formats can systematically drive awareness and action.”
Jean Guerrieri
Director, PHD Germany
Results
This fully integrated approach accelerated results for Volkswagen—reaching over 5 million unique users in Germany and around a third of their target audience.1
The T-Roc Editorial Sponsorship delivered an impressive +241% more impressions and a +413% higher open rate compared to editorial benchmarks.1 And the impact continued across the campaign, with Pinterest delivering a 51% lower cost per thousand impressions for awareness and a 37% lower cost per click for consideration compared to automotive benchmarks.1
Premiere Spotlight also helped turn visibility into action, driving a +2.2 percentage point lift in Pin awareness and +1.5 percentage point lift in action intent.1 And among 25 to 34-year-olds, action intent to consider the T-Roc when getting a new car increased by 3.9 percentage points.1
Meanwhile, the “Color & Rock” keyword takeover showed the power of connecting with audiences through culturally relevant moments—delivering a +3.1 percentage point lift in Pin awareness, +2.1 percentage point lift in action intent, and +1.6 percentage point lift in top-of-mind awareness.1
The takeover? A standout success. The takeaway? Meet your audience where their journey begins (and on Pinterest, that journey starts early). Guide people as they actively discover, explore, research, and decide. Become part of their story, the brand they choose, and ultimately, the car they drive.
Volkswagen put the new T-Roc on the map for car buyers on Pinterest. We’re excited to see what route the brand takes next.
+2.1%p
Uplift in action intent and +1.6%p TOM awareness with Color and Rock keyword takeover1
+1.5%p
Action intent uplift with the Premiere Spotlight takeover1
+241%
More impressions and +413% higher open rate for the Editorial Sponsorship compared to the editorial benchmarks1
Explore Related Resources
Make an extra splash with Premiere Spotlight
Put your ads centre stage for your next product launch or big marketing moment. Premiere Spotlight empowers advertisers to help achieve maximum reach, visibility, and awareness at scale. Book your slot.
Drive efficiency with Pinterest Performance+
Maximise campaign management with Pinterest’s automation and AI-powered optimisation. Pinterest Performance+ helps deliver the right creative to the right audience at the right moment, boosting efficiency and results. Activate now.