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3 min | Storytelling

Making ads for tech products is hard because product screenshots are usually boring.

Great UX/UI, terrible ad hook.

Volkswagen had a similar problem.

Their cars had tons of unique features, but explaining them meant showing boring illustrations.

Now, showing the actual features is very important – just later in the funnel.

An ad should grab attention and deliver one simple message, not cover the entire pitch.

So they tried a different creative strategy…

Analogy Ads

Small copy: “Finding your Volkswagen is just as easy. With Car-Net Last Parking Position.”
“Volkswagen Side Assist. Knows what’s coming.”
“One angle is not enough. Volkswagen 360° Area View Camera.”
“Luxury meets labour. The Amarok.”
“Precision Parking. Park Assist by Volkswagen.”
“Danger is just a matter of distance. ACC System. Keeps you at a safe distance from the vehicle ahead.”
“Small but ferocious. Golf TSI. 103 kW of power from only 1.4 liters of engine.”
“The Rear-Assist rear-view camera. Now also available in the Crafter.”
“Just because it works, doesn’t mean it’s fixed.
Volkswagen Genuine Parts.”

Analogy ads are awesome.

They unbore technical features and make them accessible.

And they also give tech marketers endless options for their visuals.

Left ad: “You may have missed some upgrades.”
Right ad: “Compatibility is never a problem with Apple Macintosh.”

If you want to learn how to make analogy ads for B2B products, check out my course: Boring Products, Fun Ads 🙂

In this recipe

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