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New VW Ad Takes Radical Approach To Safety

Volkswagen is trying a radical, potentially risky approach in its new advertising efforts for its Jetta model. In two TV spots designed to highlight the vehicle's safety, the automaker employs graphic realism to depict an auto accident in which the Jetta is violently smashed into by another car. Airbags pop out, and the spots end with shots of stunned passengers, the damaged Jetta and the slogan: "Safe happens." A VW spokesman said the ads are so realistic that the company has received calls from viewers asking if any of the actors were hurt. The ads leave an impression, no doubt, but some marketing experts say they could pose a risk. "This is kind of like you are looking at 'World's Scariest Videos,' " says marketing consultant John Allen. "It can turn people off." If anything, the ad is a total departure from traditional auto advertising that often shows shiny new vehicles cruising peacefully down highways or traversing through city streets. "Auto makers tend to stay away from showing their cars in anything but the best light," says Anthony DiBiase of the Irvine, Calif., office of Y&R Advertising, which works for Ford Motor's Land Rover. VW and its ad agency, Crispin Porter + Bogusky, say that showing people how an automobile can protect passengers from danger is a selling point--even if most automobile advertisers would shy away from this sort of unvarnished look at safety. "You wouldn't necessarily see car companies being this sort of upfront and honest about things," says Alex Bogusky, the agency's chief creative officer. "The drivers are doing everything right, but things still happen.

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