Dive Brief:
- "Das Auto" is no longer part of Volkswagen’s slogan, at least for now.
- Public relations firm Edelman has been working with the car maker on reputation management after its clean diesel scandal hit earlier this year.
- According to Reuters, Volkswagen’s leadership is "anxious to proclaim a reformed corporate culture."
Dive Insight:
As part of its ongoing brand rehabilitation, German car maker Volkswagen is no longer using the phrase “Das Auto” as part of its slogan.
A Volkswagen representative told Reuters, "Wherever our logo appears in future, it will be backed by the new brand slogan 'Volkswagen.’ The slogan will be rolled out in stages across the world."
Robert Passikoff, founder and president of consultancy Brand Keys, told Adweek the slogan change was "not much of an idea at all – cosmetic at best," and added a parting shot that VW "blew the believability tire."
Since Volkswagen was hit with a clean diesel scandal – created in-house by its engineers – the overall result for the marketing team has been a massive brand and reputation management cleanup, which Edelman has absorbed. After VW’s CEO was forced out, consumer confidence about any messaging coming from Volkswagen has been at a low. The scandal was severe enough to even harm the reputation of Germany as a nation.
In cases of brand crisis, experts agree the key is for the company to stay in front of the story and remain transparent and sincere throughout. Hopefully, this small logo change is indicative a deeper shift across VW toward crisis resolution.