Volkswagen’s top US marketer on its ‘SNL’ sponsorship and EV strategy

After striking a deal to become a presenting sponsor of the 50th anniversary season of “Saturday Night Live,” Volkswagen had the opportunity to make custom content with the show. Then came the potentially hard part—deciding which of the hundreds of iconic “SNL” comedic sketches to redo in an ad. But for VW, it was an easy choice. “The Californians,” a satirical soap opera that first aired in 2012, aligned perfectly with the brand’s deep connections to the Golden State, including its historical ties to hippie and surfing culture. “Californians themselves have embraced Volkswagen and truly have kind of built the DNA of the brand,” said Rachael Zaluzec, VW of America’s senior VP of customer experience and brand marketing. The spot, which debuted on Feb. 14 on Peacock during “SNL50: The Homecoming Concert,” features former SNL cast members Fred Armisen, Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig reprising their roles from the sketch while subtly plugging VW’s new ID Buzz, an electric minivan that is inspired by VW’s Microbus of the 1960s. Zaluzec, a longtime VW employee who was promoted to the top marketing role about two years ago, joined the Marketer’s Brief podcast to discuss the SNL collab as well as other ways the German brand is staying connected to U.S. consumers. Subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, check us out on Spotify and hear us on Amazon Music/Audible. This is our RSS feed. Tell a friend! Part of that involves aligning customer experience initiatives with marketing. Zaluzec is an expert on the topic. After joining the automaker’s human resources department in 2008, she transitioned to take on multiple jobs involving customer support, loyalty programs and digital strategy. After assuming the brand marketing role in January 2023, she prioritized integrating the marketing and customer experience teams, “not just from a leadership and team dynamics perspective, but from a priorities perspective,” she said. “Because they were very disparate before.” A lot of it involves credibility and “making sure that if we’re putting a message out there, it doesn’t contradict anything that currently exists, because we wouldn’t want something to get called out by a current owner,” she said. For instance, before running an ad that targets a particular population—such as people who do not speak English as a primary language—VW would want to ensure it has the customer service systems in place to support that group. “So thinking about the ownership experience before we’re thinking about the marketing experience,” she said. On the podcast, Zaluzec also discusses VW’s marketing approach for electric vehicles, a segment that has yet to live up to the hype industrywide. Volkswagen earlier this year canceled plans to bring the ID7 electric sedan to the U.S. and Canada, citing “the ongoing challenging EV climate.” VW’s U.S. EV lineup includes the ID Buzz and ID4 compact crossover, but it does not yet offer gas-electric hybrids in the states, which have proven to be a popular powertrain choice for American buyers. Beyond the SNL campaign, marketing for the ID Buzz has included an optimistic, joyful and colorful campaign from Johannes Leonardo backed by Elaine Stritch’s 1956 recording of “Are you having any fun?” Zaluzec said ID Buzz marketing is not only promoting the EV but acts as a “brand halo” that benefits VW’s entire portfolio. It talks “as much about the brand as it does about electric vehicles,” she said.

Volkswagen’s top US marketer on its ‘SNL’ sponsorship and EV strategy

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