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First instance of a major advertising campaign using Facebook Vanity URLs

By Keith
June 16, 2009
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First instance of a major advertising campaign using Facebook Vanity URLs Facebook vanity URLs have been around for just over 72 hours but we are already seeing a major brand capitalize on their Facebook URL for an advertising campaign. Volkswagen (VW) has released a series of TV ads that in addition to highlighting their vehicles points viewers to facebook.com/vw. This is the very first instance that we are aware of a marketing strategy that utilizes the a brand’s Facebook page instead of the companies main website, VW.com.

(We would embed the video but Facebook doesn’t like sharing outside of their walled garden, click the screencap below to view the video within Facebook.)

First instance of a major advertising campaign using Facebook Vanity URLs

The social network integration goes a step further with a “Meet the Volkswagens” Facebook app

that will analyze your Facebook profile to suggest the perfect VW vehicle. My personal results didn’t yield highly desirable cars for me individually but it didn’t decrease the nifty factor.

Overall, VW’s Facebook page is extremely well designed and encourages users to become fans and interact with the brand as well as individual makes of vehicles. It will definitely brand visibility and buzz on Facebook. VW’s advertising campaign and use of social networking and may prove to be a pioneering case study in a new era of marketing.


  • This is significant. Direct connection with your community through Facebook Vanity URL's. Extend reach of your advertising through facebook. Nice :)
  • Cool-- but I'm not sure it's first. I seem to remember seeing vitaminwater doing an ad pushing their facebook URL over their "real" URL.
  • I've seen the VW ads with their vanity URL's on American television for a couple weeks now, so these aren't new. I assume that advertisers have had the vanity option for a while.
  • Dave
    That would make sense. Allow corporate clients to reserve their vanity url first before it gets stepped on by someone registering their initials.
  • Facebook vanity URLs have indeed been around for a lot longer than a few weeks. Facebook starting rolling them out to "preferred partners" at least a couple months ago. I've come across at least fifty. New media sites like Mashable and Techcrunch have their own, and I even know of a boutique advertising firm that can arrange one for clients.
  • FB is blending advertising with content users are sharing. The URLs make the brand more transmittable and accessible, while the ads invite users to create and disseminate co-created content. This branded content then becomes increasingly public and relevant.

    http://christianprada.net/2009/07/branding-with...
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