Viewers will spend one to two seconds with a banner ad, and if you miss the opportunity to intrigue them, you're toast. It includes message boards and clips on the forthcoming film. Our challenge here was more in the area of creating a destination that lived up to a reader's expectations. If a visitor to the site were a fan of the 'Harry Potter' books, which in this case was likely, then chances were that what brought him or her to the site was a desire to experience more of what he or she experienced by reading the books. Our solution was to try and make the 'Harry Potter' world as accessible to the audience as it was to the characters in the books.
People really seem to enjoy the storytelling, and the feeling the spots give the brand.
So we developed a wonderful partnership with Atom Films, a leading provider of independent films online, and created VW's Online Drive-In Theater. We show up to 12 short, independent films exclusive to VW each month. And we've been promoting the site with an offline print and radio campaign. The site launched in October 2000 without any promotion, yet just over 60,000 people stopped by, spending an average of nine to 11 minutes. They aren't afraid to click through, and they're generally open to visiting new sites and playing around online.