VW’s “You earn too much” Ad

Classic VW copy, with that curt tone and reverse psychology.

The story arc: we disarm a common objection (cars as status), talk about the features we’d find in the “best” car, then introduce FOMO at the end (your future financial well-being).

The last part is what makes this a masterpiece.

Absolutely clinical execution. It goes deep into your animal brain by pitting 1) your loss against 2) another’s gain.

Firstly, loss. We feel loss much more strongly than we feel gain. (Approximately 2x more strongly according to prospect theory by Daniel Kahneman, RIP). The copy makes you visualize your current status quo — paying interest on an expensive car loan (not VW) — as the loss.

And secondly? It exposes whatever insecurities you may have surrounding your finances. How? By giving that gain to some other person. They’re the one saving their money with the VW, not you.

Now it’s plugged into your jealousy. In caveman terms: “That guy has more than me! Uh-oh, he might steal my mate.”

If you had imagined yourself with that gain first, with no other person present? Doesn’t even come close.

What just happened?

“Look at this person, saving money with the smart choice. So smart, in fact, that it’s actually what makes your poorer one possible — if you choose to keep doing that.”

They’ve created a zero-sum game through juxtaposition.

In reality, if you dissect it logically, it isn’t zero-sum. Many things in life aren’t. To cherry-pick, the bank has many other people’s money, and whose money you’re borrowing exactly is moot.

But that doesn’t matter to our emotional perception — which is what’s ultimately responsible for all our decisions.

The only thing our animal brains have detected is that maintaining the status quo sets us back and helps our rivals.

Luckily for us, the fix is simple: buy the VW.

Enjoy :)