Volvo truck vs. race car video wins global viral video award

Volvo Trucks has had a run of global viral video successes in the last few years, starting most notably with Jean Claude van Damme straddling two Volvo FH Globetrotter trucks in 2013. Most recently, the company’s communications department hit the viral jackpot again when it pitted a Volvo FH model against a Koenigsegg race car.

Earlier this week, that video won first prize in the category of “Viral Video” at the Digital Communication Awards in Berlin, Germany.

The Digital Communication Awards “acknowledge the world’s best digital communication and marketing,” said Volvo. The winners were decided in a finals format where all nominees presented their case in front of a jury.

“We are understandably incredibly pleased with the prize. The race between a Volvo FH and a Koenigsegg one:1 is not just entertaining to watch - it also subtlety explains the benefits of the new gearbox. For us this is further proof that engaging content in your own channels is an effective marketing strategy,” said Jeff Bird, global PR manager, Volvo Trucks.

In the video, a former race car driver Tiff Needell races a Volvo FH against the Koenigsegg One:1, one of the world’s fastest sports cars. The purpose, according to Volvo, was to test the truck’s new gearbox in tough conditions and to examine whether the drivability of a Volvo FH with I-Shift dual clutch really was comparable with a sports car.

The Epic Split featuring Jean Claude van Damme

The campaign earlier won first prize in the category of “Best use of social media” at the Content Marketing Awards in the USA.

According to the global OEM, the video has been dubbed in German and translated into 16 languages. It has received over 2.5 million views on Youtube.

You can see the full video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PlFiKo64kQw