The 2008/9 economic recession hit car sales hard. Just getting prospective customers in for a test drive was proving difficult enough, let alone enticing them to buy a new car. That was the challenge for RAPP NZ and client European Motor Distributors, to get current owners and a group of prospects to test drive the latest Golf GTi and create sales leads.

In place of a test drive, the target audience was invited to put themselves in pole position for an exclusive private Track Day. Typically GTi buyers are keenly interested in performance cars and driving. The Track Days meant these customers could put a new Gol fGTi through its paces on a closed race track. Skill sessions allowed them to push the car like never before thus experiencing the handling refinements of the latest GTi.

The Track Day gave them the time and the adrenalin-pumping experience to fall in love with the new model.

A leader board like the one in the Top Gear TV show was the way in. It promised a fun day and spoke of sports car performance. A personalised magnet with each customer’s name, along with a visual leader board and a personalised invite were sent out.

An unprecedented 88% response rate from the mailer and the hugely successful Track Days generated 212 sales leads, resulting in new GTi sales to the value of $460,000. An additional 1,100 leads were generated from other customers phoning their local dealerships.