#epic split

Jean-Claude Van DAMN that was an epic YouTube ad. 

So starting fresh in this new year, I'm sharing with you one of my favorite adds: this 'epic split' performed by the amazing martial arts legend Jean-Claude Van Damm and professionals from Volvo.

This viral masterwork from Volvo Trucks and agency Forsman & Bodenfors is really edgy, odd but furthermore, oddly respectful. This split is the last of a series of videos called "Live Test" created to prove the high quality and balance of Volvo Trucks.  A lot of skepticism surrounded the idea, making of and success of this marketing campaign, even from Van Damm himself. However, it turned out to be one of the most watched videos of all times, with nearly 80'000.000 views on YouTube.

Björn Engström, one of the creative executives behind the video said:  "You have an old action star and you have a song that is out of date, and when you combine it, it's like a Tarantino movie. We needed to go broad, and we didn't have a media budget, so we decided viral was the only way to go."

This edgy move with a literally nonexistent media budget and a strangely compelling video is selling the hell out of some trucks, according to Anders Vilhelmsson, PR director for Volvo Trucks. Practically overnight, Volvo Trucks became one of the most successful and admired brands in the history of social media marketing.

Not letting the holidays go completely, watch also the great viral response from Chuck Norris doing an 'epic christmas split' with almost 24'000.000 YouTube views:

Wishing you could do the splits