Audi is trying everything in their power to polish the not-very-turd-like VW Polo into a gleaming, MINI-beating distillation of their larger cars.

The marketing for the Audi A1 has thus far been youthful, clearly expensive, unconventional, and (not so) surprisingly unsuccessful in moving units.

Let’s take a look at the Top 5 Audi A1 Commercials to see if we can pinpoint exactly where Audi is going wrong. If we can do that, perhaps we can shed some light onto Audi’s reluctance to sell the A1 here in Canada.

As Mark Twain put it, “Many a small thing has been made large by the right kind of advertising.” I guess that means Audi’s small thing just needs a little better advertising.

5. “The Next Big Thing”, starring Justin Timberlake.
This is a weird one. The whole premise of a mini web series featuring a Hollywood A-lister to promote a car is tenuous at best. I understand that celebrity endorsements are big business, but I’m not sure that the execution is there with this series of webisodes. JT must’ve used up all his acting aptitude on The Social Network.

4. “How Do You Describe It”
This spot is neither flattering for the car nor the brand. The message is as muddled, inconsistent, and confused as the collection of adjectives between A and 1.

3. “Big Breakthrough”
Another ad that completely misses the mark. Ok, so you’re a rocker chick in a band and you like slow-motion cameras… and that has what exactly to do with the littlest Audi?

2. “The Next Big Thing”
It’s hipster, it’s New York, it’s creative, it’s about design, it’s what the Audi A1 is all about. This is what hitting the mark looks like. More ads like this will surely change perceptions of the A1 as a sub-brand.

1. “Oomph”
I quite like this one as well, the graphics are slick and edgy without causing MTV levels of epilepsy. This is a consistent brand message extension of #2.

Alright Audi, we’ve seen your hits and we’ve seen your misses. Now we know why you haven’t been moving units. But if you can produce more ads like #1 and #2, we fully expect your fortunes to change.