Volkswagen was the first company to place banners on the well-known “Page not found” page. After mistyping a URL (e.g. “stern.de/nuws”) or following an outdated bookmark/link, the user is normally redirected to a factual page informing the user that the content could not be found. Now, an additional banner ad for the RNS 510 is displayed. We see the navigation system’s screen with a search box and a headline:Helps you out anywhere. The new Radio Navigation System RNS 510.After entering a keyword, a list of suitable matches is displayed and assists the user in finding their way.

The “stern.de” site has an average of two million unique visitors each month. Approximately 6,500 of the 183,275,460 page impressions are directed to the “Page not found” page. The banner is displayed where the users have previously never experienced online advertising. The surprise effect led to a high acceptance of the ad. Daily visits to the RNS 510 product page have increased more than 52% since the banner ad went online.