My personal experience and exposure to insurance brands and branding initiatives are discussed. Brand equity concepts are identified and brand strategies are questioned.
Since much of the past discussion has followed the
advertising of America’s
most recognized insurance brands. Let’s
talk a look at PropertyCasualty360.com’s TOP INSURANCE COMMERCIALS ON TV:
State Farm: State of Unrest
Progressive: Pants on Fire
AXA: Experienced Drivers
Nationwide: World’s Greatest Spokesperson
State Farm: State of Regret
Travelers: Dog
Farmers: University
of Farmers
Geico: Little Piggy
Allstate: Mayhem
I have to agree… The
Allstate Meyhem commercial are the best.
Taking a page from AIG’s “Thank You America”
campaign, the following videos are Canadian example of marketing effort that attempts
to building their brands by conjuring feelings of caring, peace of mind and
security. Both video use real-life
example of customers who have been affected by disasters.
Much of the marketing examples discussed in
this journal appear to focus on entertaining customers in order to improve
awareness and increase the depth of recognition so that in the moment of need,
consumers will recall the brand it the funny commercial and seek further
information.Aviva and Intact appear to
make an effort to move beyond salience, by describing performance of their products
and encouraging emotional feelings of empathy for the individuals.Although these images and the corresponding
messages are powerful, at the moment of purchase, will consumers remember the
relived customer or will they revert to the simple recall of the talking lizard
or superstar quarterback?
In a recently released report from consulting group McKinsey,
they claim that over the past 10 years, the marketing spend by U.S.
personal-lines insurers rose from $1.7 billion to $5.9 billion in 2011. (1)
“The auto insurance industry in the United States is one of
the most aggressive in terms of marketing spend, but it may not be having the
desired impact,” (2)
The problem is that these investments ware only targeting a
small portion of the target market, about 30%.
This is also troubling because, this segment is historically the most
price sensitive and the least loyal. “…some
carriers are spending heavily for broad brand recognition and have little to
show for it." The report suggest that more
than half of the marketing dollars spent on auto insurance in the past
decade came from carriers that didn’t gain share.
Does anyone benefit from all this spending??? The McKinsey report, indicates that only
largest companies are actually creating value.
The 5 largest insurers in the US
are recognizable to consumers and these brands maintain a high degree of depth. This is an obvious advantage for the larger
insurers when consumers decide to shop for insurance. These brands are sought
after.
So how can a smaller insure compete? The report suggest that smaller insurance
companies avoid competing with large marketing budgets and focus their efforts
on selective positioning opportunities.
“We strongly believe that there are other needs out in the
marketplace that are not being addressed and that is a bigger opportunity for
insurers,” (1)
"If you apply (brand strategy) to all situations, whether it's
business decisions or marketing, and make all decisions based on brand,
your message will come out consistent."
Of course, that would mean having corporate policy that's transparent
and authentic--something that's in short supply in financial services.
The irony, of course, is that the insurer/client relationship is all
about trust, "but they refuse to make it part of the brand because they
themselves don't believe it,"Laura Mazzuca Toops, quoting brand strategist Tony Wessling
"Allstate commercial just happened to feature a real-life New Jersey
couple that is very displeased with Allstate’s $10,000 settlement
offering for their home, which was totaled by Sandy."
"AIG's announcement that they might sue the federal government because they’re not happy with the terms of the bailout they were handed"
Laura uses Wessling's comments to highlight the lack of a complete brand strategy and the industries misunderstanding of social media. Through Wessling's comments she blames senior management for neglecting brand, instead focusing only on "the numbers... even though brand awareness will ultimately drive more profits to the bottom line"
"If these companies aren't at all conscious about the way their message
is coming out in such an offensive way, it's because they don’t have a
comprehensive brand strategy... If you apply (brand
strategy) to all situations, whether it's business decisions or
marketing, and make all decisions based on brand, your message will come
out consistent." - Wessling
Liberty Mutual was established in 1912 and today the company is the 2nd largest property & casualty insurer in the United States.
For a number of years the company has operated with a large portfolio of brands. Within the United States, Liberty previously maintained 8 distinct regional companies which all but with 1 exception, used the Statue of Liberty logo. These brands are all displayed below. Earlier in the year the organization made the decision to consolidate these regional brands into the single parent brand.
The company indicated that “The decision was influenced by our agents’ desire to align their
businesses with the stronger, more recognizable Liberty Mutual brand,". Considering the similar logos, this is an oblivious transition and the new consistency should help increase awareness and allow the regional brands to benefit from the existing recognition of the parent company's strong brand and national marketing efforts.
In comparison to some of the marketing campaigns previous discussed in this journal, Liberty's recent advertisements are similar in their attempt to use humor to entertain and gain brand awareness however, in contrast the companies marketing appears to focus the messaging around product features and there is no mention of the cost or any potential price savings. It's not a big difference but it must be working... Consumers ranked Liberty Mutual as the top TV Brand Advertiser of
2012 for the insurance category - Ace Matrix
The Progressive Casualty Insurance Company was established
in 1937 as one of the first drive-in claims offices in America. The firm prides itself on living up to the
very definition of their name “progressive” priding itself on innovation
through their online shopping experience and unique products/services. The organization is also well know for their
advertising campaign involving Flo, Progressive's “helpful”, “lovable” and
“witty” cashier: Flo.
I was originally research the company’s advertising campaigns in an effort to review points of parity/differentiation when I stumbled across an interesting video
posted on Progressive’s youtube channel.
The follow 2 minute video was designed as a recruitment tool and
although it displays several images of employees and work spaces, the messaging
sounds similar to a commercial as it highlights innovative insurance
products/services. There is little
verbiage related to the actual employee experience. In the comments below the video is a link to
the company’s carrer webpage. In my opinion this video has an external focus however, it highlights an important branding concept. As equally important as
positioning a brand in the minds of consumers, a brands must also diligently be aware of positioning
the brand internally. All employees
should have a strong understanding of the brand and the company's values.
Companies also need to engage and connect with employees regularly. Branding is not only critical for attracting
external customers. It is also a key
factor in attracting, retaining, and motivating employees. Progressive promotes the brand internally by
describing the corporate culture: based on the “golden rule” (treating
others the way you want to be treated), and the organization also promotes and “celebrates”
employee differences. “At
Progressive, we celebrate the person you are, the ideas you bring, and the
energy you invest.” This are powerful messages that surely helped the
organization promote the brand within the organization.
Celebrities are continuously added and dropped depending on
their performance and reputations.
Aligning a brand with a celebrity allow consumers to create an association
of the brand with a recognizable personality. In
some cases the celebrity status of the individual is simply used to raise the
profile of the brand. In other cases, the celebrity provide the brand with creditability. In either case, brands use ambassadors to influence consumer perception of the brand's own "personality".
There are several celebrity endorsement for insurers. One of the most successful is the use of actor
Dennis Haysbert. Dennis is know for his
roles in the Major League films, the movie Heat, and for playing the President
in the series 24. He became Allstate’s
spokesman in 2003, using the tagline "That’s Allstate’s stand” and Haysbert
has appeared in over 30 commercials since. (1)
The following ad was filmed in 2004.
:
A second example of a high profile and successful celebrity
endorsement is Sate Farms use of Green Bay Packers’ quarterback, Aaron
Rogers. Rodgers has become known for his
unique touchdown celebration. This celebration move is know as the
"Championship Belt", and Aaron can be seen making this gesture after scoring. The celebration involves motioning
that he is putting an invisible belt on around his waist. (2) State Farm used
this well known gesture and renaming it to support the company’s efforts to
save consumers money (saving money... An apparent reoccurring theme in insurance marketing). The “Discount
Double Check” is featured in many of State Farm’s recent advertisements. The concept is simple, an agent reviews your
policy to make sure you are not missing any discounts.(3)
Again, the State Farm ads blend, humour, celebrity
endorsement, and savings in a effort to persuade customers to seek State Farm
insurance products. Allstate has a slightly different approach by attempting to support it’s
brand promise through their slogan “You’re in good hands”. I guess this mean that not all insurer marketing is mascots,
celebrities and premium savings…
Are there any other example of this in the marketplace?
If insurers are not using price, what other marketing
strategies are being used?
