Thanks to Geico, insurance industry advertising will never be the same. But recent research suggests that the most successful ads at the moment are Flo’s appearances for Progressive. With 3.5 million followers on Facebook, and year-to-year increases in policies since the campaign started in 2008, she certainly appears to have struck a nerve. (Vranica, 2012)
Farmers Insurance is doing just that, with a new campaign featuring The Avengers, scheduled to begin April 16. (Irwin, 2012)
Will being associated with this much anticipated movie give the brand super powers? You tell me.
Irwin, T. (2012, April 11) Farmers Insurance Debuts “Avengers” Creative. mediapost.com. Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/172257/farmers-insurance-debuts-avengers-creative.html
3 comments:
The nice thing about Flo is that she is a fabulous everywoman, someone we all know, the fashionable charismatic lady at the office who always has her lipstick fresh. For the smart insurance consumer, the fact that they have a spokesperson that doesnt look like she cost a lot to hire, and the fact that the ads arn't flashy (they're quite minimalist in fact) seems sensible. You want your insurance company to be sensible and not making a lot of money off of you, and wasting it on expensive ads.
Superhero rights, on the other hand, cost a lot of money. They are flashy and make believe. The world of insurance is not one of fantasy, its of sadly dealing with reality -- crashed cars, broken into homes etc. Even if they succeed in making some connection to insurance that makes sense, consumers may not bite.
I think Flo has been a refreshing and entertaining change for the insurance industry. It is no surprise that Progressive has been successful with her. In my previous post I indicating advocating, to a degree, for celebrity-type endorsements. Im not sure, however, if this Avengers will improve Farmers' bottom line. I dont see any parallels here and not sure people will fully identify with the two.
-Nathan
I think Partnerships is the way to go nowadays, especially with trend celebrities, TV shows or movies.
Being partners and sponsors of the new movie can only bring good things for any brand. I don't think that being an insurance brand affects either positive or negatively these relationships.
For instance, I think that the brand that sponsored Twilight got out a lot out of doing it.
Ashley
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