The top ten insurance ads of all time

In a fiercely competitive industry like insurance, ads can be a powerful tool to help companies cut through the clutter and capture the attention of consumers. This is the main reason why many insurers spend a lot of money to create the best insurance commercials.

Who doesn’t recognize Gecko from GEICO, Flo from Progressive or Jake from State Farm? Who hasn’t heard that “Nationwide is on your side” or that “like a good neighbor, State Farm is there” or that catchy jingle “we’re farmers, boom-ba-dum, boom-boom-boom-boom”? A big part of why these characters and jingles were created is to enhance brand recall.

In this article, Insurance Business ranks the top 10 insurance salespeople of all time. These ads range from the hilarious and downright comedic to the heart-warming. We will also share our thoughts on why these ads became popular. Sit back and enjoy our picks of the best insurance salespeople of all time.

1. GEICO – The GEICO Gecko

What better way to start our list with the iconic Gecko. GEICO introduced the mascot in collaboration with advertising giant The Martin Agency in 1999 for reasons that can be surprise you. Since then, Gecko has become the most recognizable aspect of the Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary’s commercial, even being named America’s Favorite Advertising Icon in 2005.

In the following video, Gecko explains the importance of having an icon like him to attract customers. Gecko has the makings of a popular figure: he’s relatable and funny, not to mention he has a catchy catchphrase. Who doesn’t know that “15 minutes could save you 15% or more on his auto insurance”? See Gecko’s take on the role of icons in effective advertising.

GEICO is known to invest heavily in advertising. So it’s no surprise that the brand is behind some of the best insurance commercials of all time. These include the company’s Cavemen, Maxwell the Pig, and Rhetorical Question series.

2. Allstate – Mayhem Series

Actor Dean Winters is chaos personified in the Allstate commercial series Mayhem. He may recognize it from TV shows like Brooklyn 99 and Oz, and from the movie John Wick. In the series of commercials narrated by Dennis Haysbert, Winters characterizes the different things that can go wrong and result in a claim.

Allstate partnered with Chicago-based Leo Burnett Worldwide to create the series and, in 2010, released one of its best insurance commercials, the ridiculously funny Teenage Girl in Pink SUV.

This video about an “emotionally compromised” teen driver has amassed nearly three million views, and most commenters say this is their favorite commercial from the series. One commented that the ad was “99% better than some TV shows,” while another wrote that the disturbing thing about the ad was that it “is so accurate.” Oh!

3. State Farm – Hot Tub

Before State Farm’s Jake, there was Hot Tub, one of the best insurance commercials of all time that instantly went viral upon its release, even spawning song remixes and several skits.

State Farm worked with the advertising firm Translation in 2010 to produce this commercial, which shows three friends sitting in a living room as a window is broken. One of the men, who is insured by State Farm, sings the company jingle and calls out his agent. He urged his friends to do the same, one of whom ordered a sandwich and the other a hot tub.

Horrible chants and jokes aside, the message State Farm wanted to convey is that by choosing the company as your insurer, you can have peace of mind knowing that an agent is always ready to help.

4. American Family Insurance – Insurance for Dad

Let’s move on to something more serious. American Family Insurance worked with BBDO New York to create an inspiring commercial about a boy who dreams of becoming a flamenco dancer. But instead of supporting his passion, his father enrolled him in judo classes as a preventative measure against neighborhood bullies. In the end, the father gives his son a flamenco dress after he wins contest after contest.

The video was released around Father’s Day in 2016. It reminded viewers how far fathers would go to protect their children. American Family wanted to convey to consumers that this type of protection is what they will receive if they choose the company as their insurer. Since then it has logged nearly six million views on YouTube.

5. Prudential: The Magnet Experiment

In 2015, Prudential partnered with creative agency McCann Worldgroup for an interesting social experiment. Participants were asked to stick magnets describing their past and future: yellow magnets for the positive and blue for the negative. And the results were telling.

As you saw, the past showed an equal mix of good and bad things, while the future was almost entirely filled with positive things. Jen Hays, one of the creative directors on the experiment, called this “optimism bias,” which is the prevailing belief that more positive than negative will happen to us in the future. Unfortunately, this type of thinking also prevents us from doing things that are good for us, including preparing for our future.

“People enlightened to the fact that we are optimistic thinkers, but when it comes to planning for our future, it is important that we protect ourselves and plan for whatever the future holds,” Hays noted.

6. Liberty Mutual – Humans

We know you’re anticipating some LiMu Emu and Doug with that catchy jingle at the end. But we opted for this commercial from 2012, which sums up the importance of having the right insurance, especially for us humans who were “born to make mistakes.”

“It’s amazing that we’ve come this far,” says the narrator. “Maybe because when one of us messes up, someone else comes to help.” Liberty Mutual delivers this beautiful message in this somewhat harrowing, somewhat humorous commercial produced in collaboration with Hill Holiday.

7. Farmers – Hall of Claims Series

Farmers is known for its series of humorous commercials featuring some of the strangest and most outlandish insurance claims the company has ever received. These include a car stuck on a roof, an engagement ring stolen by “romantic rodents,” and an RV crushed by a swing set thrown by an angry moose.

The ads begin with JK Simmons giving customers a tour of what appears to be a museum containing remnants of the most outrageous claims filed with the company. “At Farmers we’ve seen just about everything,” Simmons begins. “So, we know how to cover almost anything.”

For our list of the best insurance commercials of all time, we chose UFH20, the case of the exploding water tank, which tore through the homeowner’s roof and into the air several feet before crashing into his neighbor’s car. . The boy’s look sums it up.

8. Nationwide – One Up

Are you one of those people who are afraid to call their insurance company? So here’s something you can relate to.

This 2016 insurance commercial shows the hilarious antics of a couple trying to avoid contacting their insurer, and in doing so, making their home even more dirty. Nationwide uses this commercial to let customers know that if they chose the company as their provider, they wouldn’t have a similar problem.

9. MetLife – Peanuts Series

MetLife has partnered with Snoopy and the Peanuts gang for more than three decades to educate customers about the importance of having the right insurance and what types of coverage the company offers. Unfortunately, MetLife finished his relationship with the gang in 2016 in an attempt to build his own brand identity.

Yet the partnership has produced some of the best and most iconic insurance commercials of all time, like this 1995 ad featuring Woodstock, which explains how the different policies MetLife offers can help protect you financially.

10. Esurance – Kind of like mom

In this informative ad starring Lindsay Lohan, Esurance manages to highlight the importance of getting coverage that is tailored to your unique needs, something the company offers.

“Pay what is right for you, not for someone like you,” the narrator notes. It helps that Esurance used a notable celebrity in this insurance commercial, as it’s an effective way to improve brand retention.

By now, you’ve probably seen countless insurance commercials and one thing you may have noticed is that most feature iconic characters and come with jingles and funny catchphrases that stick in your head.

This is exactly the main purpose of these ads. In a highly competitive space like insurance, companies are investing heavily in creating the best insurance commercials designed to enhance brand recall. The goal is that when customers start thinking about taking out insurance, your brand is the first thing that comes to mind.

The largest insurance companies allocate hundreds of millions of dollars to produce the best insurance commercials. This highlights the huge role a strong advertising campaign plays in attracting and retaining customers and making a profit. The following table lists the 10 countries that spend the most on advertising in the industry, according to the latest data collected by this website.

As part of an April Fool’s Day prank, promotion or viral marketing campaign, whatever you want to call it, Progressive Insurance ran an April Fool’s Day insurance campaign. They set up a website that allowed you to create your own fake news, and then once you hit the post button, it gave you a believable-looking link that you could post on Facebook.

Ok, ok, this is not a commercial… but we think you’ll still have fun!

Do you agree with our picks for the best insurance salespeople of all time? Or did we miss something? Feel free to send us your top picks in the comments section below.