Can I Get a Hot Tub? (Week 8, Ch 8/9)

State Farm Insurance has made a big push in their marketing communications over the last few years.  If you think about insurance as a whole, they typically have very mundane advertising.  When you did see advertising it was mainly based on a rational appeal.  However, in the last 4-5 years, insurance companies have really gone out the door with a great advertising campaign.  State Farm is one of the companies that have made a concerted effort with their TV advertising campaign.

According to research done by The James Group, there are four keys to a good advertising message.  They are: a word hook, a character hook, a repeatable theme, and a unique design.  Now let's see how well State Farm has been doing with these keys to success.

Word Hook
You can't help but hum along to the jingle when it's on, so "Like a good neighbor State Farm is there" really satisfies this key tenant.  This phrase is utilized during the commercials at some points by the characters and then the commercials typically close with the statement again in print on the screen.  For the print media, this phrase is always placed prominently in the ad.

Character Hook
State Farm has been utilizing several characters over the past few years.  Most recently, Chris Paul has been making his rounds on the TV ads playing himself and his twin brother Cliff.  These commercials are playing off of sports fan's knowledge that Chris Paul is one of the best point guards in the NBA.  Typically seen as a player who assists his teammates, State Farm related this to their goal of assisting customers.
In addition to Chris Paul, State Farm has utilized numerous other characters in their TV advertisements.  Some of the more memorable characters have been during the "genie" style appearance of a State Farm agent.  One of my favorite advertisement with this theme had the agent show up with a hot tub.

Repeatable Theme
All of the characters listed above were effective because they were always promoting a common theme.  The theme through the ad campaign has been that no matter where you are, what you need, your State Farm agent will be there to serve you.  At the end of the day, State Farm is providing insurance that is intimately tied with their service; but in reality, they are providing each consumer with peace of mind.  Their advertising campaign has been about promoting the fact that State Farm will be there when you need them.

Unique Design
As I stated previously, State Farm has typically closed out all of the TV ads with their word hook and the State Farm logo.  Some may not think that this is not a strong unique design, but by always having their logo and word hook splashed on the screen it helps consumers immediately recognize a State Farm ad, print media, or local office.  An interesting point to note, is that State Farm is the only large insurance company that uses red and white only as their primary colors.  This is a point of differentiation when compared with Allstate, Geico, and Aflac.

All in all, State Farm has shown that their advertising has all the elements to make it very effective.  Although they have a large market share, it is important to continue to maintain their brand awareness and target their target market with effective integrated marketing communications.