This ad is really effective on an emotional level; it even made a friend of mine get choked up when we get to put a face to the voice, and it affected me too. Oh, but as effective as it is on an emotional level, it's also really easy to make fun of message-wise. How? Well, all you have to do is run exactly the same ad, and at the end, when we see the little girl sitting on the steps in front of her house, she could say: "And you can get insurance coverage, but insurers will still word the policies in such a way so that they'll never actually have to pay out on any claims." Yes, cynical, I know. But still, it fits, doesn't it, with not only the whole ad's "this but that" theme, but also with the ugly truth of how insurance companies so often pay lawyers to figure out how to avoid paying claims, rather than trying to help people in need?
Yeah, and I'm sorry to have to say this, but this little girl's heart-string-tugging speech here is merely proving that she's not a very good insurance risk, because she's always trying to figure out ways to rationalize irresponsible and risky behavior, and as such, nobody's going to want to insure her. No, really: try giving this spiel to an insurer in their office when asking for a personal life insurance policy, and they'll say: "Hey, here's your hat, what's your hurry? Don't let the door hit you in the ass on your way out!" Because the truth is, despite all their lofty claims, insurance companies don't like paying out money; they only like taking it in. And if there's any real risk, they're not interested, because they might have to pay out more than they take in.
And based upon the very first sentence of the spot, I thought it was yet another ad for Shark Week on the Discovery Channel!
Here's the risky shark-infested insurance spot:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kI1bKm22Up0
But I like the creative thinking that went into this spot, and I'm just being a smartass when I make fun of it. This ad's scenario is really the kind of thing I think insurance companies might want to try to get away from all the requisite silliness in all the recent insurance ad campaigns, and for being different, and so sweet, as well as so optimistic in tone, I think this ad and its related new campaign will get a lot of attention for its change in tone to something that hits a lot closer to home than CGI ducks and geckos: our kids, and the stuff they do that might be risky. And when we think about that, we think about their fun, but also that we'd better be covered just in case. And that would make me pick up a phone a lot more than an animated anthropomorphized animal spokesperson, because I don't have one of those in my family that I have to worry about getting help for if they get hurt someday.
And nothing against the anthropomorphized animal ad mascots: they've just kind of run their course, perhaps. And after all, insurance is not a flippant business, when you think about it, so while they're attention-getting, I'm not so sure how much they inspire confidence in the quality or reliability of an insurance company's services. And after all, isn't that what insurance is for? That's why The Mayhem Guy was so great in my opinion: he showed what could go wrong in a fun and silly manner, but it also made you think about the reality of all of these situations, and what they might require insurance-wise. But I will definitely be interested to see what effect, if any, this current Allstate spot has on the state of the insurance advertising landscape. Because, you know, advertising is what I cover...
(Oh, and when they say "People Live for Good", are they perhaps using "for good" as a way of meaning "forever", and as such, also aiming their insurance services towards the future zombie clientele once they escape from the military research facility and conquer the world? If so, when the zombie apocalypse occurs, Allstate will already have their campaign in place to attract the most zombies, and will quickly become the #1 zombie insurance company in America. Because with this ad's slogan, they're the only company anticipating this market.)
