The Insurance Brand - Time for a Refresh?

Bryan Adams of @PhCreative recently wrote a great piece on the Insurance Brandhere. Dare I say an outsiders perspective on the Insurance world. Provocatively entitled:

Imagine if Insurance Brands Started Marketing Like Red Bull

It really got me thinking. I wanted to share my comments from the post too. Enjoy. I look forward to your perspective.

Bryan, really enjoyed the challenge. I have a slightly different perspective on this.

1. This is a hugely exciting space, with lots of disruption to come, but you could argue that’s evolution in the same way Pixar was an evolution to Disney. Disney is still about. The insurance industry is changing; General Insurance quicker than life or health, but all will evolve over time. General Insurance is quicker as that’s what most of us see or experience, but that’s the smaller part of the market.

2. The Insurance industry is one of the oldest; you only have to go back to Edward Lloyd in 1688 to see the wonderful tradition of the coffee shops of London and how it all began. In many ways, we are returning to this tradition and bias towards the customer. Its great to see, but many industries are doing or have done the same. Anyone want to talk about the rise or fall of bank branches?

3. We are stooped in tradition, and like many industries need the old guard tare making way over time to the new guard. We will always have the traditional guys, the new guys and the bleeding edge guys. From Life policy to Telematics and so much more in the middle. It's an exciting space. Many new CxO's are from industries outside of Insurance, bringing in new ideas tried and tested in other industries that resonate well.

4. We have some amazing brands in the UK and Worldwide from Direct Line, Churchill (Yes the dog), Legal & General (The bowler hat), LV=, Zurich, Allianz, Geico (The Lizard), Prudential (The Man from the Pru) Drive like a girl and so much more each with their own catchy strap line. Just like those guys who are never knowingly undersold. and you know who I mean without even looking it up (for the UK guys anyway). In fact, I think this is one of the biggest investment areas over the last few years and it’s paying off for all these reasons. We can engage and resonate better with a new breed of savvy consumers with a limited and reducing attention span (Regardless of the product or service)

5. Our brand is key (to most folk that care about this). We are generally trusted, irrespective of the line of business; we are long term rather than short term. So from a purpose perspective, perhaps some of these are being lost, perhaps its because I see these brands each day and see what and who they target that each of their strap lines sits rings true. Can you name the brand if I said we are the guys that.

• Every day Matters
• Drive like a girl
• With you ever step of the way
• Redefining Standards
• Where you mean more
• It’s about time.

This to me says core values, vision, purpose, and belief. We are not a sugary soft drink, we are the guys that help when your house is flooded, when your kids have written off the car, that help you through a hospital visit, that keep you well in retirement.

We don't want to be a sugary soft drink. And we are doing all of this without our customers really ever wanting to engage regularly with us - if they do, you know something is changing or worse, has gone wrong. If you compare us to your phone, apparently we now look at the over 200 times per day. Your insurer, you call perhaps once a year at best.

You could argue here this makes the brand experience even more important.

As for Goosebumps, you are right - the insurance industry doesn't sell Goosebumps. In days gone by, the Insurance provider was there after the event, more recently insurance was there with you.

In today’s world and through technology and brand disruption, Insurance will be there ahead of your need, proactively. From the crashed car creating a claim to the water leak in the office block, turning off the mains and notifying the insurer and loss adjuster. So when it comes to Insurance, I'll pay extra to know I'm safe, in a good set of hands and will avoid the Goosebumps.

Who are you insured with and why did you choose them? Brand, Price, history, experience? If you are a white van man, farmer, gun shop owner, 40+ motorists, 18 year old, I could have a good guess at who you would have chosen.

All that said, I love the challenge. It reminds me of the movie, Crazy People.

Nigel Walsh | @nigelwalsh