https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDAg3VkZPg8
I enjoy this advertisement for the exact reasons I am supposed to, and I do not mind but I also am not looking to “bundle my house and car insurance” at this point in my life, and am not the demographic they are trying to reach. Geico reaches all demographics with their ads to become a well-known name which will, in turn, make their company look bigger than it is. The values portrayed in this ad are family values. More specifically nuclear family values. The father seems to have just returned home to his wife making dinner after driving his kid home from school. It is also a black family which is an attempt at Geico to show that they are “diverse” and inclusive. I enjoy Tag Team and the jingle they made for this commercial, but it does make me think would they have chosen them if it was a white mother cooling dinner? Probably not. The story the ad is telling us that if you buy Geico Insurance something amazing will happen to you and you will be happy enough (you and your spouse) to dance in joy. Their verbal message is very straight forward from the beginning, this ad does not make you wait for its point it gets it out of the way in the beginning so you can think about it while you get the song stuck in your head and turn to associate the real song and the jingle version with Geico insurance. Going back to the family structure of the commercial it draws on parents stronger than others. Having the teenage daughter walk in, make a classic teen expression, and then walk away in discontent with her parents reminiscing of an older song that they listened to ads a young age is an easy way to make parents connect. That concept of your kid making fun of or dismissing something that you are reminiscing about happens (in concept) to every parent regardless of race or class). I think insurance commercials are interesting in relation to the concept in the reading about how Ads can be damaging when it comes to class. The reading talks about how a society full of commercials is based on a world in which to fit in you have to be able to buy the commercial goods and name-brand items that everyone else.
I agree with you that the Geico commercials are very popular and effective because of the almost mascot they made of the Geico Gecko Martin. By creating this identifiable image, along with this using of the slogan “15 minutes could save you 15 percent or more on car insurance”, the Geico company has used ads like this one and the use of the Gecko and slogan, has been able to propel Geico into being largely recognized in our current society.
I’ve always liked ads like this that have a musical component, especially when its a good one. I also like how only a few seconds of the video actually mentioned the product or show the word “Geico,” and yet it is still easy to remember who the ad was from. I believe the advertising firm that Gieco uses is based in Richmond too.
The association of Geico and all the classic elements in their commercials make it easy to identify and bring up when referring to the company. It is similar to Nike’s “Just Do It” and Arby’s “We Have the Meats” as Geico is well know for “15 minutes could save you 15% on car insurance.” I wonder if a different slogan would have stuck as much as “15 minutes could save you 15% on car insurance” has.