Spending on advertising by auto insurance companies increased significantly between 2003 and 2007, with the top 4 companies - State Farm, Allstate, Progressive, and Geico - accounting for over 50% of total ad spending in the category. While State Farm and Allstate spent over half their ad budgets on national broadcast TV, Progressive and Geico pursued more diverse media mixes, allocating larger shares to media such as internet, radio, and local TV.
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Auto Insurance Advertising for 2007
1. Ad Expenditures By Segment Source: TNS Media Intelligence +74% -10% +56% +42% +195% $1,768 $673 $566 $318
2. Spending Concentrated Among Top 4 Companies Auto Insurance Source: TNS Media Intelligence +256% $190 $53 +137% $258 $109 +159% +96% + 196% % Change TOTAL $492 $148 $182 2003 Ad $ (millions) $1,277 $290 $539 2007 Ad $ (millions)
3. Share of Category Ad Spend 2007 Source: TNS Media Intelligence 51.9% 9.3% 16.6% 19.8%
4. Top Brands Pursue Different Media Mixes Auto Insurance % Share Of 2007 Ad Spend – Media With > 10% Share 11% 13% Internet 25% Radio 16% 20% Local TV 28% 31% 40% 22% Network Cable TV 51% 51% 28% 18% National Broadcast TV State Farm Allstate Progressive Geico
Here’s how the main segments have performed. Auto has been the growth engine, escalating from $600 million in 2003 to $1.77 billion last year. That’s a 195% increase in just 4 years. Health insurance has grown modestly and finished 2007 at $673 million. Brand promotion ads that generically advertise a company’s insurance products have swelled by 70% and reached $566 million last year. Within the “Other Insurance” segment, the two main pieces are (1) Life, and (2) Homeowners and personal property. In 2007, measured ad spending on Life was $94 million, a 15-20 percent decrease from peak levels of 3-4 years ago. Homeowners and personal property insurance accounted for $82 million, which is about a $20 million increase from the levels of 2005-2006. ( CLICK)