State Farm gets Strategic Messaging

Here’s a campaign that leverages the ideals of Strategic Messaging--extending a long-running campaign, while also giving consumers something relevant (and new!) to react to. 

Just one of several executions from this campaign.

Saving money is a feature of switching car insurance providers. Every insurer can (and does) claim savings as a benefit because there are very few, if any, customers who switch car insurance so they can pay more. 

Of course, saving money is, in and of itself, a benefit. But, with nearly everyone in the marketplace barking out a savings message, how can an auto insurance brand differentiate its message? 

State Farm found a way to position the benefit of saving that is more relevant, and more accessible to their sweet spot—consumers in the market to switch insurance companies. 

Instead of pushing the headline savings claim “You could save XXX dollars; you might save XX%” (a claim which, by the way, arouses a lot of consumer skepticism) State Farm makes the savings message relatable and personal.  

“I’ll have at least a little more money in my pocket,” the consumer thinks, “so I don’t have to watch every penny I spend on the stuff I love.” 

That’s smart, Strategic Messaging. 

If you offer a product or service that helps consumers save money, it’s worth thinking about what they might do with that money. Having a few more dollars in your pocket is nice, but it’s an unanchored claim. Tethering that savings message to the opportunity it presents is the way to elevate yourself from the din of undifferentiated claims. 

 by John Taylor, Principal, The Strategic Messaging Group