Over time, people change, tastes change and products change. And with that, Advertising and Marketing is always changing. Always adapting to stay alive, stay current and at the top of your news feed. And although there is no shortage of new, fresh marketing ideas; this list is dedicated to the brands that nailed their marketing campaigns early on and have been coasting ever since. Here are the 10 Advertisements That Keep on Giving:
1. GEICO
15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past 15 years, it would be hard to avoid Geico commercials. Insurance and car commercials in general for that matter, and I’m sure you’ll begin to see a trend as we get deeper into this list. Geico has milked the sh!t out of that tag line, but that’s not the only thing happening in these cheesy commercials. If you pay attention, Geico actually alternates commercials between the gecko, the narrator asking rhetorical questions and normal people answering hard hitting questions with their tag line, because “saving money on car insurance is always a good answer”. Is it true though?! Does anyone even know? Are we all just too lazy to call Geico one day and see if they really can save us 15%? I know I am. I’m also obligated to mention the Caveman that we don’t see as often, if at all, anymore. So easy a caveman can do it. You may like Geico, you may not, but their Marketing Department has been able to create catchy tag lines and “advertising icons” as the gecko would say. Just to drive this point home, the Geico Gecko made his first commercial debut in 2000. And unless that gecko gets into trouble with the law, I’m sure we’re going to be seeing him for a long time to come.
2. Sonic
The great thing about Sonic (besides the food) is the fact that they created a marketing campaign around these two, mainly goofy guys #relatable. And it works so well for them! Now, I haven’t been to Sonic in years maybe, but that’s not to say I won’t ever eat there again, because I most definitely will. The food is just average American fast food, which is fine, but I’ll admit that the main thing bringing me back to Sonic are these two guys and their weird conversations. It’s not like I ever crave a Sonic burger or tots immediately after I see a commercial, but I’ve seen so many of their commercials at this point, that when I think of “Sonic” I only have positive thoughts (that goes for the hedgehog as well). Sonic’s Two Guys Marketing Campaign has been the fast food chain’s main advertising strategy for over 10 years! Those two guys should probably start eating healthier if they want to make it another 10 years #amiright. Anyways, well done Sonic! Your commercials make me laugh and that’s never a bad thing. Keep it up!
3. Dos Equis
The most interesting man in the world. Need I say more? If I’m like half as cool as this guy when I grow up, I’ll die happy. Dos Equis managed to find the suavest old man I’ve ever seen, sit him at a table with attractive young women and just take us through his escapades. It sounds simple enough, but that’s the genius behind the marketing. This guy has done everything under the sun. He can’t be tamed, he won’t settle for anything less than the best. And Dos Equis is his constant. Apparently he doesn’t always drink beer, but when he does, he drinks Dos Equis. So I’m sold #lol. Don’t even get me started on the younger guy in their newer commercials. It seems like fans are divided when it comes to the new face of Dos Equis, and I think most people lean toward the side of not liking it. Honestly, I could not care less. It’s everything Dos Equis commercials have been for the last 10 years. With that being said, I like to see this kind of reboot, or tweak if you will, to a marketing strategy. There was nothing wrong with the commercials how they were, but by having a younger spokesperson, now the brand can relate and cater more to their younger drinkers. Underage drinking is a crime by the way. But us young adults are out here, and it’s cool to think that one of us could be the most interesting man (or woman) in the world. I also like to think of this new guy as the younger version of the original “most interesting man” so this works on a couple of different levels for me.
4. Chevrolet
Okay. Up until now, I’ve had mostly positive experiences with these recurring ads, but this is where I draw the line. The new Chevy spokesperson acting as a moderator for “Real people. Not actors” (which is a complete lie by the way) has got to be one of the most annoying advertisements on TV today. It’s actually a little insulting that Chevy thinks we’re buying this crap. Chevy, your trucks and cars may be great, but your current ad campaign sucks! Normally, bad commercials don’t phase me too much, but the fact that they’re trying to make this a thing, irks me to no end. Chevy has only been running these commercials for about a year, but it feels like decades because they’ve been shoving them down our throats so hard and I’m sick of it. This makes the list only because I see what they’re trying to do, but I am begging them to choose a different path. This is not the answer, it never was and it never will be.
5. Progressive
Yay, more insurance commercials! And it won’t be the last one on this list either, I promise. So, Flo has been in our lives for about 4 years, and that’s really as good as any company or brand can ask from their marketing team. The great thing about these commercials is that they’re funny! They’re lighthearted, they’re upbeat, what’s not to like? I mean sure, all commercials suck when you’re trying to watch your show or the game, but all things considered, Progressive is not that bad. And although Flo has been with Progressive for the past several years, I don’t feel beat over the head with all the different Ads that they do. Given, I don’t watch TV all that much anymore, but from someone who occasionally does, I think Progressive has the right idea when it comes to spreading out their ads and showing them at a reasonable frequency.
6. Farmers Insurance
I suppose I might as well stick to insurance companies for now. Are you noticing a trend yet? You will, no worries. First of all, I couldn’t tell you the difference between Farmers and State Farm. I honestly thought they were the same thing until I started writing this. Farmers (and State Farm for that matter) should do more to differentiate themselves from other companies with like-sounding names, but that’s beside the point. The one thing I do know is that “We are Farmers! Bum ba dum bum bum bum bum!” jingle that’s just so damn catchy. And they have J.K. Simmons as their spokesperson? How in God’s name did they manage to swing that? In any case, this has been Farmers go to marketing campaign for 7 years! Isn’t that crazy? Time flies when you’re having fun watching commercials, I guess. Well done, Farmers.
7. Skittles
Okay, this one might be a stretch, but bear with me. I L-O-V-E love Skittles! Not to eat, but I enjoy how care free and fun their commercials seem to be. As if nothing else in the world matters as much as their candy does. That’s the world I want to live in! So these commercials get me every time, and I never mind pausing to watch them. Taste The Rainbow? I mean, with a tag line like that, Skittles sell themselves. And in this case, the tag line is the main force propelling their marketing campaign forward. “Taste the Rainbow” has been their tag line for 35 years! Any brand that has stuck to their guns for that long and are still in business deserve a spot on this list. Taste the Rainbow!
8. Jack in the Box
More fast food! Jack Box has been the notorious logo for Jack in the Box for 23 years! Ronald McDonald has been around longer than that, but when’s the last time you saw that clown anywhere? Hopefully the answer is “not recently” because that clown what pretty terrifying and McDonald’s was smart to branch out into different looks. Anyways, Jack in the Box has been more than consistent with putting Jack Box in all of their commercials, and for that reason it belongs on this list. Jack in the Box has done well to immortalize Jack Box and make him an advertising icon. So I’m fairly certain he’ll be around for a very very very long time.
9. Verizon & Sprint
In general, phone commercials are somewhat dull and boring. They try to throw in a joke here or there, but their goal is to inform us about prices or new deals and it all usually falls flat for me. None of the cell phone giants have been able to pull away in a clear lead as far as their advertising is concerned. Now, Verizon had the “Can You Hear Me Now” guy, Paule Marcarelli, for 9 years! And for 9 years we had to listen to him ask if we could hear him. Maybe not the best commercial in the world, but the phrase”Can You Hear Me Now?” and Verizon became synonymous at one point. But this bullet is not just for Verizon, no, it is also for Sprint. Sprint, probably the least memorable cell phone giant, is actually hitting back hard. Using Verizon’s most popular spokesperson against them is quite brilliant. Sprint definitely loses points for originality, but now that they have Paul, I think they will keep him for as long as possible. And because both of these companies have used the same spokesperson at one point or another for the last 15 years, I think it was worth a mention on this list.
10. M&M’s
Last, but not least: M&M’s. M&M’s have basically been around forever. Not literally, but they’ve been around since I’ve been alive, so that puts things into perspective doesn’t it? The video linked shows a compilation of several M&M commercials, but you’ll notice right away that there is ALWAYS at least one of their spokescandies representing. Now, M&M’s have been using the same marketing campaign for 75 years, and for the last 22 years this has been their look. There’s no reason for them to stop using these spokescandies because they are the M&M’s brand. And if it’s not broken, don’t fix it. In other words, M&M’s hit the marketing jackpot! Advertising just comes naturally to them. It must be nice to sell candy to the fattest country in the world!
11. Honorable Mentions
This is acknowledging that there are many other companies out there that have found success with their recurring advertisements. These all had potential to be in the top 10, but there were a lot of heavy hitters in this category. Many of these strategies are not utilized much, if at all compared to those on the list. Let me know if you think I missed another big recurring marketing strategy.
- Ronald McDonald McDonald’s
- Dehungerize Snickers
- Chester Cheetah Cheetos
- Bunny Energizer
- Terry Cruz Old Spice
- Clydesdales Budweiser
- Mr. Clean
- Chihuahua Taco Bell
- Like a Good Neighbor State Farm
- Gives You Wings Red Bull
It was pretty difficult for me to end this list. There are so many commercials to choose from, but how do you make a decision? I was just honest with myself and what I personally see, around and on TV. The key here is that brands benefit from recurring commercials when they’re selling a consistent quality product over time. How many different ways can you tell people you sell insurance, or food, or beer, or cars?! There’s only so much you can do with any product, but these thought out and well devised marketing campaigns are not only able to sell their product, but capitalize on our emotions as well. I’ve just showed you 10 Marketing Campaigns that have been putting out the same ads for years and they’re all doing just fine! We’ll see about how these new Chevrolet ads fair in time, but for the most part, these brands have all nailed their marketing strategies and deserves some credit. Well done.
