Brand Breakdown: How Brand Marketing Impacts the $390 Billion Auto Industry

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Brand Breakdown

Welcome to the Brand Breakdown series, a monthly heavy dive into the selling strategies of starring planetary brands.

We’ll beryllium exploring the winning, and losing, strategies that are pushing the boundaries of accepted selling done the lens of owned plus optimization (OAO), a caller attack to gathering user connection.

Subscribe contiguous for unsocial insights consecutive to your inbox, exploring however the world’s astir recognizable brands are connecting with consumers.


The nonstop written premiums successful the US car security marketplace are projected to scope $390 billion by 2030 according to McKinsey & Company.

Companies that triumph car security customers tin turn gross per lawsuit even more by bundling successful further products similar homeowners, life, and favored coverage. If you origin successful the multi-year lifespan of an security customer, it’s wide wherefore brands similar Geico, State Farm, and Progressive each walk billions of selling dollars each twelvemonth to link with caller customers.

bar illustration  of security  brands

But with advancements successful autonomous driving and the rapid adoption of electrical vehicles, the security manufacture could beryllium poised for change.

As insurers update policies and pricing to bespeak caller marketplace conditions, consumers mightiness store astir for caller carriers. This could beryllium an unprecedented accidental for companies to triumph caller concern — if brands tin scope customers erstwhile they’re astir receptive.

Measuring the interaction of marque selling with hunt data

Auto security companies don’t merchantability policies and premiums. They merchantability promises to 215 million drivers that they’ll beryllium determination erstwhile the unexpected happens. But it takes a batch of spot to merchantability an intangible merchandise that consumers anticipation to ne'er usage for around $2,000 per year.

That’s wherefore marque selling is truthful important successful the security industry. The jingles, the taglines, and the acquainted spokespeople physique spot done consistency.

  • ”You’re successful bully hands with Allstate.”
  • “Like a bully neighbor, State Farm is there.”
  • “We are Farmers. Bum-pa-dum, bum bum bum bum!”

But however tin marketers measurement the interaction of a cardinal dollars worthy of marque marketing?

One reply lies successful hunt data.

Great selling connects with consumers. It sticks successful their minds and gets woven into the cloth of societal discourse. When that happens, consumers crook to Google with questions and they permission down a way of integer breadcrumbs.

As selling detectives, we tin analyse those breadcrumbs to spot which company’s marque selling efforts were searched astir by consumers successful the past 12 months.

search involvement  graphSource: Keyword measurement information via semrush

Progressive’s selling drives somewhat much hunt involvement overall. However, successful a head-to-head lucifer betwixt “Jake from State Farm” and “Flo” from Progressive, Jake takes the cake. The inclination truly took disconnected erstwhile State Farm introduced the caller Jake successful February 2020.

popularity graphSource: Google Trends

It’s nary astonishment that the car security brands with the astir engaging selling are besides searched much often connected Google. Progressive, State Farm, Allstate, and Geico each earned much than 20 cardinal Google searches successful the past 12 months.

auto security  graphSource: Keyword measurement information via semrush

We tin adjacent usage hunt information to spot which car security companies person the strongest employment brands by looking astatine however often keywords similar “jobs,” “careers,” and “employment” are paired with a brand’s name.

bar graph of security  brandsSource: Keyword measurement information via semrush

It’s wide that marque selling drives user hunt interest. But it’s not the lone mode to link with consumers and physique trust. Understanding however consumers deliberation is important to influencing them astatine cardinal moments on their journey.

Which questions, topics, and perspectives are important to consumers, and which companies are gathering their needs erstwhile they’re astir receptive?

Understanding what car security shoppers want

There were astir 317 cardinal car security searches successful the past year, and 30.2% of those searches were non-branded. That means brands person 96 cardinal opportunities to fulfill a need, marque a connection, and physique trust arsenic consumers navigate life’s changes and store for insurance.

pie illustration  of non branded security  hunt  termsSource: Terakeet

Although shoppers didn’t hunt brands by sanction successful the non-branded category, car security companies inactive held their crushed against publishers and media brands. This year, security companies controlled 75% of the full hunt marketplace stock successful the space, up from lone 55% past year.

organic hunt  marketplace  stock  pastry  chartSource: Terakeet

Currently, 8 of the apical 10 websites successful the car security abstraction are security companies, compared to lone 5 past year. And GEICO grew its marketplace stock the astir from 12% to 19%, extending its pb implicit competitors.

search marketplace  stock  barroom  graphSource: Terakeet
bar graph of car  security  topicsSource: Terakeet

Organic hunt information is similar having a absorption radical successful your pocket. By segmenting searches into categories of intent, marketers tin make lenses done which to presumption user needs.

Terakeet segmented the non-branded car security keyword abstraction into 4 categories:

  • Researching
  • Cost Conscious
  • Local Preference
  • Customized Coverage
pie illustration  of car  security  consumersSource: Terakeet

Across each 4 main categories, 51% of searchers revealed that outgo was important to them. This radical utilized words similar “cheap car insurance,” “car security quotes,” and “affordable car insurance.” This radical of searchers prioritizes value.

The Cost-Conscious demographic comprises 3 subsegments.

  • 45% of shoppers conscionable privation inexpensive oregon affordable coverage.
  • 17% privation to comparison rates.
  • 37% conscionable privation a quote.
pie chartSource: Terakeet

This information gives america a model into however to scope each demographic.

Shoppers seeking inexpensive security volition prioritize outgo implicit broad coverage. Those looking for a punctuation are apt person to a acquisition determination and mightiness beryllium little picky astir pricing. 

While shoppers looking to comparison rates astir apt already person insurance, and they’re looking for the champion worth that combines high-quality sum and affordability. This radical is much apt to beryllium model buying and whitethorn beryllium little committed to buying.

As expected, GEICO does good successful this class due to the fact that its worth proposition is each astir redeeming wealth connected car insurance.

auto security  marketplace  stock  barroom  chartSource: Terakeet

32% of car security shoppers hunt wide security terms

32% of searchers utilized broad, generic keywords similar “car insurance,” “car security agents,” and “insurance companies” portion doing research. Searchers utilizing these keywords are mostly looking for car security merchandise pages alternatively than articles, reviews, oregon comparisons.

Once again, GEICO dominates this class of terms. And since searchers are looking for merchandise pages, astir of the marketplace stock present goes to security companies alternatively of publishers.

bar graph of ranking security  topicsSource: Terakeet

11% of car security shoppers privation customized coverage

This class includes hunt presumption astir the assorted types of coverage, specified arsenic deductibles, afloat coverage, comprehensive, and liability. It besides includes types of drivers, similar teens, caller drivers, high-risk drivers, and seniors.

This radical of customers whitethorn wage higher premiums to get much personalized coverage, truthful selling connection should people their unsocial needs.

In this category, Progressive is gathering user needs the champion with its “easy usher to insurance” contented hub that explains the antithetic types of sum and what’s champion for definite drivers.

auto security  barroom  chartSource: Terakeet

Local agents inactive matter

Although lone 5% of security shoppers privation a section agent, this radical shouldn’t beryllium ignored. They similar face-to-face conversations which tin physique marque loyalty and effect successful overmuch higher retention rates.

Farmers Insurance performs exceptionally good successful this class with pages targeting states.

auto security  barroom  chartSource: Terakeet

GEICO presently has a commanding lead, but the contention is heating up. How overmuch is GEICO’s online marketplace stock worthy successful yearly premium value? How did it summation truthful overmuch marketplace stock successful 1 year?

GEICO’s $300 cardinal lawsuit transportation strategy

State Farm is by acold the biggest US security institution with $46.6 cardinal successful nonstop premiums written successful 2022. But GEICO and Progressive are successful a adjacent contention for the metallic medal.

GEICO’s persistence is powered by its beardown show successful integrated hunt wherever it controls 19% of the hunt marketplace stock successful the car security space. In fact, GEICO held the apical presumption successful 3 retired of the 4 categories Terakeet analyzed.

GEICO consistently wins by knowing what imaginable customers are looking for, and creating contented that meets their needs erstwhile they’re astir receptive.

The brand’s contented strategy includes long-form articles, merchandise pages, examination pages, calculators, and cause hunt tools. These integer assets furniture connected apical of the company’s marque selling efforts to found spot done captious interaction points astatine cardinal moments successful the journey.

Connecting with “Cost Conscious” customers

51% of car security shoppers are Cost Conscious, and GEICO knows it. It targets this demographic relentlessly done its marque advertizing — ”15 minutes could prevention you 15 percent oregon much connected car insurance” — arsenic good arsenic done its website.

If you’re a user looking to prevention wealth connected car insurance, you won’t person immoderate occupation uncovering GEICO’s resources successful Google. The website has an entire page dedicated to “cheap car insurance” that shows up successful Google much than 14.2 cardinal times annually.

This leafage isn’t conscionable astir getting a inexpensive quote. It’s besides a assets to assistance shoppers recognize what affects the outgo of coverage, and what they tin bash to little their rates. And due to the fact that security tin beryllium hard to comparison apples to apples, GEICO has plentifulness of different resources to assistance shoppers, similar this leafage that explains however to comparison rates:

geico owned assetSource: geico.com

GEICO besides has a elemental car security calculator tool to customize quotes. This instrumentality unsocial shows up successful Google for much than 3 cardinal searches annually.

geico owned assetSource: geico.com

In summation to these owned assets, the marque has a room of contented to assistance consumers prevention money, including types of discounts, money-saving tips, and more.

GEICO’s car security leafage is simply a almighty owned asset

For shoppers conscionable looking for immoderate speedy and elemental security information, GEICO has them covered arsenic well. Its car security leafage is optimized to fertile and convert, utilizing a premix of “auto insurance” and “car insurance” presumption connected the leafage without overwhelming users with excessively overmuch content.

It besides mentions affordability and savings, which are cardinal to GEICO’s people customers. The leafage is optimized with plentifulness of calls to enactment to seizure each pb possible.

geico owned assetSource: geico.com

How GEICO connects with “Local Preference” customers

As we present know,  shoppers who privation a section security institution could beryllium overmuch much marque loyal if they conscionable their section security cause look to face. GEICO does a large occupation of capturing searches for section car security by creating unsocial pages by authorities and city.

These pages explicate the types of mandatory sum successful each area, and they nexus to different pages discussing adjacent cities. In all, GEICO has astir 97 antithetic authorities and metropolis car security pages that bring successful astir 2.2 cardinal yearly visits according to Semrush data.

Progressive pulls up successful the “Custom Coverage” category

Progressive was the lone marque to bushed GEICO successful 1 of the categories, and it pulled retired a triumph utilizing its monolithic Car Insurance Information contented hub to scope consumers seeking sum information.

The hub explains things similar deductibles, liability, afloat coverage, comprehensive, collision, arsenic good arsenic security for teens, non-drivers, rentals, and classical cars.

GEICO’s biggest opportunity

When we analyzed user hunt data, we discovered that 214k radical look into canceling their GEICO security each year. That’s importantly higher than each different security companies.

Competitors could usage this penetration to trade selling messaging specifically targeting GEICO customers looking to power carriers. If you origin successful the 130k cancelation searches from Progressive, competitors could perchance seizure arsenic galore arsenic 345k caller customers each year.

This penetration could besides springiness GEICO invaluable information to prioritize lawsuit acquisition improvements internally which could trim churn.

auto security  barroom  chartSource: Terakeet

Marketing that genuinely connects with consumers requires the close premix of marque and demand. These strategies enactment unneurotic to physique spot by creating familiarity, delivering value, and maximizing interaction points on the lawsuit journey.

When these elements are successful balance, brand, and request enactment each different naturally, amplifying selling interaction and ROI. And this tin person a monolithic interaction connected the bottommost line.

Terakeet’s proprietary projections exertion estimates that GEICO brings successful much than $300 cardinal each twelvemonth successful yearly signed policies done non-branded integrated search.

auto security  barroom  chartSource: Terakeet

That means brands similar State Farm, Farmers, and Nationwide could unlock implicit $250 cardinal successful yearly recurring gross by listening to consumers and gathering retired their owned assets. Using an OAO strategy, they tin not lone unlock gross but further penetration into their customers’ needs and the online competitory landscape.