The Martin Agency’s “Unskippable” pre-roll campaign for Geico was one of the most talked-about of the year in 2015, attracting a lot of attention for both the brand and the agency. Recently, The Martin Agency released a follow-up campaign and, while the 15-second spots appear without an option to skip, the agency has a new way to play on expectations.
The new series of ads begin with a seemingly-normal pitch for Geico, such as in “Hike” when a guy tells his friend, “You know Chip, I can access my Geico account 24/7.” Then a voiceover intrudes, informing viewers “We now fast-forward to the end of this Geico ad, so you can get to your video faster.” The catch? The endings of each of the ads are so bizarre and seemingly random that viewers are left wondering how things got to that point, which may just get them to watch the full version. In the aforementioned “Hike” for example, the ending is one of the men saying “I guess not everyone likes smooth jazz,” while both men are carried by a giant bird. With each ad, the full version provides context for the ending that makes it (sort of) make sense. It’s a clever enough follow-up to the attention-grabbing “Unskippable,” even if the idea is similar enough to not feel as fresh the second time around. The approach works better with some of the ads than others and it may be a bit unlikely that the average viewer will care enough to watch the full version. Still, with the brand’s pitch in the initial ad and the “WTF” factor of the endings, the approach is a memorable one.
Credits:
Client: Geico
Vice President, Marketing: Ted Ward
Senior Director, Marketing: Amy Furman
Director, Marketing Media Advertising: Bill Brower
Sr. Mgr., Broadcast, Outdoor, Print & Sports Marketing: Melissa Halicy
Marketing Supervisor: Mike Grant
Marketing Buyer: Tom Perlozzo
Marketing Buyer: Brighid Griffin
Marketing Coordinator: Julia Nass
Agency: The Martin Agency
Chief Creative Officer: Joe Alexander
Group Creative Director: Steve Bassett
Group Creative Director: Wade Alger
Creative Director (copywriter): Neel Williams
Associate Creative Director (art director): Mauricio Mazzariol
Executive Producer: Brett Alexander
Broadcast Producer: Liza Miller
Junior Broadcast Producer: Coleman Sweeney
Group Account Director: Brad Higdon
Account Executive: Allison Hensley
Account Coordinator: Allie Waller
Business Affairs Supervisor: Suzanne Wieringo
Financial Account Supervisor: Monica Cox
Senior Production Business Manager: Amy Trenz
Project Manager: Karen McEwen
Production Company: Furlined
Director: Nick Ball
President: Diane McArter
Senior Executive Producer: David Thorne
Executive Producer: David Richards
Producer: Jason Gilbert
Editorial Company: Cut + Run
Executive Producer: Carr Schilling
Producer: Annabelle Dunbar-Whittaker
Editor: Frank Effron
Assistant Editor: Brian Meagher
Telecine: MPC
Colorist: Ricky Gausis
Animation/VFX: MPC
Executive Producer: Lexi Stern
Senior Producer: Juliet Tierney
Production Coordinator: Valentina Cokonis
Line Producer: Deepanjali Singh
VFX Supervisor: Gizmo Rivera
VFX Supervisor/Nuke Lead: Jim Spratling
Comp/Prep Lead: Avinash Bhandary
Roto Lead: Sivakumar R
Music: Black Iris
Executive Producer: Jon Spencer
Senior Producer: Amanda Patterson
Executive Creative Director: Justin Bailey
Creative Director: Rich Stine
Composer: Justin Bailey
Audio Post Company: Rainmaker Studios
Engineer/Mixer: Jeff McManus, Mike O’Connor