How insurance brand characters actually perform among viewers

Welcome to Ad Age Datacenter Weekly, our data-obsessed newsletter for marketing and media professionals. TurboTax was the top video creator across U.S. YouTube and Facebook in February Social video analytics platform Tubular Labs is out with new data—shared first with Datacenter Weekly—showing that TurboTax was the most widely seen video creator in the U.S. in February across YouTube and Facebook, reaching 77.3 million unique viewers. The tax-prep service’s hit content includes “Adjusted Gross Income Explained - TurboTax Tax Tip Video,” which has racked up more than 20 million views since being published on Feb. 12. Tubular notes that part of TurboTax’s social video strategy has involved partnering with prominent creators. Across February and into March, it’s sponsored 36 different videos produced by 21 different creators, including a recent episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience.” Become an All Access subscriber Get access to exclusive resources including Leading National Advertisers, World’s Largest Advertisers, Agency Report, Agency Review Tracker and TV Pricing Report. Click here Macroeconomic news and data in a nutshell • “US weekly jobless claims edge lower,” Reuters reports • “Consumer confidence in where the economy is headed hits 12-year low,” per CNBC • “Fed president says a ‘major red flag’ will be if gloomy inflation expectations spread from consumers to Wall Street,” Fortune reports • “When will inflation be low enough for mortgage rates to drop? Here’s what experts think,” from CBS News See all of Ad Age’s 2025 Agency A-List winners here David Porter leads data and research as part of Warner Bros. Discovery ad sales reorg As part of Warner Bros. Discovery’s restructuring of its ad sales division, “David Porter will lead data and research, heading market strategy around measurement and currency to support WBD’s sales force,” Ad Age’s Parker Herren reports. The details: The goal of the reorg, which affects a range of other execs across both go-to-market and platform monetization, is to “focus on cross-platform sales and digital innovation while keeping the agency-focused market strategy from the company’s 2023 ad sales leadership changes,” Herren adds. Essential context: The restructuring is under the direction of WBD’s recently named ad chiefs, Ryan Gould and Robert Voltaggio, Herren notes.Keep reading here. How Progressive’s Flo, Allstate’s Mayhem and other insurance characters actually resonate with viewers MarketCast is out with new research—shared first with Datacenter Weekly—that looks at how major insurance brand characters (both human and animated) resonate with consumers. The data comes from MarketCast’s Brand Effect measurement surveys of 20,000-plus consumers. (Jake from State Farm was excluded from the survey because he’s so often paired with big-name celebrities, which skews how viewers respond to the commercials.) Key takeaways: • Among all insurance brand characters, Allstate’s Mayhem was tops in terms of ad recall (i.e., viewers correctly remembered the ad), scoring 5% above the norm, followed by the Geico Gecko, scoring 3% above the norm. • Liberty Mutual’s LiMu Emu and Doug (evaluated as a team) scored the highest in terms of branding (i.e., viewers remembered the brand behind the ad), scoring 18% above the norm, followed by Progressive’s Jamie, scoring 8% above the norm (for Progressive ads primarily focused on Jamie), and Progressive’s Flo, scoring 6% above the norm (for Progressive ads primarily focused on Flo). • Liberty Mutual’s LiMu Emu and Doug (again, evaluated as a team) scored the highest in terms of MarketCast’s combo “breakthrough” rating, which means that viewers actually remembered both the ad and the brand. • In terms of likeability, Allstate’s Mayhem is tops, scoring 8% above the norm, followed by Progressive’s Dr. Rick, scoring 4% above the norm. More insurer news: Geico is pausing its creative agency search Check out the latest Ad Age events and award programs Paramount signs on to iSpot’s new TV outcomes measurement platform “ISpot is launching a new cross-platform outcomes measurement platform with Paramount Global as a charter user, bringing both internal measurement partners and the ability to onboard first-party data from advertisers,” Ad Age’s Jack Neff reports. The details: “ISpot bills its Outcomes at Scale as the industry’s first business outcomes solution that can deliver attribution for video ads persistently at scale,” Neff notes, “though it’s a market that others, including Comscore, VideoAmp and Nielsen, are increasingly plying as well.” Essential context: “Outcomes at Scale is an extension of outcomes measurement iSpot first launched in 2017,” Neff adds, “allowing publishers to provide buyers with a nearly immediate view into how verified, on-screen ad impression delivery connects to key performance metrics such as store visits, online activity, ticket purchases and other performance metrics, according to an iSpot statement.” Keep reading here. Just briefly • “Omnicom and Publicis led media new business wins in 2024,” from Ad Age • “23andMe users struggle to delete their highly sensitive data,” the BBC reports • “TransUnion Study Finds U.S. Data Breach Severity Reaches New High,” per TransUnion • “Pete Hegseth and Mike Waltz’s leaked passwords ‘found online’ in aftermath of Signalgate,” from The Independent The newsletter is brought to you by Ad Age Datacenter, the industry’s most authoritative source of competitive intel and home to the Ad Age Leading National Advertisers, the Ad Age Agency Report: World’s Biggest Agency Companies and other exclusive data-driven reports. Access or subscribe to Ad Age Datacenter at AdAge.com/Datacenter. Ad Age Datacenter is Bradley Johnson and Joy R. Lee. Become an All Access subscriber Get access to exclusive resources including Leading National Advertisers, World’s Largest Advertisers, Agency Report, Agency Review Tracker and TV Pricing Report. Click here

How insurance brand characters actually perform among viewers

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