TCII :: Management Consultants

Welsh car insurance firm Admiral has posted record profits for the first half of 2010. The Admiral group, which also includes well known brands such as Diamond, Confused.com and Elephant.co.uk, reported a 21% rise in pre-tax profits and a 33% increase in turnover, to £720.5 million.

But what can the success, and the failings, of companies under the Admiral umbrella tell us about the importance of marketing?

David Stevens, chief operating officer of Admiral commented that “we have got 400,000 more motorists insured with Admiral and our sister brands than we had a year ago which is a phenomenal rate of growth.” This rapid increase can be attributed in part to the success of memorable TV advertising campaigns for both the Admiral and Elephant.co.uk brands.

Elephant lodged itself firmly in the buying public’s imagination with a series of mildly irritating yet catchy advertisements featuring an elephant in a suit, alternating between live action costume and animation. The Admiral brand employed a similar strategy in making the protagonist of its adverts a 18th century admiral, complete with an instantly recognizable oversized hat.

However, Admiral Group’s price comparison arm, confused.com, fared less well, with drops in both profit and revenue. In this case it seems that the price comparison website was outclassed by its rivals’ popular TV ad campaigns. David Stevens commented, “we have to take our hats off to the meerkat particularly but also the fat opera singer – they’re advertising campaigns have proved far more compelling than our own.”

While confused.com also had an extensive marketing campaign, which featured a series of frustrated car insurance buyers proclaiming, “I’m confused.com,” it seems that it lacked one vital ingredient- a memorable mascot. Whether cute and funny, like Compare the Market’s curiously Russian meerkat, or vaguely annoying, such as Go Compare’s opera singer or Admiral’s own seafarer, the key to a successful advertising campaign it seems is providing prospective customers with a symbol they can latch onto, and relate directly to the brand in question.