New Creative for a Digital World
Most advertisers just want to tell people things in commercials and videos and have them immediately react and buy something, give money, sign up or schedule an appointment. GEICO has discovered that advertising in a digital world is a new medium that requires some subtle sales, loud and literal messaging, and a lot of entertainment value.
Like the GEICO ad that features Atlanta’s Tag Team (aka DC “The Brain Supreme” Glenn and Steve “Rolln” Gibson). “Scoop, there it is” is sure to be a slang phrase of 2021. The clever mix of ice cream names and the song drives the commercial. And according to Dr. John Medina, “Music boosts cognition.”
“Scoop! There it is.” GEICO has found a way to break through the clutter and build a brand around fun ads, great characters and music. It’s a triple scoop of creativity that is pleasing to the eye and ear.
So how is this ad doing? Well, for starters, the commercial has more than 14 million views on YouTube. That’s 14 million people who watched a “commercial” on YouTube. Who said people want to skip the ads?
Mark Mathis III is chief creative & strategy officer, partner and cofounder of AMPERAGE Marketing & Fundraising.
Mark Mathis
Mark wrote his first direct-mail fundraising letter in 1981 for the University of Iowa Center for Advancement. The effort raised a few million dollars in undiscovered wills and legacy gifts. From that day forward Mark discovered a love of the big idea that moves the needle. After 12 years at KWWL, Mark became a business owner as a co-founder of ME&V — rebranded as AMPERAGE in 2015. After 25 years of leading creative teams in video production, graphic design, PR, writing and web development, Mark transitioned out of ownership in 2021. Today he serves in an employee role as special projects consultant. He is creatively ambidextrous — son of an artist and engineer — and famous for distilling complex ideas down to a few words and a few visuals. Mark is a writer. When he found that many nonprofits struggled with complex branding puzzles, he wrote the book, “NonProfit-NonMarketing .” He also wrote a novel called “Reenactment.” Mark is an active blogger OneMinuteMarketer® with nearly 1,000 readers each week on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter. One of his most popular YouTube videos is on “How to Look Good on Zoom.” One of Mark’s fondest business memories was being named to INC 500 two times and attending the INC 500 conference with other winners. Mark is considered by some a Civil War expert (and that explains his novel). Mark also served as an adjunct professor in the business and in the communications departments at Wartburg College. Mark is a graduate of the University of Iowa and is currently vice president of the University of Iowa Journalism and Mass Communications Advisory Board. Mark is married to state Sen. Liz Mathis, and the two love to travel, even when it means being trapped by a volcano in the Czech Republic for three weeks.
