Geico Commercials Ranked
Who do you trust for your car insurance? What about your home insurance? Bundling them together? Odds are you or someone you know uses — or once considered — Geico. Odds are double that you heard about and thought about using Geico due to its commercials, and who can blame you? Geico has produced many memorable ads. Several are memeworthy, such as the "Hump Day Camel" and "Geico Caveman" commercials, but not all are created equal.
Geico has been around since 1936, which means it's older than most people reading this article. And with this age comes a sizable library of commercials. Some rely on celebrities of days past such as Billy Blanks, while others are weird parodies of classic tales like Sleeping Beauty. But thanks to the law of statistics, some commercials are naturally superior, while others are so weird you might wonder why they were ever made.
If we went over every Geico commercial, we'd probably be here forever. So let's just rank five of them, shall we?
Very memorable - Why a gecko?
If you're familiar with Geico, you're probably familiar with its mascot, the Geico Gecko. Voiced by Jake Wood — who is also known for his work on Red Dwarf, EastEnders, and The Illusionist – the gecko has been the face of the company for a long time. But you might wonder why? Why a mascot, and why a gecko? Well, one commercial explains the logic behind this decision.
According to one of Geico's best commercials, the gecko himself breaks the reasoning down, and it's quite simple. "People trust advertising icons," he explains. If just any random person tells customers to visit Geico.com, the average person might not be receptive, but a mascot (a gecko in this case) is far more trustworthy. Not only can you trust the word of a mascot, but you can also trust them to babysit your kids.
This commercial uses tongue-in-cheek humor to explain why so many people trust and use Geico: mascot branding. Studies show that mascots effectively move sales figures, and they also make businesses "more personable." The Geico Gecko's mere existence makes you more likely to purchase Geico's services over a competing, mascot-less insurance company.
Also very memorable - Squirrels
When you drive a car, you don't pay attention to just the road — you also have to watch the sides. You never know what could jump out, as shown in one Geico commercial.
In the legendary "Squirrels" commercial, a squirrel sits on top of a log and then runs into the road, at which point an oncoming car swerves out of the way to avoid turning the rodent into roadkill. Predictably, this results in an accident, and the commercial doesn't say if the driver is okay or has insurance. Meanwhile, the squirrels celebrate because that's the kind of comedy we expect from Geico.
Without saying a word, this Geico commercial states animals don't know what cars are and charge into them unaware of the danger. Drivers naturally swerve or brake to avoid them, which could result in a crash. But even if you hit the animal, cars pay the price. In 2015, rival company State Farm asserted that around 1.25 million animal-related insurance claims were filed in 2014. But, these claims didn't revolve around squished squirrels and skunks but instead moose, elk, and other hefty animals that damaged cars on impact.
Insurance is important since you never know what forest critter will step into your car's path. Geico knows this all too well.
Somewhat memorable - Geico military
When you decide what insurance to use, sometimes the best metric is to see who else relies on what's available. If your family or friends use an insurance company, they can tell you whether or not it is worthwhile, but when a large branch of the government relies on Geico, it's probably a good idea to rely on it as well.
Geico's military commercial is short and sweet. It just features the Geico Gecko being dropped off on the USS Wisconsin and expositing that the company is "proud to have served the military for over 75 years." The only joke in the commercial is that, because of his size, the gecko won't reach the ship's captain until sundown. But the commercial doesn't need a joke because the focus is on how Geico helps the military, a point the company manages to get across in only 30 seconds.
So/so - Ted's girlfriend
One of Geico's stranger (and more memorable) commercials features Maxwell the pig, who goes "Wee wee wee!" all the way home. Maxwell proved a hit and went on to star in other Geico commercials, but not all of them are up to snuff.
One commercial starring Geico's talking pig starts off promising, comparing how Maxwell and non-Geico customer Ted deal with hail damage. While Maxwell can easily set up an appointment with a Geico claims agent, Ted spends way too much time on hold trying to get in touch with someone from his insurance company. The message is simple: It's easier for Geico customers to get help than rival insurance users. The sooner you get in touch with someone, the faster you can get your car damage sorted out. The commercial asserts that Geico is at the top, but then the ad takes a decidedly mean-spirited direction.
At the end of the commercial, Maxwell demonstrates that you can spend more time having fun and not worrying about setting up an appointment if you use Geico. The commercial also states Ted's girlfriend dumps him for Maxwell simply because he didn't have Geico, which basically says, "Your girlfriend will do the same if you don't switch to Geico." The commercial shoots itself in the foot by the end.
Worst/weirdest - Who Got The Swag Now?
Geico's selling point is it can save you "15% or more on car insurance," so the obvious question is what do you do with all that saved money? Go on vacation? Order a fancy dinner? Try your luck at the stock market? One Geico commercial gave the answer, and it is geriatrically gaudy.
The "Who Got The Swag Now" commercial features an old man "talkin' 'bout the swag" and claiming he has all of it. He stands in front of his house, wears gold chains, and gloats about all his belongings, including his trophy wife. (Yes, he claims he bought her.) And, the man talks the way old people talk when they try to mimic the lexicon of youth without understanding it.
The commercial is just plain cringeworthy, as if its creators used the "How do you do fellow kids?" flashback from 30 Rock as a blueprint without understanding the satire behind the scene.