Intro
Allstate insurance company has made many successful commercials in the past but the one to really take the cake is the Mayhem series. in the Mayhem series, actor Dean Winters stars as not a person, but as Mayhem itself. He poses as objects that break or cause some form of damage that can be costly such as a malfunctioning GPS, a bungee cord bought at a gas station, and an angry teen driver. The purpose of these commercials is to present the viewers with a dangerous situation that cannot be avoided. By doing this, Allstate is trying to relate to the audience and recognize that accidents happen and if their insurance company does not cover them, they could end up spending a lot of money. This series of commercials are very successful because they give the audience a sense of realness in theses situations but have the comic relief of Dean Winters.
The character Mayhem was created by the advertising company Leo Brunett the Northbrook insurance company. Their goal in creating this commercial was to target "cut-rate insurance companies" and bring to light how costly it can be for customers. They chose to go after Allstate because of their many deals that cover various accidents. After they had everything they wanted the ad to be they pitched it to Allstate and Allstate loved it. All the companies were sitting down going over exact details and who it should be and that is when they contacted Dean Winters. Winters was hesitant at first but after reading the script loved it and the rest is history.
Text
The commercials start off with Dean Winters in a torn up suit with cuts on his face. Him wearing a suit is funny and catches the audience's attention because it shows causing mayhem is his job and the subtle, evil smiling throughout the commercial would imply that he loves what he does. The audience sees the humor in this and is drawn in by the absurdity of having a job in which the purpose is to destroy things. His suit appears damaged and torn while his face is cut and bruised, showing that he never rests. His shabby appearance shows that Mayhem is a force that cannot rest and will never stop. There will always be Mayhem around and even the audience members could fall victim to his wrath. Allstate shows this and responds by saying although Mayhem is impossible to stop, when it does happen, the customer can rest easy knowing they have Allstate insurance and they are covered.
Allstate insurance company has made many successful commercials in the past but the one to really take the cake is the Mayhem series. in the Mayhem series, actor Dean Winters stars as not a person, but as Mayhem itself. He poses as objects that break or cause some form of damage that can be costly such as a malfunctioning GPS, a bungee cord bought at a gas station, and an angry teen driver. The purpose of these commercials is to present the viewers with a dangerous situation that cannot be avoided. By doing this, Allstate is trying to relate to the audience and recognize that accidents happen and if their insurance company does not cover them, they could end up spending a lot of money. This series of commercials are very successful because they give the audience a sense of realness in theses situations but have the comic relief of Dean Winters.
Author
Founded in 1931, Allstate was under Sears and then became an independent organization in 1995. Throughout the years Allstate's ad campaign was in the slogan, "You're in good hands." In the early 2000's for the first time Allstate made it possible to purchase insurance on the internet and on the phone.
The character Mayhem was created by the advertising company Leo Brunett the Northbrook insurance company. Their goal in creating this commercial was to target "cut-rate insurance companies" and bring to light how costly it can be for customers. They chose to go after Allstate because of their many deals that cover various accidents. After they had everything they wanted the ad to be they pitched it to Allstate and Allstate loved it. All the companies were sitting down going over exact details and who it should be and that is when they contacted Dean Winters. Winters was hesitant at first but after reading the script loved it and the rest is history.
Text
The commercials start off with Dean Winters in a torn up suit with cuts on his face. Him wearing a suit is funny and catches the audience's attention because it shows causing mayhem is his job and the subtle, evil smiling throughout the commercial would imply that he loves what he does. The audience sees the humor in this and is drawn in by the absurdity of having a job in which the purpose is to destroy things. His suit appears damaged and torn while his face is cut and bruised, showing that he never rests. His shabby appearance shows that Mayhem is a force that cannot rest and will never stop. There will always be Mayhem around and even the audience members could fall victim to his wrath. Allstate shows this and responds by saying although Mayhem is impossible to stop, when it does happen, the customer can rest easy knowing they have Allstate insurance and they are covered.
The GPS
In this commercial a man is driving his car while Mayhem (Dean
Winters) is acting as his GPS giving him instructions on where to go. Mayhem
states he has not been updated so his directions are not up to par, meaning he
will most likely give inaccurate directions. Because of his lack of being updated he could put the driver in a situation where he is lost or is confused while driving which is dangerous. He tells the driver to turn left
and when he makes the turn mayhem states he is recalculating. The driver is
visually getting frustrated and mayhem takes advantage by screaming "turn right
now" which causes him to hastily, and recklessly turn into oncoming traffic and
hit a car. After all of this mayhem says how most insurance companies would not
cover a crash caused by an outdated GPS but Allstate would.
The humor in this commercial is the fact that a GPS can be used as an instrument to create mayhem. Anyone in the audience who has used a GPS before has been frustrated at least once and can relate to how the driver feels when Mayhem is fooling with him. Because of being able to relate to this, it pulls the audience in so they watch the rest of the commercial.
After the humor of the commercial pulled the audience in, they are shown a real event that is dangerous and can actually happen. The scene shows the driver crashing because of the GPS and the audience recognizes right away that distractions on the road are dangerous and that they need to be prepared if a situation arises where they are distracted. By having Allstate they know if their GPS ever distracts them and they crash, they can be covered for it.
This ad targets those who have to drive to new places a lot. It targets business men and women who are out on the road trying to get to that interview or meeting they cannot afford to be late to. A malfunctioning GPS can be as annoying as it is hazardous as Mayhem showed in the commercial. Most insurance companies would not cover a crash because of a GPS and the blame would be on the driver. Allstate recognizes that accidents happen and sometimes cannot be avoided so they cover things like this.
The humor in this commercial is the fact that a GPS can be used as an instrument to create mayhem. Anyone in the audience who has used a GPS before has been frustrated at least once and can relate to how the driver feels when Mayhem is fooling with him. Because of being able to relate to this, it pulls the audience in so they watch the rest of the commercial.
After the humor of the commercial pulled the audience in, they are shown a real event that is dangerous and can actually happen. The scene shows the driver crashing because of the GPS and the audience recognizes right away that distractions on the road are dangerous and that they need to be prepared if a situation arises where they are distracted. By having Allstate they know if their GPS ever distracts them and they crash, they can be covered for it.
This ad targets those who have to drive to new places a lot. It targets business men and women who are out on the road trying to get to that interview or meeting they cannot afford to be late to. A malfunctioning GPS can be as annoying as it is hazardous as Mayhem showed in the commercial. Most insurance companies would not cover a crash because of a GPS and the blame would be on the driver. Allstate recognizes that accidents happen and sometimes cannot be avoided so they cover things like this.
Angry Teenager Girl
In this commercial Mayhem is posing as a teenage girl who is
driving her car through a parking lot. As the girl’s best friend calls her, her
friend tells her that she kissed the boy she likes. The girl hangs up her phone
and throws it in the backseat. Mayhem states that because she is mad at her friend she has now become one of the most dangerous forces on planet earth, a young, angry, and reckless teen driver. Because of her anger she starts swerving all over the parking lot and hits a parked car and drives off without stopping. Mayhem says once again states that insurance
companies would not cover a hit and run but Allstate would.
The fact that a man is posing as a girl in a pink car in this commercial shows humor and is something that the audience does not see every day. Having a man with a beat up suit and cuts on his face pose as a girl is humorous and draws the viewers in to watch more. By Mayhem portraying an angry teenage girl, it gives a majority of the audience a good laugh because many have experienced the wrath of a jealous, angry teenager. This commercial makes the audience realize that there could be a situation like this and they could fall victim to the recklessness of an angry teenager.
The hit and run aspect puts the reality of a situation like this into perspective. The owner of the smashed car runs to her car looking frustrated because of all the damage caused to her car. Many can relate to this because most people have been in a car accident or had their car damaged. When a persons car is victim of a hit and run there is a feeling of hopelessness knowing that no one can be held accountable except themselves, leaving them to have to foot the bill for the damage they did not cause. By mayhem stating that most insurance companies do not cover hit and runs it makes people want to go out and get Allstate so that they will be protected from things like that.
The ad targets those who have had kids or have been around kids enough to experience the constant mood swings and overreactions that they have. Those who can relate and sympathize with this ad know very well how high the likely hood of a teen getting in an accident is and they want to be covered for that.
Bungee Cord
In this commercial Mayhem is in the form of a bungee cord
bought at a gas station. The cord is hooked to the back of a pickup truck and
is holding down 800 pounds of tailgating equipment. He states that the cord was
not meant for this type of job and the cord starts letting things fall off the
truck. As the driver keeps going, completely unaware of things falling off the
back, the highway becomes a dangerous zone filled with flying debris. As a
grill falls off of the truck it slams into a car and causes massive damage to
it. If the driver of the destroyed car has Allstate then they would be covered from this type of thing and not have to worry about paying for the enormous bill for the damage.
The humor in the situation is that Mayhem is just letting all of this happen. Its humorous to see him throw things off of the truck as he talks in a low casual voice as if nothing is wrong. Because of the drivers carelessness a very real and scary situation has been brought into play. the highway is filled with debris and anyone in the audience who has been in a situation such as this understands the danger. the flying debris can cause massive damage to a car and can put others on the road in extreme danger.
This ad targets those tailgate, people who are on the road a lot, and really anyone who drives. A situation like this could occur at anytime on the highway or even on normal streets. Debris on the highway is dangerous and can be extremely costly if the person does not have insurance that covers them.
Conclusion
Allstate recognizes that accidents happen and that people are sometimes thrown into situations they have a hard time affording. Having this knowledge, Allstate made a commercial to sympathize with the audience in understanding that accidents do happen and they need to be prepared and with their special insurance packages they can be covered. Allstate is for anyone and everyone and their vast coverage packages can help save people money when Mayhem inevitably strikes. These ads were extremely effective in capturing the audiences attention and delivering a point. The audience did not just get lost in the humor of the commercial because it was not just a humorous commercial. While Dean Winters was comic relief, if showed a very real situation that could be relatable to many of the viewers watching. Because of this the viewers see the realness and danger of some of the situations and want to make sure they are covered for things that could cost them a lot of money.
"Allstate Mayhem Commercial - Pink SUV Teenage Driver" Youtube. Youtube, 31 May. 2012. Web. 28 Nov. 2014 <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BlfinjxFEYI>
"Allstate Mayhem Commercial - Cheap Bungee Cord" Youtube. Youtube. 19 Oct. 2013. Web. 28 Nov. 2014. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lo7XYBiMRz0>
"Allstate Mayhem Commercial - GPS" Youtube. Youtube. 31 May. 2012. Web. 28 Nov. 2014. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4h0Qvc6_MfQ>
"Allstate Insurance - History and Timeline" Allstate Newsroom. Allstate insurance. web. 28 Nov. 2014 <http://www.allstatenewsroom.com/channels/History-and-Timeline/pages/history-timeline>
"Behind the scenes with Allstate's Mayhem man" Johnson, Steve. Chicago Tribune. 01 June. 2011. Web. 28 Nov. 2014.
<http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-06-01/entertainment/ct-live-0602-allstate-mayhem-ads-20110601_1_allstate-s-mayhem-ads-leo-burnett/3>
The humor in the situation is that Mayhem is just letting all of this happen. Its humorous to see him throw things off of the truck as he talks in a low casual voice as if nothing is wrong. Because of the drivers carelessness a very real and scary situation has been brought into play. the highway is filled with debris and anyone in the audience who has been in a situation such as this understands the danger. the flying debris can cause massive damage to a car and can put others on the road in extreme danger.
This ad targets those tailgate, people who are on the road a lot, and really anyone who drives. A situation like this could occur at anytime on the highway or even on normal streets. Debris on the highway is dangerous and can be extremely costly if the person does not have insurance that covers them.
Conclusion
Allstate recognizes that accidents happen and that people are sometimes thrown into situations they have a hard time affording. Having this knowledge, Allstate made a commercial to sympathize with the audience in understanding that accidents do happen and they need to be prepared and with their special insurance packages they can be covered. Allstate is for anyone and everyone and their vast coverage packages can help save people money when Mayhem inevitably strikes. These ads were extremely effective in capturing the audiences attention and delivering a point. The audience did not just get lost in the humor of the commercial because it was not just a humorous commercial. While Dean Winters was comic relief, if showed a very real situation that could be relatable to many of the viewers watching. Because of this the viewers see the realness and danger of some of the situations and want to make sure they are covered for things that could cost them a lot of money.
"Allstate Mayhem Commercial - Pink SUV Teenage Driver" Youtube. Youtube, 31 May. 2012. Web. 28 Nov. 2014 <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BlfinjxFEYI>
"Allstate Mayhem Commercial - Cheap Bungee Cord" Youtube. Youtube. 19 Oct. 2013. Web. 28 Nov. 2014. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lo7XYBiMRz0>
"Allstate Mayhem Commercial - GPS" Youtube. Youtube. 31 May. 2012. Web. 28 Nov. 2014. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4h0Qvc6_MfQ>
"Allstate Insurance - History and Timeline" Allstate Newsroom. Allstate insurance. web. 28 Nov. 2014 <http://www.allstatenewsroom.com/channels/History-and-Timeline/pages/history-timeline>
"Behind the scenes with Allstate's Mayhem man" Johnson, Steve. Chicago Tribune. 01 June. 2011. Web. 28 Nov. 2014.
<http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-06-01/entertainment/ct-live-0602-allstate-mayhem-ads-20110601_1_allstate-s-mayhem-ads-leo-burnett/3>
