Progressive Harnesses the Power of Its Brand Mascot on Social Media

Auto insurance company Progressive is seeing significant social media impact with campaigns focusing around its brand mascot, Flo, that quirky sales rep that debuted in its commercials in 2008.

For the past two months, Progressive has been integrating its mascot, Flo, into YouTube videos and social games on Facebook, according to ClickZ.

On YouTube, she appears as an animated character in a video called “Best Day Ever,” where she spends an afternoon with Jimmy, another Progressive mascot. After watching the video, users are urged to upload photos of their best day ever to Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. Flo is being utilized in The Sims Social on Facebook, where users can simulate the game, using her as the main character.

On Facebook, Flo the character has 3.5 million likes, while Progressive only has 43,000. Her page was created by a fan and received half a million likes before the company took the reigns.

Brand new and classic company mascots are making their way more and more onto social media sites through games and videos, according to Advertising Age. Paraphrasing Marta Majewska, a social media strategist and VP of digital for PR firm Porter Novelli, AdAge author E.J. Schultz says, “Consumers would rather interact online with a cute or cuddly character than with a faceless corporate executive.” And using brand mascots on social media, especially through games, pays off. A whopping 50% of Internet users between the ages of 18 and 44 play social games daily, according to a 2011 eMarketer study.

In the case of Flo, people would prefer to interact with the quirky, endearing woman from the TV commercials, instead of a random executive at Progressive. When it comes to social media marketing, developing brand mascots isn’t the usual path, but it could be a great way to engage with consumers.