Opinion BY John J Custer

Like a Good Neighbor, State Farm don’t Change Much

Founded in 1922 by retired farmer George J. Mecherle, State Farm originally specialized in auto insurance for farmers. The company has since expanded its services to provide multiple types of insurance, along with banking and financial assistance. Currently ranked 37 on the Fortune 500 list with 65,000 employees, 17,800 agents and about 81 million policies and accounts in force, State Farm generated 63.2 billion in revenue in 2011. With large numbers and witty ad campaigns as a springboard, State Farm turned to Chermayeff & Geismar to help update their brand for the 21st century.

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A B-Side BY Armin

American Home Shield

Established in 1971, American Home Shield offers “home protection plans” providing warranties that “cover the repair or replacement of electrical, plumbing, and heating and cooling systems; hot water heaters; and major home appliances.” New logo was introduced earlier this month. E-mail blast here.

Thanks to Cole Robinson for the tip.

Opinion BY Rietje Gieskes

NNewly Redesigned

Nationale Nederlanden, one of the Netherlands’ largest insurance and asset management companies, recently replaced its logo, in use since 1970, with a modified version. The new logo signals a strategic repositioning as a friendlier company, more customer-centric and transparent in its policies than before.

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A B-Side BY Armin

Pacífico Seguros

Pacífico Seguros is one of the leading insurance companies in Peru. New logo designed by FutureBrand. Lovely typography and great “fi” ligature.

Thanks to Franco Zegovia for the tip.

Opinion BY Armin

An XLent Redesign

Established in 1986, XL Group is a “global insurance and reinsurance company providing property, casualty and specialty products to industrial, commercial and professional firms, insurance companies and other enterprises throughout the world.” Headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, XL has 4,000 employees across 60 locations in 20 countries and as of December 2010 had $45 billion in total assets and $10.6 billion in total revenues. This week, XL introduced a new campaign, “Make Your World Go”, and a new identity designed by London-based Venturethree.

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Opinion BY Armin

K with a Heart of Gold

Established in 1990, Unitrin is a provider of automobile, homeowners, life, and health insurance to individuals and small businesses. Unitrin has over 7,000 employees and counts with more than 6 million policyholders. Although probably less well known, it competes with Nationwide and State Farm insurance, two companies with more aggressive advertising campaigns. In 2002, Unitrin acquired Kemper Independence Insurance and last week it announced that it would be adopting the Kemper name. The new identity has been designed by Lippincott.

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Opinion BY Armin

Esurance gets Dorky Techie Feely

Only slightly older than ten years old, founded in 1998, San Francisco-based Esurance is one of the leading direct-to-consumer auto insurance companies in the U.S. and one of the better known providers of such unappealing service. Until now, Esurance had been represented by a very generic sunset logo and personalized in the form of Erin Esurance, an animated, pink-haired superhero. Earlier this month, Esurance went through a complete transformation with a new identity and national campaign titled “Techie Feely,” both created by San Francisco-based Duncan/Channon.

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