It turns out there are advantages to being an alligator, like dodging the check when eating out with friends because your arms are just too short to reach it.
That's the premise of the latest gag in Geico's charmingly ridiculous "It's What You Do" campaign. In the 30-second ad, a talking reptile in human clothing does a poor job of pretending to want to pick up the tab—and inevitably failing—after going for Chinese with some coworkers. (They seem used to it.)
It's far from Geico's first bout with a talking animal. The menagerie includes Caleb the camel and Maxwell the pig, not to mention the gecko himself.
And while this new addition doesn't have the same catchphrase potential of his camel colleague, or the infuriatingly unforgettable squeal of his pig counterpart, it really is kind of brilliant, because it's true to nature: Alligators are absurd in their proportions ... and of course they'd be shifty mooks with a weakness for crispy duck.
Other spots in "It's What You Do" include a mom who always calls her son at the worst possible time to vent about his dad; the band Europe singing "Final Countdown" to a microwave; and a pair of golf announcers whispering, even as a player gets devoured by a kraken—no more directly related to car insurance than alligators or geckos, but great for underlining Geico's value in entertaining and memorable ways.
Maybe, in the alligator's next appearance, he can pump iron with the Geico bros ... assuming his puny little arms can handle that.
CREDITS
Client: Geico
Vice President, Marketing: Ted Ward
Director, Marketing Media Advertising: Bill Brower
Sr. Mgr., Broadcast, Outdoor, Print & Sports Marketing: Melissa Halicy
Marketing Supervisor: Mike Grant
Marketing Buyer: Tom Perlozzo:
Marketing Buyer: Brighid Griffin
Marketing Coordinator: Julia Nass
Agency: The Martin Agency
Chief Creative Officer: Joe Alexander
Group Creative Director: : Wade Alger
Group Creative Director: Steve Bassett
Creative Director: Sean Riley
Senior Copywriter: Ken Marcus:
Executive Producer: Brett Alexander
Senior Broadcast Producer: Heather Tanton
Junior Broadcast Producer: Sara Montgomery
Group Account Director: Brad Higdon
Account Supervisor: Josh Lybarger
Account Executive: : Allison Hensley
Account Coordinator: Allie Waller
Business Affairs Supervisor: Suzanne Wieringo
Financial Account Supervisor: Monica Cox
Senior Production Business Manager: Amy Trenz
Senior Project Manager: Karen McEwen
Production Company: Hungry Man
Director: Wayne McClammy
Managing Partner/Executive Producer: Kevin Byrne
Executive Producer/Head of Sales: Dan Duffy
Executive Producer: Mino Jarjoura
Executive Producer: Nancy Hacohen
Producer: Dave Bernstein
Production Supervisor: Shelly Silverman
Editorial Company: Rock Paper Scissors
Editor: Christjan Jordan
Assistant Editor: Pieter Viljoen
Executive Producer: Angela Dorian
Producer: Helena Lee
Telecine: Moving Picture Company
Colorist: Ricky Gausis
Animation/VFX: Moving Picture Company
Executive Producer: Elexis Stearn
Senior Producer: Juliet Tierney
Production Coordinator: : Valentina Cokonis
Line Producer: Goutham Hampankatta
Flame Lead: Mark Holden
Nuke Artist: Janice Tso
Nuke Artist: Jim Spratling
VFX Supervisor/Head of 3D: Jason Schugardt
Lead Lighter: Tim Kafka
Render/Look Dev: Jessica Groom
DMP: Partha Modal
3D Supervisor: Nishanth Shrinivasa
Original Music and Sound Design: Q Department
Audio Post Company: Rainmaker Studios
Engineer/Mixer: Jeff McManus