The main driving force may surprise you…
In recent years, the US insurance business has seen a surge of rebranding initiatives from both established and new competitors. Whether it’s a complete redesign or a minor modification to logos and slogans, these changes are more than just cosmetic—they’re deliberate moves to address bigger difficulties and possibilities in a dynamic industry.
According to one expert with whom Insurance Business talked, the increasing speed of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) has fuelled the need to consolidate brands, particularly for larger organisations.
“There’s a lot of M&A activity where carriers are acquiring different business units,” said Peter McMurtrie (seen top, left), partner in West Monroe’s insurance practice.
“As they do, they inherit existing brands, which traditionally carry significant brand equity. However, managing a large portfolio of brands can be inefficient and may obscure the full scale of the organization.”
M&A, market expansions, strategy pivots – factors driving insurance rebrands
McMurtrie, who has over 30 years of insurance expertise, joined West Monroe from Nationwide, where he was president of property and casualty business insurance and oversaw the firm’s own rebranding in 2015.
“They combined various subsidiary brands under the Nationwide brand. This not only reduced marketing costs, but also increased their market presence,” McMurtrie explained. “Consolidating multiple brands into a single, unified brand can be more efficient and cost-effective, and it helps the company be perceived at a larger scale in the marketplace, rather than as a collection of smaller entities.”
Insurance firms frequently rebrand to demonstrate that they understand and are aligned with changing customer expectations. Brands are increasingly emphasising customer-centric characteristics including accessibility, openness, and support for digital involvement.
At the same time, rebranding enables businesses to communicate their new strategic direction. FM Global, for example, declared that it would delete the word “Global” from its name and become known simply as FM. FM will be the parent brand for all of the company’s businesses, including its flagship mutual insurance company, middle-market insurer AFM (formerly FM Affiliated).
“We’ve been around for nearly 200 years, and about 25 years ago, our remaining mutuals merged to form FM Global.” Since then, we’ve expanded tremendously,” said Johnell Holly (shown top, right), SVP of worldwide client services, sales, and marketing at FM.
“While our essential beliefs and offerings to clients remain unchanged, we’ve grown into a considerably larger, more globally connected firm. It was the appropriate time to freshen the brand and show ourselves correctly.”
Another motivator for insurance businesses is the desire to remain relevant in the face of technological change. Companies such as Allstate and State Farm have incorporated technology and digital-friendly services into their products, which are frequently accompanied by a brand revamp emphasising these advancements.
Rebrands as reputation management?
When a firm confronts a major reputational challenge, such as a scandal, legal issues, or a public relations crisis, rebranding can help to recover consumer trust and restore its image. Earlier this month, Chicago-based insurance broker Guaranteed Rate Insurance relaunched as Rate Insurance after complaints of a poisonous culture within the organisation during its fast growth.
McMurtrie noted that these moves are not exclusive to the insurance business. “Brands often pivot for reputation management, either by creating a new brand or refreshing an existing one to reshape public perception,” he told me.
“There’s the legendary story of British Petroleum using a green mark to demonstrate environmental stewardship following a catastrophic tanker leak. Rebranding for image change is less common [in insurance], yet it does occur.
Whatever the company’s reasons for presenting a fresh image, the success of a rebrand often comes down to intentionality.
“The key is that rebranding must be purposeful, especially when carriers are highly sensitive to their expense and loss ratios,” McMurtrie said.
“There must be a clear alignment of the brand to the mission vision, to the purpose of the organization, and an ability to create that connectivity. If you’re changing from a legacy brand, you’ve got to be able to bring that story along.”
Do you have a compelling insurance rebranding story to share? Please leave a remark.
