U.S. auto insurance brands spent $5.7 billion on marketing last year in the U.S., nearly double what they spent just five years earlier. But they're not getting as much bang for their buck as they did a couple of years ago.

Allstate, State Farm, Nationwide, Esurance, Farmers Insurance, Progressive and Geico are among the many car insurance brands that have mounted notable marketing campaigns over the last few years, almost all of them emphasizing the availability of deep discounts as an integral part of their positioning.

But except for Progressive and the charismatic Flo, and Geiko and its geeky gekko, which have picked up market share, car-insurance brands are becoming jaded entities to American consumers, according to J.D. Power & Associates.

"We didn't see a commensurate increase in [market] churn" to match the industry's advertising expenses last year, said JPD senior director Jeremy Bowler.Continue reading...

CEO Mark Zuckerberg marked Facebook's acquisition of popular mobile photosharing app Instagram yesterday -- at $1 billion, Facebook's biggest ever -- by posting this announcement:

This is an important milestone for Facebook because it’s the first time we’ve ever acquired a product and company with so many users. We don’t plan on doing many more of these, if any at all. But providing the best photo sharing experience is one reason why so many people love Facebook and we knew it would be worth bringing these two companies together.

Instagram’s meteoric success garnered 30 million iOS users in 18 months and earned accolades as the iPhone app of 2011. Its Android version, released last week, already has millions of downloads. The free photo-social-mobile app gives users 17 special-effects filters for their pictures – 5 million of which are uploaded daily.

Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom reassured his platform's users, not all of whom are in love with Facebook:

It’s important to be clear that Instagram is not going away. We’ll be working with Facebook to evolve Instagram and build the network. We’ll continue to add new features to the product and find new ways to create a better mobile photos experience.

Instagram and Facebook already integrate nicely, and this deal promises that users won't have to join Facebook or Instagram to use the other, at least for now. Continue reading...

It's no longer a shock that bad-boy media brand Vice would partner with Intel in The Creators Project, a global tech arts and music festival that touched base in New York this past weekend for the second straight year. Following an equally unexpected partnership with CNN, Vice is quickly becoming as known for its establishment allies as for its still-edgy editorial content (its infamous "Dos and Don'ts"; photo sets of undressed models smoking marijuana, etc.) featured in print and online (it recently relaunched at the newly acquired Vice.com domain).

Though brandchannel's Abe Sauer dismissed the Vice-Intel partnership last year as evidence the brand had become (borrowing co-founder Shane Smith's words) an "old, fat man," it was clear from the lines of attractive, upscale hipsters waiting patiently for wristbands that Vice still has more than enough credibility to curate a crowd. And as Sauer then noted, the high-profile alliance is part of a conscious strategy to demonstrate Vice can transfer its "edge" onto an established brand like Intel. Continue reading...

Eva Dowd was not happy with Alamo Rent A Car back in March when she got a call from a collection agency saying that she owed more than $1,800 for damage to a car she had rented in November in Hawaii, where she’d been visiting for her granddaughter’s baptism, the Chicago Tribune reports.

Dowd hadn’t received any calls from Alamo on the issue; the rep claimed that correspondence on the damage had gone to Dowd’s previous address in Georgia, though she hadn’t been in residence there since 2007. 

She didn’t want her credit to be ruined on a bogus claim. The Tribune reports that Dowd called American Express, where she had purchased extra car insurance, and the rep there told her that Amex would deal with Alamo. Except that Alamo wouldn’t deal with Amex.Continue reading...

When big brands merge, it's always interesting to theorize about which brand will ultimately benefit most from the union.

Obviously, both brands bring something to the table in terms of assets and liabilities. But in the case of the United-Continental merger, which will create the largest airline in the world, it's United that stands to gain from "the rub-off from Continental's surprisingly high goodwill among consumers."

According to Ad Age, industry analysts describe Continental as "one of the only U.S.-based legacy carriers with any amount of consumer goodwill in its back pocket," largely due to the airline's excellent customer service and liberal frequent flyer program.

United, on the other hand, "has done a lot to ruin their image from what it was 10 to 12 years ago," says Robert Herbst an airline analyst. Syndicated travel columnist Chris Elliott agrees that Continental has the better brand; "they're known for having a proactive customer service department."Continue reading...

While basking in the launch of their Android operating system for mobile devices, Google is feeling a little left out of its own party. Verizon Wireless and Motorola borrowed, tweaked and sort of hijacked the Android brand through the massive Droid campaign. Lacking a device of its own till now, Google is finally ready to compete with the big boys.

Finally, Google is about to give the world an actual Google phone, running on the HTC G1 cellphone. The device will include a branded handset and includes free phone service. Though the G1 has already been (mis)identified as the "first Google phone," this new phone will be emblazoned with Google's company logo. It will feature Google Voice, the company's phone service, which recently overcame its FCC troubles, and connect users to that ominous (to some) Google Cloud. A touchscreen display and an extremely fast processing system, “far exceeding that of the iPhone 3G S” are also included.

The mobile dance for positioning has made for some interesting bedfellows, or maybe better, bed-frenemies. Motorola, Verizon and Google have partnered on the Droid. (Google has a lot of catching up to do after spending a reported $100M in marketing the collaboration). But with its free phone service, and patch-in to the full range of Google services, Google's offering could easily damage efforts by its Droid partners. Meanwhile, Apple's beefed-up iPhone, touted as a possible Droid-killer, will reportedly be available with Verizon service, putting Verizon on the possible outs with Motorola as well as with Google.Continue reading...

Cadbury is up for grabs, and as we have been following, it looks like like Hershey and Kraft Foods are hungry for a takeover.

Kraft has been at the center of the multi-billion struggle with no signs of giving up, though Nestlé is considering placing a rival bid for the chocolate company, which may incite a hostile reaction from Kraft. Regardless, Cadbury knows who the true power-players are:

Roger Carr, Cadbury’s chairman, indicated that a straight merger with Hershey would be preferable to a deal with Kraft. His rationale is that a deal with Hershey would deliver better value for its shareholders because both groups were focused on confectionery, while Kraft produces a variety of low-end processed foods.Continue reading...

Kraft’s attempt to buy Cadbury has gone from Cadbury trying to tease more money from Kraft, to Cadbury rejecting Kraft’s firm offer, to Kraft going into hostile-takeover mode, setting the stage for a long boardroom battle for chocolate control.

Does that sound as complicated as nougat yet? Now, enter Hershey. North America’s largest chocolate manufacturer (and the brand responsible for 10% of my diet) has been eyeing Cadbury for weeks and might partner with Ferrero, the Italian chocolate-maker responsible for Nutella, to make a run at the coveted confectioner.

Both Hershey and Ferrero have been mum, but the reports are likely to force Kraft to raise its offer, which could lead to a “Barbarians at the Gate” slugfest reminiscent of the leveraged buyout of RJR Nabisco 20 years ago.Continue reading...