The Gecko has been a successful, long-standing spokesman (er, spokesreptile?) for GEICO. Our idea – which began as a print assignment in the Wall Street Journal and grew into something much bigger – was designed to show the more "professional" and serious side of the company. Not only was it fun, it was wildly successful. And I got to pretend to be British whilst writing it. Always lovely.
THE BOSS & GECKO CAMPAIGN // Berkshire Hathaway owns GEICO, so we originally wanted Warren Buffett to star in the spots. And he was all in – until his board said nope. Still, kudos to a fun, smart client that was never afraid to take chances. The campaign ran for three years, was featured in Communication Arts, written about in the New York Times, and helped cement GEICO as the fastest growing insurance company in the country.
Fun fact: the actor who played the Gecko’s boss (Brian Carney) is Art Carney’s son. Another fun fact: the Gecko isn’t actually real.
DIRECTOR | chris smith (smuggler)
EDITOR | jordan green (89 editorial)
Ads in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and other publications poked fun at ‘serious’ insurance companies, while also letting people know that GEICO (and Warren Buffett) mean business.
