Ads We Like: Sesame Street celebrates 50 years on screen with Farmers Insurance
Sesame Street turns 50 years old this year and Farmers Insurance is joining in the celebration with a very Muppet version of the ‘We Know From Experience’ campaign.
Sesame Street Muppets join Farmers Insurance in latest campaign
The new campaign kicks off during National Preparedness Month and features several famed Muppet characters talking to Professor Burke – played by Oscar winner JK Simmons – about their insurance needs.
There are three new commercials, created by RPA, for this special series, two of which feature real-life Farmers claims reenacted with Sesame Street’s familiar furry faces.
In a welcome ad, Bert is dressed like the Professor and prepares to say the signature line, “We know a thing or two because we’ve seen a thing or two,” before he is interrupted by Ernie, who asks if Farmers covers rubber duckies. Then Cookie Monster comes in and asks about broken cookie jars, while Grover flies across the room and asks about accident protection – essentially the usual Muppet chaos.
In ‘Not So Handy Monster’ Grover is seen trying to fix a man’s water heater. In his endearingly bumbling way, he launches the heater like a rocket, which flies across the street and lands on a car. In ‘One’ the Count is seen, well, counting as his riding mower in the background bursts into flames.
Spots will air on broadcast networks such as NBC and CBS during college football, MLB and NFL games, in-theater and will also be supported digitally with presence on Hulu and Buzzfeed, placed by media agency Zenith. Additionally, there is a large social and digital effort to help drive traffic to a unique Sesame Street-themed Farmers landing page where viewers can find videos and behind-the-scenes photos.
“For over 90 years, education has been a key component of Farmers efforts to help make a positive impact in our communities. The opportunity to work with one of the most engaging and educational programs, Sesame Street, and its cherished characters to help people learn a thing or two from Professor Burke was a natural fit for Farmers,” said Leesa Eichberger, head of brand marketing at Farmers Insurance.
Farmers is also a sponsor of a short-form video series on Sesame Street’s YouTube channel. This series, created and produced by Sesame Workshop, focuses on problem solving.
“We’re incredibly pleased to work with Farmers on new content that encourages families to be healthy and safe,” said Scott Chambers, senior vice president/general manager, educational media and licensing, North America, Sesame Workshop. “Farmers’ support of the new YouTube series allows us to extend our mission of helping kids grow smarter, stronger and kinder.”
Added said Joe Baratelli, executive vice-president, chief creative officer at RPA: “This collaboration is an amazing opportunity to continue to extend Farmers into pop culture, which we’ve had great success with in the past, and work with characters we all know and love.”
See the spots by clicking on the Creative Works box below.
