GoCompare moves away from in-house creative model with Droga5 appointment
It has managed its creative in-house since 2015, but now GoCompare has handed its advertising business to Droga5.
There’s no word on whether the new approach will see the brand ditch its longstanding frontman Gio Compario / GoCompare
The agency beat off competition from Anomaly London and TBWA\London to win the pitch, which was handled internally by GoCompare.
The move marks the first time the insurance comparison site has worked with an agency in almost four years. Its last partner of note was Fold7, which it split with just before bringing opera-singing mascot Gio Compario back to screens in 2015.
For its first brief, Droga5 has been tasked with creating a campaign that tells the insurance broker’s “brand story”.
The appointment follows on from chief marketing officer Zoe Harris joining the business from Trinity Mirror (now Reach) last summer. Harris explained that the Droga5 team were the frontrunners because the agency shared the belief that insurance comparison didn’t have to “behave like a low interest category”.
“Without doubt our sector has entered a new life-stage where shouting the loudest is no longer enough,” she added. "With incredible founding principles still beating at the heart of GoCompare we’re super excited to partner with Droga5.”
As her first move in the role, Harris moved GoCompare’s media planning and buying duties into Hearts & Science, ending its seven-year relationship with Dentsu Aegis' Carat. The move was enacted to help the platform in its bid to move towards a more "data-led marketing approach".
Dylan Williams, chief strategy officer at Droga5 London, hinted that GoCompare’s strategy would see its creative focus on its technical capabilities; something its rival Compare the Market has been doing for a while.
“With the advent of AI and auto-switching, it is obviously an important time for GoCompare and the broader comparison category. It’s a cracking opportunity and we can’t wait to get started with Zoe and her team,” he said.
There’s no word on whether the new approach will see the brand ditch its longstanding frontman Gio Compario, who holds the accolade for the ‘most annoying brand mascot’ ever.
Though the financial services tenor (who first appeared in the firm’s ads in 2009) was dropped in 2013 he was resurrected two years later to engage customers again.