Blog #5- Madness in Mayhem

 

Anyone who has watched cable TV knows of the Allstate Mayhem commercials. Actor Dean Winters causes "mayhem" in people's lives that expresses the importance of insurance. In this specific commercial, Mayhem  tailgates another driver, but that driver isn't paying attention to the front and hits another car. Mayhem is able to leave the scene without any consequences and the driver is visibly distraught. 

Although the big idea of this advertisement is to get people to buy insurance from Allstate, the hidden message of the advertisements is how unpredictable life can be. We as humans go on in the world making tons of mistakes daily, yet we get so afraid of what we cannot expect. Allstate is trying to tell their audience, "Hey, with Allstate insurance, you won't have to worry about that. We got you". 

It's human nature to make mistakes, but mistakes can be costly. In American culture, it's common for people to worry about these costly mistakes. Stuff like vehicles, homes, and health is very expensive, but it's important to have. Many insurances, specifically car insurance, will rise in expenses after just one accident. This send so much people, mostly middle and lower class, into a spiral of budgeting and money issues. Recently, my car was involved in a hit and run, and I was so stressed out; I panicked and didn't know what to do. Allstate wants to minimize the worry and panic. 

The Mayhem advertisement series is very comical and relatable. Mayhem gets others into so much trouble but gets away with no consequences, and he leaves the people to deal with it on their own. In the Tailgater ad, the driver is telling the tailgater to back off. Anyone who drives and has been tailgated know exactly how annoying tailgaters are. I always think "You can go around?" or "I don't know why you're speeding so much? It's not like I can go any further". Allstate downplays the situation with humor because they are trying to get the point that their customers are covered, so there's no need to stress. Yes, insurance is a very serious topic, but these advertisements add humor so their audience can pay attention and understand the seriousness of the possible situations.

To Be Continued. . .