The good news for all insurers using mascots—and most of them are—is that viewers seem to like them all. The poll sought opinions on nine characters (including one duo: Liberty Mutual’s LiMu Emu and Doug) and all of them achieved favorability ratings above 50%. Landing in last place was Progressive’s “Jamie” at 52%; the more well-known “Flo” scored 66%.

Geico first cracked the code in 2019 when the gecko, created by The Martin Agency, proved that silly ads are effective in selling a serious product. According to the poll, one reason they work is that they make intangible insurance products more tangible: 48% of poll respondents said mascots make it easier to relate to insurance brands, while only 34% said the same thing about real-life celebrity backers.

Allstate seemed to recognize this relatability factor when it opted to bring back its Mayhem character earlier this month after he was sidelined for more than a year. He serves to personify disasters that insurance is meant to protect against. Nearly half of all poll respondents (48%) applauded his return, while 41% were neutral. He plays particularly well with older millennials, according to the poll, which found that 65% in that demographic cheered his return.

The poll was conducted online in the U.S. from Jan. 7 to Jan. 10 among 1,033 US adults ages 18 and older.

Below, how the characters rank by favorability and awareness, along with some other quick facts about the hardest-working fictional insurance sellers in the biz.

9. JAMIE

Client: Progressive
Born: 2014
Ad Agency: Arnold Worldwide
Favorability rating: 52%
Awareness:  87%

Bio: Originally Flo’s sidekick, Jamie has taken on more of a featured role in ads of late, including one new ad called “Primetime,” in which he fantasizes about being a megastar. In 2020, he fronted a campaign for Progressive’s “Turkey Protection Plan,” a joint venture with Whole Foods that offered a gift card in the event of a cooking fail. The actor behind the character is Jim Cashman, who has appeared on TV shows including “The Goldbergs” and “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.”
Key stat: Cashman has four writer credits on IMDB, including for “Saturday Night Live.”
Strength: Is a rising ad star.
Weakness: He’ll always be stuck in Flo’s shadow.
In real life would most likely…
Be a sycophantic executive assistant.

8. LIMU EMU AND DOUG

Client: Liberty Mutual
Born: 2019
Ad Agency: Goodby Silverstein & Partners Favorability rating: 54%
Awareness: 84%

Bios: The yellow-shirted duo was introduced three years ago as a modern-day Turner and Hooch with an insurance spin. The mustached Doug and his emu partner LiMu are driven by a need to save customers from “overpaying for one-size-fits-all insurance,” according to Liberty Mutual. However, while the ads give the partners their own ’70s-style theme song, spots still conclude with the brand’s earworm jingle “Liberty, Liberty, Liberty.”
Key stat: Liberty Mutual films with three different emus, according to actor David Hoffman, who plays Doug. “One who specializes in standing still, one who runs … we kind of change them out,” he recently told the New York Post, noting that most of the time a piece of tape represents LiMu during filming and is swapped out post-production with CGI.
Strength: Their yellow shirts help with brand awareness.
Weakness: The emu could be a liability.
In real life would most likely … 
Be a detective and his sidekick (unclear who plays whom).

7. DR. RICK

Client: ProgressiveBorn: 2020
Ad Agency: Arnold Worldwide
Favorability rating: 59%
Awareness: 54%

Bio: The character, a life coach played by actor Bill Glass, continued Progressive’s “parentamorphisis” campaign of consumers trying to avoid becoming their parents at a time when consumers needed his humor the most—the pandemic lockdowns. Tough love advice like “Guess what, the waiter doesn’t need to know your name” helped Progressive stand out in the competitive insurance landscape. “Back then it was a very unpopular decision,” Jeff Charney, Progressive’s then-chief marketing officer, told Ad Age in 2021. “Everybody else was doing all this heavier stuff, wearing masks, the ICU, ambulances, and we were introducing this kind of funny guy named Dr.—people got nervous.” Yet Dr. Rick resonated enough with customers to earn him his own book deal late last year.
Key stat: Progressive’s in-house publishing division Eleven Letter Press recently published 5,000 copies of Dr. Rick’s new book, which is 119 pages long and can serve as a “touchstone” for customers, according to Glass, speaking in character as Dr. Rick.
Strength: His trademark dry humor resonates with many.
Weakness: Wears turtlenecks.
In real life would most likely …
Be a therapist.

• Chicago Public Schools will resume classes today, following a tentative agreement reached between the union and the school district, Axios Chicago reports. The plan also includes conditions under which a school would return to remote learning.

• Meanwhile, 44% said it's more important to have schools open for in-person learning to avoid further interrupting students' education, the Harris polling found.


• More than six in 10 Gen Z, millennial and Gen X respondents chose health and safety over in-person learning, as did 62% of parents with children younger than 18. Only 48% of boomers — or respondents 57 and older — said the same.


• Lower-income respondents were more likely to choose health and safety over remote learning than higher-income respondents. Only 37% of GOP respondents chose health and safety, compared with 57% of independents and 70% of Democrats.


• Respondents of color were also more likely to prioritize health and safety than white respondents, although a majority of all races and ethnicities did so.

• On the other hand, while it's rare for kids to get severe COVID cases, it does happen. Kids can also spread the virus to their potentially-vulnerable caregivers, and some teachers and school staff are at high risk.


• Public health experts say that schools can safely operate in person as long as basic precautions — including masking, testing, and good ventilation, as well as widespread vaccination — are being followed.

• And while this poll presented binary options, risk tolerance exists along a spectrum. That means what teachers or school districts regard as a high-risk situation may not be considered one worthy of remote learning by parents.

Is Chicago past its prime? Judging by what Windy City residents said in a new Harris Poll study, it may well be. More than three-quarters of Chicago-area residents consider the city established (43%) or declining (35%). Less than half (47%) believe Chicago is attracting new residents and businesses.

City-dwellers are less likely (64%) than their suburbanite cousins (71%) to say that their neighborhood is enticing new residents and businesses. More city residents (23%) than suburbanites, on the other hand, describe their neighborhood as declining.

The good news is that the city problems are reversible.

Most Chicagoans (81%) agree that urban development initiatives offer a strong incentive to attract new residents and to spur growth. Twice as many Chicagoans want local leaders to take charge (40%) of such efforts as prefer private-sector entities (20%). And those living in Chicago itself are more likely to take advantage of existing or upcoming city projects such as the Obama Presidential Center (62% to 40% respectively), 606 trail (50% to 25%), 312 River Run (43% to 25%), and Lincoln Yards (39% to 23%).