More Th>n revamps marketing strategy in search of 'trust'

The brand, owned by RSA, is to move away from its two-year, music-themed "songs" campaign featuring tongue-in-cheek voiceovers by 'Mighty Boosh' comedian Julian Barratt.

A new series of cinematic-style TV ads will star US impressionist Josh Robert-Thompson as "More Th>n Freeman". The actor narrates the clips in the style of Hollywood actor Morgan Freeman. In each ad, the camera will slowly pan across to reveal the character standing in an unusual place, such as on top of a chimney.

Four 60-second clips will focus on home, pet, and vehicle insurance. The TV ads launch on 1 January, and will be supported by radio and social media activity. The campaign has been created by SFW.

According to More Th>n marketing director Pete Markey, the ads will attempt to push the "trust, honesty, strength, and protection" provided by More Th>n.

He said: "We want to build the brand – More Th>n is now 10-years old. Insurance is a serious business, and although we want to continue to show intelligent humour [in our ads], we don’t want to be silly."

The new campaign will run throughout the year, alongside additional activity in June to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the brand. More Th>n was launched in 2001 by then-marketing director Mike Tildesley, who is currently at RBS Insurance.

The insurer's previous ad campaign, which launched in December 2008, used well-known songs from artists such as Barry White, Diana Ross and Lionel Richie.

This article was first published on marketingmagazine.co.uk