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Geico 'Too Tall' Jones

I was watching TV and I saw a Geico commercial, where a guy dressed in a suit, looking fancy asks, “Could switching to Geico really save you 15 % or more on car insurance? Is Ed ‘Too Tall’ Jones, too tall?” It then shows Ed Jones at the doctor’s office. The nurse was trying to measure him, but she could not, because when she tried to measure him, the stick did not extend any longer. The commercial ends with the normal, “Geico. Fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more.”

I can see rhetoric in this commercial. The man in the beginning is dressed in a suit for a reason. A man looks must more trustworthy when wearing a suit and looks professional. This is part of “ethos”. This man is establishing trust between him and us, the viewers. He also makes a reference to Ed Jones. Ed Jones was a famous NFL football player, who played for fifteen years for the Dallas Cowboys and also attempted professional boxing. The man in the commercial is mentioning the famous football player, because he is well known. He is seeking commonality between him and the viewers. A lot of people know of Ed Jones, and by referencing him, he is using another part of ethos.
This is also a fallacy. It is an appeal to illegitimate authority. Geico is using a famous football player to represent part of their commercial. Ed Jones is not qualified to give information out about insurance, making him an illegitimate authority.

I think that this argument was not persuasive, at least for me because I am not interested in insurance, at least for now. I do think that the commercial did a good job of wanting to keep the audience’s attention, because of the way it starts out and finishes with Ed Jones. So it could be persuasive for someone looking for car insurance that likes Ed Jones.
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Comments

  1. Abigail OverbeyNovember 4, 2014 at 4:06 AM

    I have noticed that lots of commercials use men in suits to get you to trust them. I’ve mostly seen this done in credit card commercials and traveling agencies. I think that this happens because you assume that they must be good with their own money, so they would good with yours too. Suits are expensive and require money, which means that he was able to make the money and the first and that he was able to save it long enough to buy the suit. Seeing him looking well groomed and in a suit leads you to believe that he is most likely very successful and it is his success and put-together look that could lead you to trust him.

    Selena

    ReplyDelete
  2. Abigail OverbeyJanuary 22, 2015 at 5:49 PM

    I can tell you that the appeal to football does nothing for me, as I don't really care for sports... However, I do love a well dressed man. (; I think I agree with you about how the commercial is ineffective for young people like us who are not interested in insurance though.

    Liz

    ReplyDelete
  3. Clay BuxtonJanuary 22, 2015 at 5:50 PM

    Men in suits look great. But it does seem like they have more credibility, same thing with tall people in the case of "To Tall" Jones, because he is tall and freakishly tall he is different and should be looked up to. (No pun intended)

    ReplyDelete
  4. UnknownJanuary 23, 2015 at 7:44 AM

    I don't think this commercial is effective either because I am not interested in Ed Jones or car insurance. All it made me think about is that I want to be taller.

    ReplyDelete

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