01Concept
Keep the joke useful.
Connect Peytonville to a real product point.
Humor with a job
← All work15 · Insurance · 2019 to 2021
Nationwide
Taking Peytonville from the TV spot into video, display, social, and quote pages, with copy written and tested across hundreds of versions.
75%
Digital-video ad recall
Client
Nationwide Insurance
Role
Digital marketing manager
Discipline
Ad copy written and tested at volume
Years
2019 to 2021
Sc. 15A · The briefFunny still had to be useful
The idea
Peytonville gave Nationwide a funny campaign world. The work still had to sell insurance.
I wrote hundreds of versions across video, display, social, and quote pages. Each needed to connect the humor with useful product information, a clear next step, and language that could pass compliance review.
As Digital Marketing Manager, I wrote sets of headlines and calls to action that could be compared in tests. Brand-voice and compliance checks were part of the writing process.
// Where the spot ended
The same joke had to survive a video cut, a banner, a social post and a quote page.
Ogilvy built Peytonville for TV. My work started where the spot ended. Each format had to leave people with a product fact they could use.
Sc. 15B · The workAd copy · Variant testing · Compliance review
Keep the joke.
Sell the policy.
I wrote the copy in sets so we could compare versions and use the results to plan the next round.
Written in sets
Concept · Testing · Optimization
02Testing
Change one variable that matters.
Learn from the result.
One variable at a time
03Optimization
Scale what wins.
Lower lead cost without losing the campaign voice.
Keep the voice
01Message
Keeping the practical message clear
The humor brought people into the campaign. Headlines, product language, and calls to action then needed to tell them something they could use.
I worked across those parts together so a promising opening could carry through to a clear next step.
What it delivered
+28%
click-through rate on the top-performing digital ads
02Results
What the campaign recorded
Digital-video ad recall averaged 75%, more than 15 percentage points above the financial-services benchmark. The top-performing digital ads recorded a 28% increase in click-through rate.
Those are campaign results. My part was the copy and testing work inside them.
What it delivered
75%
digital-video ad recall, 15+ points above the financial-services benchmark
03Compliance
Getting through
review faster
Each version needed brand and compliance review. I built those checks into the writing process so the copy could move through approval with fewer delays.
What it delivered
3.2
fewer business days in average copy-approval time
04Optimization
Scaling what won
I used the test results to recommend which versions should run next, working toward a lower cost per qualified lead while keeping the campaign’s voice.
What it delivered
−24%
cost per qualified lead by the final campaign quarter
Concept, test, scale.
Campaign patternConcept
Keep the joke useful
Connect Peytonville to a real product point.
Testing
Change one variable that matters
Learn from the result.
Optimization
Scale what wins
Lower lead cost without losing the campaign voice.
Welcome to Peytonville
Campaign stills
Sc. 15C · By the numbersCampaign footprint
What the testing found
75%
Ad recall
Digital-video ad recall across the campaign footprint, more than 15 points above the financial-services benchmark.
Higher click-through
+28%
On top-performing creative
Lower cost per lead
−24%
By the final campaign quarter
Days saved
3.2
Fewer business days in average copy-approval time
Sc. 15D · Inside the caseCampaign video
Welcome to PeytonvilleCampaign spot
Production credits
EngagementDigital marketing manager
DisciplinesAd copy · Variant testing · Compliance review
CollaboratorsNationwide marketing and compliance teams
Years2019 to 2021
Next · Sc. 16 · Brand and cause · 2021
Sandy Hook Promise
Sandy Hook Promise