53 years later, still in good hands

Creative

Allstate's slogan had an inauspicious start.

One day in 1950, a general sales manager

at the insurance company rushed home after learning his daughter was ill. His wife, comforting him, noted that the girl was "in good hands" with the doctor. The manager recalled the incident at a sales meeting, and "You're in good hands with Allstate" was born. Ever since then, the slogan has been the core message of Allstate's advertising.

According to the advertising-history books, Allstate's is the oldest surviving tagline for a paid campaign. (In 1947, Smokey the Bear started warning that "only you can prevent forest fires" in a PSA produced by the Ad Council...