One thing I always wondered about the Hartford Companies. Where did that elk, deer, moose etc. come from? Did a bunch of hunters that decided to start an insurance company? Were they nature lovers? I mean, what does a forest animal have to do with insurance? They don’t live particulary long and they aren’t particularly predictable or stable. You never know when one’s going to dart out in front of your…
A-HA! It must be about auto insurance and a reference to all those elk that jump out in front of unsuspecting cars on the highway.
The company site says they were founded in 1810 but Wikipedia says the elk/stag is a mystery, having first apeared in 1861. Apparently, they were accused of stealing the stag from a painting. Later, they decided to commission their own.
But back to the company. These have been around so long, they have insured Robert E. Lee and Abraham Lincoln.
So, unlike our friends at Abbott Labs, they’ve had 80 years more to come up with some solid branding. Sure, they may have borrowed it from Sir Edwin Landseer, but that’s beside the point. The US copyright office opened in 1790 so there’s no excuse. Anyhow, they made their bed and now it’s famous.
So, did they make the leap onto the web?
I say yes.
A nice reminder that they’ve been in business for 200 years next to the logo, followed by a quick flash intro that loads when you hit the page. Navigation is solid, with clean sub navigation right underneath. On the right is a quick quote form for auto insurance.
Business and personal are cleanly separated. I do find the word choice for personal or consumer interesting. They call consumer “families and Individuals.” I wonder if they tested it. Families are are always high priority on the list of insurance buyers.
My one complaint is the investing side. No, I’m not going on a tirade about the economy. They just changed a few things on that site with smaller navigation and a slightly different look. It’s close enough though.
Overall, the elk does a fine job.