Case Study | Google Maps API

Allstate helps homeowners see their homes in a whole new way using Google Maps

At a Glance What they wanted to do • Create a valuable consumer tool driven by data, featuring curated content • Position Allstate as an innovative leader in home insurance • Open the door for Allstate agents to engage with customers What they did • Used Google Maps to create a map that visualizes customers’ homes with locationspecific information about common and costly claims What they accomplished • Over 20% of users complete the experience • Over 350% higher “intent to quote” “It’s all about personalization and relevance. My agent sending me a site with personalized information based on how I can better protect my home and family. That’s powerful.” —Elizabeth Schreier, Director of Digital and Social Engagement, Allstate

Background and Challenge Founded in 1931, Allstate is one of the largest and best-known insurance companies in the United States. The company encompasses more than 70,000 professionals made up of employees, agency owners and staff, and helps over 16 million households prepare for the future by offering services including home, auto and life insurance. In 2014, Allstate wanted to create a digital experience, showing consumers innovative ways to protect their homes. At the same time, Allstate also wanted to position the company as a clear leader within the home insurance category, creating a rich experience that would be valuable to anyone, whether or not they had a home insurance policy with Allstate. The team wanted to build a tool that incorporated local maps and home street views, creating a personalized and visually compelling experience. In partnership with its creative agency, T3, Allstate developed a number of creative ideas to engage users. For example, using their proprietary data, Allstate could determine the most common and costly claims – like flooding or theft – in specific ZIP codes. The site would also provide local weather conditions and information about a home’s energy usage. Using this data, they could help people evaluate their biggest risks and give them tips about how to protect their homes. “While the data is an important part of the GoodHome experience,” said T3 Creative Director Carolyn Connolly, “we knew the key to wowing users would be incorporating personalized views of their homes.” The team had a short four-month timeline for planning, designing and building the tool. Solution T3 and Allstate agreed to build the GoodHome site using Google Maps. For Allstate & T3, Google Maps was the top choice because of its ease of use and familiarity. From a technical perspective, Google Maps provided the functionality and ubiquity that T3’s developers wanted. “We looked at everything from customization capabilities to the ability to draw layers, access to street view and point-of-view manipulation, and Google Maps met our every need,” said Daniel Kim, technical architect at T3, who led the development of GoodHome. “The alternatives didn’t come up to par, so it was a no-brainer.” The T3 team started building the prototype using the Google Maps Javascript, Street View Image and Static Image APIs. They came up with additional features to make the tool more engaging and easier to use: geolocation, real-time weather animation, address autocomplete capabilities, city population statistics and specialized tips to help people protect their homes – for instance, if you live in an area prone to flooding, you’ll see how much the average insurance claim costs and what steps you

About Google Maps API

Google Maps API provides a range of “application programming interfaces”, which allow developers to build with relative ease: • location-based applications • mobile apps that work on multiple mobile devices • applications that enable users to bring data to life by visualising and interacting with geospatial data • customised maps, incorporating and highlighting data and imagery specific to their organisations’ needs Google Maps API provides developers with a platform that has the flexibility and power to leverage maps and geospatial data in new and truly innovative ways. For more information, visit google.com/work/mapsearth

can take to help safeguard your property. From concept to completion, development took 90 days. A campaign of this complexity typically would take between five and six months. Benefits GoodHome has opened the door for Allstate agents to build better relationships with their customers. 10,000 Allstate agents across the country emailed their clients a link to the GoodHome website and through dynamic insertion, the map automatically opens up to the customer’s home address when the recipient clicks on it. “It’s all about personalization and relevance,” said Elizabeth Schreier, Director of Digital and Social Engagement at Allstate. “My agent sending me a site with personalized information based on how I can better protect my home and family. That’s powerful.” For agents, GoodHome is a door opener and conversation starter. “GoodHome is a great conversation starter,” said Schreier. “An agent can pick up the phone and talk to their customer as an advisor.” Allstate has seen impressive results since introducing GoodHome in April 2014. A visitor who uses the GoodHome tool is over 350% more likely to get a quote than one who doesn’t. Forty percent of people who use the tool type in more than one address, and on average, people stay on the site for six to seven minutes. Senior leaders at Allstate appreciate the positive results thus far. “We’ve created an opportunity to stand out from the competition with this engaging and informative tool,” said Bob Wasserman, Allstate’s Senior Vice President of Marketing. “Google Maps creates a vibrant impression and helps make interacting with the GoodHome site compelling and relevant.” “We’re constantly looking for innovations and partners who can help us take better care of our customers,” said Wasserman. “GoodHome, developed using Google technology, is a great addition to our suite of tools that help customers protect what’s most important to them.”

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