Buffett wants to know: Do Geico ads get job done?

0 Comments | USA TODAY, January, 2005 | by Michael McCarthy

The marketers at Geico have a big challenge trying to sell something that many consumers view as a necessary evil: car insurance. They have a bigger challenge trying to sell their ad campaign ideas to Geico's ultimate customer: billionaire Wall Street investor Warren Buffett, known as the "Oracle of Omaha" for his stock-picking skills.

Geico, the nation's fifth-largest auto insurer, is owned by Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway. Twice a year, in February and August, Buffett meets with Geico managers to be briefed on all aspects of the operations, including advertising.

Buffett didn't get to be one of the world's richest people without knowing a little something about marketing. And Berkshire Hathaway shares didn't rise to their current price of $90,000 without the company...