Insurance isn’t a sexy topic. No one wants to sit down and talk insurance, especially life insurance. I write about it, so I know that people generally avoid it until it’s too late. I’m always trying to figure out how to present the topic in a way that invites people to talk about it openly.
Every now and then, something or someone comes along that makes insurance look appealing. One day as I was cleaning, I heard the Nationwide jingle. I stopped cleaning and was like, “Did Jill Scott come out with a new album? OK, Nationwide — I see you.”
It turns out Scott is the new voice of Nationwide’s jingle — “Nationwide is on your side.” I chatted with her to find out why she decided to collaborate the brand.
Jill Scott’s collaboration with Nationwide was fortuitous
Ramon Jones, executive vice president and chief marketing officer at Nationwide, told Insider that since the collaboration with Scott, interest in insurance has increased — especially among communities of color.
Jones became chief marketing officer in 2019 and wanted to expand its outreach to communities of color. He wanted his first campaign to resonate with Nationwide’s mission of “protection with extraordinary care” to catch people’s attention while portraying real-life scenarios for insurance, like teaching your teen to drive, planning for a family, or paying taxes.
Jones didn’t know when he decided to ask Scott to collaborate with Nationwide that she had a connection to the brand. Scott told me, “I grew up watching my grandmother pay the bills, and she showed my how to pay the bills. She had a Nationwide life insurance policy and paid the bill each month.”
Scott said that although her grandmother only had a sixth-grade education, she was smart about the world around her. She worked as a housekeeper for a well-to-do family that had best of everything — Queen Anne furniture and quality clothing with the best fabrics. Even though her education was limited, Scott’s grandmother recognized the habits of the wealthy family. When her grandmother saw that they had life insurance, she knew that if the family had it, then it was important.
‘Insurance is for everyone, not just the rich’
When I asked Scott why it mattered to her to be part of the Nationwide collaboration, she said, “Insurance is for everyone, not just the rich.” She grew up around elders of the community, and they all had life insurance. When her grandmother passed, Scott recalled, “We weren’t struggling to bury her or trying to figure out what to do with the house.”
I told Scott she was fortunate to have the wisdom of her grandmother because home and life insurance are typically ways to create generational wealth. A 2021 study by LIMRA and Life Happens found that 66% of African Americans looked at life insurance as just funeral and burial expenses, not as a wealth-building tool. Although African Americans are the most insured, many are underinsured, meaning they don’t have enough life insurance to act as a replacement for income, debt, or to build wealth.
Scott wants people to know: “Insurance is not outside of your grasp and is exceptionally wise for you and your family to have peace of mind. We have car insurance because we have to. But we don’t think about our lives and looking after ourselves. You can’t count on your health because we don’t know the day or hour when our time is up. It’s super uncomfortable, and the worst thing to leave your family is stranded and in debt.”
Not only does Scott advocate for life insurance, but also homeowners insurance. She told Insider, “By the time my grandmother was in her final stages, I purchased another home moving them out of the hood. I wanted to make sure they were covered while I was traveling all over the world. It was super empowering to have homeowners insurance.”
I asked Scott what parting words she wanted to leave readers. She said, “We all have the beautiful capacity for growth, and the more I know I hope to grow and share with others so they may be able to enjoy the life that they’re given to have a peaceful existence.”
As usual, Ms. Jill Scott from North Philly, sharing words of wisdom and bringing a little sexy to insurance.
Originally published on Business Insider
Ronda is an attorney, writer, and entrepreneur. She is a contributing writer for the Huffington Post. Originally from Chicago, she has lived in Los Angeles and New York. She loves to travel and is passionate about education equity, especially for first generation college students.