AllState's marketing chief, Mark LaNeve, just resigned "for personal reasons" in a management shuffle at the giant insurer. It's a surprise, because most people think AllState's switch from old ads featuring actor Dennis Haysbert to the darkly comic "Mayhem" character played by Dean Winters was a stroke of genius.

But the picture changes when you put that together with two other pieces of information. The Chicago Tribune says:

"Allstate has been losing market share, and relations with increasing numbers of its agents are strained. To better compete in the online market for insurance, Allstate recently acquired Esurance for $1 billion."

And now take a look at AllState's income statement. Revenue from property-liability insurance premiums was flat in 2011, at $25.9 billion. In other words, after a year plus on the air, Mayhem just wasn't moving the needle.



It's a shame. The Mayhem campaign, from ad agency Leo Burnett (a unit of Publicis) has been bold, entertaining stuff. Enjoy it while it lasts. LaNeve's replacement is likely to be shopping for new ideas.