Progressive Gives Flo a Brother for Christmas

Give a lot of credit to upstarts in the auto-insurance business: Over the last several years, brands including Progressive and Geico have turned the once-staid business upside-down with nifty marketing and even niftier web marketing. They have grabbed attention with their TV ads and customers with their rates and online accessibility. Now, after more than two years of creating much of that success with its insurance “saleswoman,” the sassy Flo, Progressive is changing the mix: They’re adding another advertising character, nicknamed the Messenger.