Antonio Valor - Línea Directa

For three decades, Línea Directa has stood out in Spain as a brand that dares to do things differently. Founded as the country’s first direct-to-consumer insurance company, it built its reputation on disruption, clarity and an unshakeable belief in the power of marketing. Today, under the leadership of Antonio Valor, Global Marketing Director, this spirit remains very much alive. During our conversation, one theme consistently emerged: Línea Directa grows because it never stops measuring, innovating, or evolving.

A Legacy of Innovation That Still Defines the Brand

Innovation is not a department at Línea Directa; it is the company’s origin story and enduring identity. As Antonio explains, the brand entered the insurance market in the 1990s with a value proposition that was utterly disruptive at the time: no agents, no brokers, no physical branches, just a direct model based on phone sales and advertising-driven demand.

“What seems normal now was groundbreaking 30 years ago,” he reflects. From launching the first comprehensive insurance with a deductible in Spain to being the earliest mover in digital marketing once the internet emerged, innovation has been baked into every step of Línea Directa’s growth.

This legacy translates into a brand purpose rooted in emotional clarity: to be perceived as friendly, approachable, trustworthy, and effective. Insurance is used in moments of uncertainty, and for Antonio, the brand must respond with empathy and efficiency. “We must show security in how we act. We must show empathy and effectiveness,” he explains, “And we aim to do all this with a smile.”

Even in serious or delicate situations, the brand strives to respond in a human, reassuring way. Innovation here is not only technological; it is behavioural. This combination of emotional warmth and functional excellence defines how the company aspires to show up across all customer interactions.

“We must show security in how we act. We must show empathy and effectiveness. And we aim to do all this with a smile.”

Media as a Business-Critical Growth Lever

Unlike many insurers that rely on intermediaries, Línea Directa generates all sales through digital and telephone channels. That makes media investment not just important, but fundamental to business performance. “Advertising is what generates demand,” Antonio says plainly. “If something cannot be measured, we are unlikely to do it.”

This direct model means the company treats media with exceptional rigour. Cross-media measurement plays a critical role, enabling the team to understand the real interactions between channels, not just performance in isolation. “We measure everything we do. What works, we reinforce; what doesn’t work, we reconfigure or ultimately discard.” With consumption becoming increasingly fragmented, this holistic view has become essential.

Television, once the dominant reach vehicle, no longer captures the full audience required. As viewing habits evolve, Línea Directa has shifted investment towards streaming platforms, online video, and a growing role for digital out-of-home (OOH), which helps reach lighter-TV audiences with strong precision and impact.

Interestingly, the brand has also seen unexpected success in more traditional formats, proving that even classic media can be powerful when used creatively. “Outdoor allows us to reach audiences who watch less television, and in a very effective way.”

At the same time, Antonio highlights one of the industry's biggest structural challenges: overexposure to advertising. With consumers confronted by constant messages, the battle for attention requires not only strong creative work but also the smart use of data and technology to reach people at the right moment with the right message. “Media management today is more complex because consumption is so fragmented,” Antonio explains. “If you don’t manage that properly, it affects both efficiency and effectiveness.”

“Media management today is more complex because consumption is so fragmented. If you don’t manage that properly, it affects both efficiency and effectiveness.”

Balancing Always-On Marketing with Rigorous Measurement

Línea Directa runs an always-on media strategy, but that does not mean flooding the market with the same message. Instead, Antonio’s approach leans on a sophisticated system of continuous measurement that monitors campaign wear-out, detects saturation, and signals when creative rotation is needed. “We rotate campaigns at a reasonable rhythm,” he explains, “not too quickly, not too slowly”.

Achieving the right balance between short-term performance and long-term brand building depends on one thing: robust modelling. The company uses a combination of cross-media KPIs, econometric models, and attribution tools. Not one model, but several. This enables the marketing team to assess incrementality, ROI, and the true drivers of business impact at a granular level.

Antonio describes measurement as “almost branded with fire” into the team’s culture. “The company has strict return expectations for every euro invested. If something does not deliver the expected return, it is reconfigured or discontinued.” This clarity not only improves effectiveness but also upholds a disciplined internal mindset that prevents unnecessary investment or complexity.

“The company has strict return expectations for every euro invested. If something does not deliver the expected return, it is reconfigured or discontinued.”

Building the Future: Internal Innovation and the Changing Media Landscape

Beyond media, innovation remains a defining force for the company. Not as an abstract idea, but as a structured, organisation-wide process. Internal intrapreneurship programmes bring together cross-functional teams to identify opportunities, build prototypes, and test solutions through a series of validation gates. Some of the company’s most successful recent products emerged directly from these internal innovation tracks.

One challenge, Antonio admits, is prioritisation. With abundant creative energy across the business, there are often more ideas than resources to execute them. “We have too many proposals,” he laughs. “There is such a strong desire to innovate.”  That makes clarity and focus essential, determining what truly adds value and what the business can realistically support.

Looking ahead, Antonio sees several shifts shaping the future of both media and innovation: Audience-based buying will increasingly replace the traditional focus on individual channels. And AI will transform search, with advertising appearing directly in AI-generated answers, a shift that will require new measurement standards.

Furthermore, sustainability, demographic changes, lifestyle patterns, and transparency will continue to reshape category expectations, from ecological home insurance to telemedicine and new living arrangements. “Customers increasingly demand transparency. This is central to our philosophy.”

In a world of fragmentation and change, Línea Directa’s advantage lies in its clarity: a strong brand purpose, an unbroken line of innovation, and one of the most rigorous measurement cultures in the industry.

“Customers increasingly demand transparency. This is central to our philosophy.”