Home is Where the Heart is

Seattle-based home buying company, Zillow recently launched a campaign that tugs at the heartstrings of even those with the iciest of cold hearts. Each of the five video advertisements features different types of families/people searching for a new home. Zillow knows that purchasing a new home is both an emotional and often stressful experience, and they want to show their market that they care. The various stages of life, most often known as the "slice of life" technique has been proven effective in helping aid company relations with their target audiences. In the screen grab featured from YouTube, this particular ad features a young boy and his father who are forced to move after the loss of their matriarch. According to CEO Jeremy Wacksman, stated in their accompanying press release, "We hear so many incredible personal stories about the different paths people take to homeownership. We were inspired to bring the modern home shopping story to life with this campaign".

In addition to tugging at heartstrings of viewers, the company took an important stab at acknowledging the buying patterns of millennials, who have been often criticized as renters and not homeowners. The segment entitled "Just Me" features a young woman who is searching for a new apartment, but is advised by a coworker to purchase instead to gain long-term investments, even though it is only her living in the home. This particular commercial tapped into an audience that Zillow's principle competition has not taken advantage of thus far.