A Free Revenue-Generating Idea For Zillow. Yes, Free.
I have an idea for Zillow (or similar real estate app/site) that I think could increase their revenue substantially, effectively creating an entirely new channel for advertising. As with all good ideas, I was hesitant to share with anyone BUT someone from Zillow (or similar) as it could lead to future Ideasicle X business with that brand. But the idea has been collecting pixel-dust on my hard drive for at least a year, and I don’t have the time to identify the right people, beat down their doors and get this idea in front of them. So instead I’m simply going to post the idea below. That’s right, I’m going to give the idea away.
But don’t worry, it’s still an utterly selfish move. My hope is that Zillow or Realtor.com or another real estate organization will see the idea, get excited about it, and then hire Ideasicle X to come up with more ideas like it. Just being transparent here.
Quick note before proceeding to the idea: no Ideasicle Experts were harmed during the development of this idea. It’s just an idea I had, so if you hate it, don’t blame them.
With all that, here’s the idea.
valuable eyeballs
According to DMR Business Statistics, there are currently 245,000,000 monthly users of Zillow and 9.6 billion annual visits to the site. That’s a lot of eyeballs. But it gets better.
50% of all Zillow visitors are in a transactional mood - either buying or selling, 37% have HH income over $100k, and 420,000,000 homes are viewed per month.
A fantastic and fruitful target audience.
The value of accidental voyeurism
When browsing Zillow, one is browsing the homes of others. Homes are the single most intimate place representing the nature of the people living there. As such, there is an “accidental voyeurism” happening while browsing the homes of others. You get to see how their house looks, how they decorate, the artwork, the furniture. Sure the space is staged to look nice, but the stuff is still the stuff. The person browsing can get a quick read on the values of the homeowner wandering the home’s virtual halls in this way.
Better yet, these are people’s homes, not fake magazine showrooms. So what’s in those homes are the choices of those homeowners, which adds an “endorsement vibe” to everything in there.
Now, we know that 50% of the browsers on Zillow are in a transactional mindset as they are observing these intimate dwellings of others. Imagine an advertiser reaching these people in this transactional mindset with communications more intimate than traditional banner ads or display ads adjacent to the home images.
The idea
Nearly every furnished home on Zillow has an image of a TV turned off. Here are a few real examples I pulled from Zillow.
The idea: sell these blank TVs as “organic” advertising space. Use AI to sniff out TVs in these uploaded pictures and drop ads in their places. TV shows can announce their final seasons. Movies can advertise new releases. CNN can try its best to normalize the idea that people actually watch CNN.
Some examples, using the same images as above:
Ted Lasso
No Time To Die (Bond Movie)
CNN
What this idea does for advertisers
First, forgive some of the examples above as being a little dated. I’ve had this idea for a couple years. But getting past that…
Seeing a “Ted Lasso” ad on the TV in a Zillow home at the very least creates an ad-impression with each user, but it’s more than that.
Seeing “Ted Lasso” on many TVs in many Zillow homes in one sitting creates a sense of normalization for the show—as if EVERYONE is watching it. Remember these are people’s homes, not magazine showrooms.
These ads could be clickable to pop-up content from the advertiser that doesn’t send people away from the Zillow experience. Sign up forms, offers, you name it.
what this idea does for Zillow
The advertising revenue this idea would generate would be a brand new revenue stream for Zillow. Perhaps that revenue is shared with the local realtors who are posting these images on behalf of clients. And TVs may only be the beginning.
Maybe there are ads in other places in the homes. Like in place of artwork on the walls, or loose products Photoshopped into the homes (like a Cuisinart Coffee Maker, a new iMac on a desk, a Pottery Barn coffee table, etc.). It’s endless.
brazen Call to action
Zillow, if you see this idea and want to pursue it, be my guest. Or any of Zillow’s competitors, same thing. Have at it. No charge. Just let me know so I can brag about it in a future post and maybe you could include an ad on the TVs for Ideasicle X in your first run.
But I hope you will also see this is what we live for at Ideasicle X.
We come up with revenue-generating ideas for our clients every day. To learn more about Ideasicle X click the giant red button below and find a time where I can share a demo with you.
Will Burns is the Founder & CEO of the revolutionary virtual-idea-generating company, Ideasicle X. He’s an advertising veteran from such agencies as Wieden & Kennedy, Goodby Silverstein, Arnold Worldwide, and Mullen. He was a Forbes Contributor for nine years writing about creativity in modern branding. Sign up for the Ideasicle Newsletter and never miss a post.