Friday, October 19, 2012

Does playing a game make you want to buy a house?


On October 17, Century 21 began a three week presence in Sim City on Facebook.  The promotion allows players to purchase and buy buildings, impact other people’s buildings and earn extra points by watching a commercial. 
But to what end?  Bev Thorne, Century 21 CMO says that they are attempting to reach Adults 25-34, who they see as the next generation of home buyers.   While she admits that the game is unlikely to generate immediate business, she is hoping that increased awareness and affinity will translate into sales when the economy improves. (Baar, 2012)
What do you think?  Is she right? 

Baar, A. (2012, October 17) Century 21 Plays 21st Century Marketing Game.  mediapost.com.  Retrieved October 19, 2012, from

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

The marketing idea sounds innovative and fun. At least Century 21 is were people are: surfing Facebook all day long.

Although, I'm not sure if brand awareness is enough for the company. When it comes to e.g. clothing or groceries, appearing in a Facebook game could translate directly to sales. People are willing to try put a brand that they came up with in social media. But with a long-term commitment like a house it is unlikely on my mind.

Kaisa

Anonymous said...

In my personal opinion, I do not agree about Century 21 joining with Sim City on Facebook would work, or if it did, it might only be in a short term or only make the brand be recognized. It is true that amount of people that play game online are increasing everyday, but it’s not a very successful way to sell in the house whole market.

Pim