A confluence of factors, from the pandemic to rising interest rates, has created what has been described as the most unaffordable housing market in generations. Navigating the market, from open houses to mortgage approvals, is difficult for many consumers. In New York City, that experience is particularly fraught, with the addition of apartment brokers, co-op boards and a dwindling housing supply that gives renters less than a 1% chance of finding an apartment that costs less than $2,400 a month. 

If finding a place to live in most places is a journey, finding one in New York is an epic odyssey. That insight is illustrated in classical fashion in the latest campaign from StreetEasy, the New York-focused real estate platform owned by Zillow. 

“The strategy behind this was being able to talk about the buyer’s journey in New York City, knowing that the journey in New York City is very unique,” said Jason Ferguson, creative director at StreetEasy. “We get NYC, we get New Yorkers. How do we find a way that we can connect with New Yorkers and show them that StreetEasy has the tools and the resources and can connect them with the right people?”

Created with Mother New York, “Let The Journey Begin” kicked off last month and will run throughout the year. The campaign spans Facebook, Instagram, Reddit, Pinterest, YouTube, Spotify and connected TV. On the out-of-home (OOH) front, the effort appears on MTA subway cars and taxi tops and includes a takeover of the Broadway/Lafayette station, along with large-scale, hand-painted murals in the Williamsburg and Nolita neighborhoods.

Those OOH activations are perhaps the campaign’s most effective element as they imagine the steps of the buyer’s journey in the style of Renaissance frescoes — a “natural” look for the campaign, according to Nedal Ahmed, executive creative director at Mother New York.

“When we talk about words like ‘odyssey,’ you can see where your brain gets this place of drama and the illustration style of the time,” Ahmed said. “With the Renaissance, there’s such a great, iconic visual vocabulary there, and I think New York also has an iconic aesthetic, so having these two really interesting aesthetics come together is a really fun treat for us.” 

Along with pairing two iconic visual styles, the campaign extends the brand’s work of speaking to a New York audience that is particularly adept at tuning out advertising that is part of the Big Apple’s visual clutter. 

“[New Yorkers] are savvy enough to appreciate a message that’s clever, aligned with beautiful visuals and is something that speaks to the experience of what it’s like to live in New York,” Ahmed said. “Having that creative excellence and that comfort of really targeting our creative to New Yorkers was really exciting.”

‘If you know, you know’

Like any hero’s journey, the buyer’s journey spans different scenarios, setbacks and successes. StreetEasy and Mother worked together to come up with seven ideas that would resonate with New Yorkers and be translated into art, included deciding whether to rent or buy, getting pre-approved for a mortgage, visiting open houses, dealing with co-op boards and, eventually, becoming one’s own landlord.

“Our strategy team was a big part of this, as well as working with the StreetEasy team, and being that bridge between business strategy and creative strategy, down to the actual creative execution,” said Ahmed. 

After turning StreetEasy’s insights into rough ideas of visuals, Mother relied heavily on its business affairs unit to clear “if you know, you know” local Easter eggs that are peppered throughout the campaign. References include the iconic “Dan Smith Will Teach You Guitar” ads, establishments like Barcade and the New York Public Library, as well as familiar figures like Leh-Boy, a city character who rides his bike with a basketball balanced on his head. Then, Mother engaged creative company Buck to bring the concepts to life. 

“I was a fan of [Buck’s] work even before we worked together, and it felt like a no-brainer,” Ferguson said. “They were going to be perfect for this because they really care so much and so deeply about the craft, and getting every little thing right — literally every brushstroke.”

That level of handmade care differentiates the campaign at a time when brands and agencies are in a rush to adopt generative artificial intelligence (AI) as a way to save time and energy. But as other campaigns have pointed out, AI is not always ready for creative prime time, and likely couldn’t have captured such pitch-perfect New York scenarios.

“When people see this out in the world and they get up close to it … it’s going to be so obvious how much care and attention went into this hand-drawn work that was done by Buck,” Ferguson said. “Even though it does take a lot more effort and a lot more energy to do it that way, authentically, I really believe that it will be recognized and it will make the work in the campaign that much better.”