Bronze: Best Use of Video 2015

Few people would describe house hunting as fun. Real-estate website Trulia decided to change that perception—or at least show that using Trulia to find the perfect home was more fun and less stressful than other options—by introducing a series of video challenges as part of a sweepstakes. The grand prize: $350,000 to buy a house anywhere in the United States plus $10,000 in credit with furniture etailer Wayfair to help decorate the home.

Trulia and agency HelloWorld rolled out the five challenges throughout an 18-day period. Consumers registered to participate at either the mobile-optimized site or a microsite. Hosted by comedian Jim K, the videos appeared on the sites, YouTube, and Facebook. Social sharing was a key part of the campaign; for instance, the third challenge required players to email, share, or tweet photos of the model home that was being used to represent the grand prize. As well as the chance to be flown to Las Vegas to compete for the top prize, participants could winner smaller prizes throughout the campaign, as a way for Trulia to maintain engagement.

The 520,000 registrants shared the campaign 415,345 times, and the videos generated more than 2 million views. The promotion resulted in a 1,400% lift in email referrers and a 202% increase in mentions on social media, with an 80% share rate across email, Facebook, and Twitter. And while consumers still viewed other methods of house hunting with dread, many now had more positive associations toward Trulia… even if they wouldn’t go so far as to consider shopping for a home fun.