Running the TCS New York City Marathon has a lot in common with the hunt for an affordable apartment in the Big Apple these days—both are grueling, prolonged and often painful. It’s a phenomenon that NYC rental platform Openigloo had fun with on Nov. 2 during this year’s event. In four locations along the route, the brand activated a guerrilla campaign anchored by handmade, rental-humor-themed signs that captured the challenges and idiosyncrasies of securing a decent, and affordable place to live in NYC. And it all went down two days before a contentious mayoral election that was heavily focused on the housing crisis.
For Openigloo, what started in 2021 as a peer-to-peer review platform designed to help renters find their next apartment has evolved into a marketplace that helps residents find good housing from reputable buildings with trustworthy landlords, and educates them on their rental rights and happenings within the market. So between its offerings, community-centric ethos, and company research that showed 67 percent of users deem housing affordability as their top concern, the marathon presented a prime opportunity to interact with renters, boost awareness and get playful with the similarities between the housing rat race and the city’s iconic foot race.
“It feels like running the marathon is as hard as finding an affordable apartment in the city, and it’s just trying to make fun of this, because all we have left is to laugh about the situation and make it fun,” says Lidor Bar David, co-founder and cmo at Openigloo. “And also, our brand is all about helping renters find the right apartment for them from a reputable landlord that’s going to be the greatest fit. So this is what we’re pushing for.”
The company launched the campaign in classic grassroots form by knocking on the doors of residents who lived in apartments along the marathon route and asking if they’d like to participate in the activation by posting funny, brand-created signs in their windows during the race. Dwellers in one building were especially enthusiastic, according to the brand, and the majority of them partook.
On the street level, Openigloo employees, real NYC renters, creators and brand ambassadors held up handwritten signs featuring phrases like “Run like your landlord is behind you” and “Pain is temporary, rent hikes are forever,” that included low-key branding in some instances, and no branding at all in others. Sign-holders were located at four locations: Fort Greene, Williamsburg/Greenpoint, Park Slope and the Upper East Side. Fort Greene was a particularly strategic pick, as the neighborhood typically hosts a community block party on marathon day.
“The vibe of the signs is mostly to raise awareness, but also it should be funny and encourage the marathon runners, because this is what the signs started from,” says Bar David. “So the whole spirit and inspiration behind this was to be part of the New York City community, encouraging the runners, but doing it in a fun way and doing it with rent [humor].”
Along the route, Openigloo also planted wild postings, and analog posters featuring tear-away QR codes that linked to the company’s NYC Rent Stabilized Apartment Map, furthering its mission to “work with and for New Yorkers,” an approach used earlier this year in its subway ad campaign.
Another community-focused element was Openigloo’s partnership with local sign-making business, Van Zee Sign Co., owned by Will Van Zee, who is something of a New York-area micro-influencer. Van Zee handcrafted a sign design for the campaign, which was featured in all four of the brand’s marathon locations, and provided some extra social buzz.
“Since people in this company are renters, and this is our focus, it was really just trying to bring the community together,” Bar David says. “And the marathon is just one of these moments in a New Yorker’s life where, no matter where you’re from, which neighborhood, what social structure, you were there and you felt this celebration. And this is our overall marketing approach.” Partners: Adam Winograd, concept & production; Broadway Crew, staffing.
Photo credit: Lisa Pavlova
