"Fire the Landlord Now" Marketing Campaign

Category: Best Homeownership Marketing Strategy

Information About Innovation:
Title:	"Fire the Landlord Now" Marketing Campaign
Summary:	In partnership with Ideopia, a Cincinnati-based marketing firm, Columbus Housing Partnership (of Columbus, Ohio) rolled out a new marketing campaign to promote homeownership. Colorful "Fire the Landlord Now" ads were placed in all Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA) buses. The neon-green ads are catching the attention of potential homebuyers throughout the capital city and have prompted a dramatic increase in phone calls from interested homebuyers.
Detailed Description:	In January 2003, Columbus Housing Partnership (CHP) forged a new program designed specifically to create homeownership opportunities for low- to moderate-income working families in Central Ohio. Working with a number of partners and sponsors, and with the support of the City of Columbus and State of Ohio, this homeownership department soon developed a number of sites available for purchase; both new construction and renovated homes. These efforts were led by a newly hired Homeownership Developer and thanks to the program’s early success, the division has now grown to a team of three—including a Sales and Marketing Manager. In order to further strengthen the teams’ efforts and educate the community about its’ services, CHP began consulting with Ideopia; a Cincinnati-based marketing firm which concentrates primarily on builders and developers. Ideopia, who agreed to provide its’ services pro bono to CHP, created a number of pieces for CHP’s homeownership division. First, they named the division Homeport. Shortly thereafter, a logo, a tag line, business cards, for-sale signs and a number of other marketing pieces appeared to get Homeport well on its way. Then, in March, 2004, CHP approached Ideopia to create a bus placard—a message on-the-move. By April, CHP had received Fire the Landlord Now. Buy a lot of home for a little green. It was an instant hit with the Homeport team. Shortly thereafter, the placards were printed and installed in hundreds of COTA buses. Since then, the neon-green signs have captured the attention of current homeowners, puzzled bus-riding landlords and inspired potential homebuyers throughout the city to call Homeport. In place for nearly two months, the placards, along with CHP’s multi-layered marketing plan, have resulted in an increased number of phone calls. On a typical day at CHP, Homeport receives as many as 15 calls from potential homeowners, while the Housing Counseling Department may receive as many as 50 calls from low- to moderate-income families in search of housing and related services. The bus placards have also allowed CHP to introduce Homeport to the community-at-large. Said one recent festival-goer when stopping by the CHP table: “Fire the Landlord. Oh, that’s you guys! I see that all the time—it’s catchy. Now, I want to fire my landlord. How do I get started?” And so the journey to homeownership begins again thanks to a little creativity, a lot of teamwork and one brightly colored and properly placed public-transit placard. In 2004, Homeport will have as many as 40 homes under development, will sell 15 homes, begin construction on another 10, and identify two additional housing “villages” for near-future development.
Projected Cost:	Thanks to Ideopia’s pro bono efforts, CHP did not incur any development costs for its Fire the Landlord Now campaign. The total cost for printing and placement of the bus placards in all COTA buses was $1,800.
2003 Outcomes:	Fire the Landlord Now is a 2004 marketing campaign. However, CHP’s Homeownership division (now known as Homeport) achieved much in 2003. Last year, the program acquired nearly 18 lots for new construction and four homes for renovation, began construction on two model homes and a spec home in the city’s south and near-east communities, constructed and sold two homes and completely rehabbed one home. This year alone, CHP has completed and sold another seven new homes in its’ Mariemont Community. The Mariemont Community includes 32 single-family homes in CHP’s Lease-Option program.
Website:	http://www.chpcolumbus.org
Keywords:	Advertising, CHP, Columbus, Homeownership, Marketing
Information About Organization:
Name:	Columbus Housing Partnership
Address 1:	562 East Main Street
City, State, Zip:	Columbus, Ohio  43215
Org. Status:	501c3 Non-Profit
Contact Name:	Jen Patterson
Contact E-mail:	jpatterson@chpcolumbus.org
Contact Phone:	614-221-8889 ext. 135

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