HOW TO NOTICE EVERYDAY HUMAN NEEDS IN HARD DATA

The pandemic forced most of us to thoroughly analyze our own needs, including those related to the immediate environment. The new situation required new solutions. On this occasion, we wanted to show that Otodom not only knows the real estate market, but also understands what’s really important. That is why we’ve completely changed the accents in communication. Instead of focusing on real estate prices, we’ve referred to the “soft” needs, which at the beginning of the pandemic turned out to be much more important. Needs such as the quality of neighbour relations or being close to nature. Information concerning these issues was included in the district ranking, but it was not a priority before the pandemic. We’ve decided to change this, and at the same time present Otodom as an expert who not only has access to reliable data concerning the real estate market, but also can thoroughly analyze it and understand the actual, human needs behind the data – also those that users have noticed only in the new, pandemic reality.

The district ranking took place one more time. During the first edition in 2017, the respondents assessed the districts of Polish cities in 9 categories: safety, neighbour relations, ecology, well-maintained surroundings, communication, availability of attractions, availability of shops, costs of living, and infrastructure for children. This time, the respondents also assessed more specific aspects of everyday life in a given location: infrastructure for animals, facilities for athletes and partygoers, as well as access to health care. We took advantage of detailed knowledge concerning the perspective of residents in order to create press materials aimed at specific groups of users. We’ve changed the order of communication in such a way so that the data from the ranking fit into the current communication in the media, which was significantly changed due to the pandemic. We’ve translated the collected data into the language of daily needs of specific groups of recipients. Through their publication, we wanted to show that the comfort of our life is determined not only by the location’s size but also by many other “soft” components, which result in that we feel good in a given place, and which are often overlooked when choosing a property.

Instead of overloading readers with vague and dry facts, we’ve created thoughtful materials focusing on the tangible aspects of everyday life. Precise messages addressed to local and regional media were important. First of all, we drew out the information that best corresponds to the experience of the inhabitants of cities – instead of prices, infrastructure, and scientific measures, we talked about access to nature, the quality of neighbour relations, or infrastructure in favour of raising children. We’ve provided our partners with almost 170 profiled materials, which were published in the form of more than 500 publications in digital and traditional media, reaching 4.5 million people. Thus, we’ve shown that the change forced on us by the pandemic made an impact on having a different perspective on the possessed data. Thanks to efficiently changing the format of messages, we’ve provided the media and their recipients with attractive content that they particularly needed at that time. We were able to emphasize the importance of a broader view of the real estate market in order to make a good choice when buying a house or apartment. But above all we’ve presented Otodom as a brand that not only knows the real estate market, but that is close to people, advises them, and understands their needs.