CoStar Group, a rising real estate analytics company, poured nearly a billion into Super Bowl ads for its subsidiaries in an effort to challenge rivals Zillow and Realtor.com.The group debuted with four high-gloss commercials on Sunday night's broadcast of Super Bowl LVIII between the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs. Three of the ads were for CoStar subsidiary Homes.com, while a fourth will be for Apartments.com, another one of the group's subsidiaries. Actors Jeff Goldblum, Dan Levy, and Heidi Gardner were among a list of celebrities who appeared in the ads.
CoStar refused to disclose the exact amount it is spending this year on its new campaigns. However, in an interview with Inman, Florance noted that the funding allocated for its commercials "rounds up to a billion" after factoring in acquisition costs and content creation.
In addition to the Super Bowl, Florance said the company plans to go on a yearlong advertising barrage, with commercials planned for other major TV broadcasts, including the Oscars in March and the NBA Playoffs in April.
"The Super Bowl is a deep part of American culture and it grabs a disproportionate share of everyone's mind," Andy Florance, the CEO of CoStar Group, said, as quoted by Housing Wire. "So, it is the best place to get attention for a brand."
What Is CoStar's Aim?
CoStar, which was founded by Florance in a dorm room in 1986, first acquired Apartments.com in 2014. It later added Homes.com in 2021. Since then, the company has been actively working on beating rival home-search portals like Zillow, Realtor.com, and Redfin.
As of September 2023, Homes.com has recorded over 100 million unique monthly visitors, which increased by 1,290% from 2022. In comparison, Realtor.com earned 74 million unique monthly visitors in last year's second quarter, while Redfin recorded 52 million monthly unique visitors in the same period.
Florance has previously accused the trio of rival sites, which he refers to as "Ziltorfin," of using bait-and-switch methods to lure in home shoppers and then sell their contact information to dozens of real estate agents.
