Century 21’s 'Tryptophan Slow Jam' Serenades Consumers on Thanksgiving

Residential real estate sales organization Century 21 has debuted a Thanksgiving song, Tryptophan Slow Jam, on YouTube, iTunes and Vimeo, in its latest real-time marketing effort.

According to the brand, Thanksgiving has never had its own holiday standard before and the Tryptophan Slow Jam will soon be known as “the greatest Thanksgiving rock anthem of all time.”

The song comes with an animated music video, which, as of November 30, had about 102,000 views on YouTube.

The song can also be downloaded on iTunes, but a rep could not provide a number of downloads since the song was released on November 25.

Century 21 says it will donate 100 percent of the proceeds from the $0.99 song to Easter Seals, a non-profit provider of services for individuals with autism, developmental disabilities, physical disabilities and other special needs.

“This is really just kind of the next step in what we began a few months ago, which is… real-time marketing, tied to real-time news and pop culture events in which our consumers are engaged,” says Bev Thorne, chief marketing officer at Century 21.

In addition, because “Thanksgiving is centered around the home,” Thorne says Century 21 is marketing to that and packaging that with Century 21, while seeking to put its agents on consumers’ minds with the Tryptophan Slow Jam.

Previous real-time marketing efforts from Century 21 include a video series for Halloween called #SlightlyHaunted, which asked, “Thinking of selling your home this Halloween? Your local Century 21 agent is up to the task.” They also had an initiative that invited President Obama and Representative Boehner to meet at the midpoint of their homes during the government shutdown, and a campaign after the birth of the Royal Baby in which Century 21 reached out to new parents William and Kate with an offer to help them find a home for their expanding family, Thorne says.

Tryptophan Slow Jam is for “those in the home market or [who are] influential in the home market,” Thorne says, noting Thanksgiving is a time when families gather and “young adults may be talking about a home purchase coming up, or elderly parents may be talking about downsizing.”

In addition to watching and/or downloading Tryptophan Slow Jam, the brand also encouraged consumers to share photos using the hashtag #Tryptophan as they recovered from Thanksgiving dinner on November 28.

“One of the reasons we’re doing this is our research has shown real-time marketing leaves an impression and increases desire to work with a brand,” Thorne says. “We’re looking to work with more consumers and have a bit of fun.”