Jåtunbakken
How to Market Scandinavian Lifestyle During Tough Times
Strong house price growth
Norway saw dwelling starts plummet to 22,800 units in 2023—a 23.6% year-over-year decline that marked the lowest construction activity in decades. This supply constraint means strong house price growth is expected in 2025 and 2026, but it also means every project carries higher stakes. Developers can’t afford marketing missteps.
Stavanger’s property market is stark: prices surged 12.5% through 2024—far outpacing the national average and even Oslo. But here’s what the headlines miss—behind every percentage point is a company, like Ensign, betting their entire project on how they market unbuilt houses.
We are introducing Jåtunbakken, a residential development in Stavanger where 31 units of family-focused housing met an unexpected challenge: how do you sell Scandinavian lifestyle perfection when people and the market are not at their best?
Norway’s hottest market
When we first heard about this project, the brief seemed straightforward—create a package of marketing content filled with compelling 4K CGIs for a thoughtfully designed project in one of Norway’s hottest markets.
Our team’s first-round package—kitchen close-ups, drone-level hero shots, a flat-chooser interface—landed first on the table. “The first images we deliver determines everything,” explained Dóri, our project lead. “If clients don’t immediately feel that spark of recognition—that our images capture something special—you’re fighting an uphill battle for every revision after that.”
This isn’t just about social media content and well-designed print brochures. Studies of over 140,000 property listings in the US found that interactive solutions boost sales prices by 9% and cut listing times by 31%. In Norway specifically, 67% of home buyers now expect interactive solutions when browsing listings, with properties featuring them receiving 87% more views—a trend that reflects broader international patterns in property marketing.
Nordic aesthetic
Norwegian residential projects carry certain expectations. Buyers anticipate high-quality fixtures and that distinctive Nordic aesthetic that somehow feels both minimal and warmly inviting. Meeting these expectations through digital marketing requires a nuanced understanding of cultural preferences.
There’s definitely a Norwegian aesthetic. “Not necessarily different from Danish or Finnish—it’s more about that broader Scandinavian sensibility. Light wood, clean lines, quality textiles.” This cultural sophistication extends to buyer expectations. Norwegian purchasers, particularly in Stavanger, expect marketing that reflects the actual quality of the final product. No overselling, no unrealistic staging—just honest, beautiful representation of what they’re actually buying.
Looking forward
Norway’s economy is set to recover in 2025, supported by stabilizing interest rates, rising real disposable incomes, and easing inflation. Investment volume in Norway increased by 45% year-over-year, reaching NOK 80 billion in 2024. This recovery, combined with continued housing supply constraints, suggests Norwegian developers will have more resources to invest in marketing this year and next.
Honest marketing and professional execution
Projects like Jåtunbakken demonstrate that success still comes down to fundamentals: understanding your market, respecting your buyers’ intelligence, and delivering marketing content and creative ideas that honestly represent exceptional products. Norwegian developers get this instinctively. They’re not trying to oversell or create artificial urgency. They’re building desirable homes and using digital marketing to help qualified buyers understand exactly what they’re purchasing.
In an industry often criticized for overpromising and underdelivering, the Norwegian approach offers a refreshing alternative: quality products, honest marketing, and professional execution. Whether you’re building in Stavanger or elsewhere, those principles translate.
Within six weeks of launch, 24 of the 31 released apartments were reserved—a remarkable pace that Stavanger agents attribute to “the most immersive launch pack the city has seen.” This success came despite Norway recording dwelling starts at their lowest level in decades.
Project details
