You would have to be living under a rock not to of heard the word “video” 10,000 times this year. EVERYONE is talking about real estate video marketing. I have to admit, I am one of the biggest if not the biggest offender. I even have my own course to help real estate agents use video in their real estate business.
Video changed my business. I went from being a commodity, to unique. For all the times I have told real estate agents “the consumer believes you are a commodity, they can’t tell where one REALTOR® begins and another one ends”, title companies are REALLY a commodity. Call one of your buyers or sellers that closed 6 months ago and ask “do you remember the name of the title company you closed with?” You’ll likely get “honey.. hey babe, what was the name of that title thingie? You remember that insurance thing. What was it? Huh? Yeah I think it started with an F… no, OK. Yeah uh, we can’t remember”.
Commodity
Why? Because title companies really are a commodity. We all have (essentially) the same policies, all around the same cost, and often the policies or escrows are closed by the same people (some of us move around a lot – GUILTY). But video de commoditized me. It set me apart. It differentiated me from my competitors. It can and will do the same for you. As I’ve said before, “For the REALTORS that embrace it, video can get your message across faster and more convincingly than any other medium”.
There are all types of video: talking head, green screen, animation, community, powerpoint, keynote, testimonial, interview, whiteboards, subdivision, visual stories and of course, real estate video tours (just to name a few). Over the last 5 years I’ve shot at least 500 real estate video tours of my clients listings. I’ve shot multi million dollar estates all the way to fixer uppers. The other day a client called and told me she had a new listing in a 55+ community and asked if she should shoot a video. So let’s talk about real estate video tours and whether or not you should create one for your listing.
It Ain’t Enough No More
It used to be “doing video” was good enough. That’s because it was different. That’s not the case anymore. Now everyone has access to not just video but HD video with something as common as a smart phone. While you should be using video in your real estate business it doesn’t mean ALL of your listings should have a video tour – does it?
I use some of the best video equipment around. Full frame Canon DSLR’s, Sennheiser wireless mics, sliders, cranes, glidecam and more – all to bring a property to life. While I can really make a property POP on video, I am limited to what is there. I’m not a miracle worker. Just like some people don’t look good in pictures or videos, some houses don’t either. So should ya or shouldn’t ya make a video for your listing? If you’re thinking “NO” you’d be wrong. At least you would be in my book. Here’s why.
It Starts With An “S”
The point of the video is to educate the consumer, to give them enough information that they want to contact you for a showing or more information, right?. Well, because I know one man’s trash is another man’s treasure, if I was a REALTOR® I would make a video for EVERY one of my listings. Ya know why? It starts with an S and it ends with an O. SEO or Search Engine Optimization. It’s not just consumers that prefer video, it’s search engines as well. According to Forrester Research, videos are 53 times more likely to appear on page 1 of Google than traditional web pages. Remember, YouTube and CISCO have said “90% of all web traffic will be video”.
The more videos you have in your website, all kinds of video, the more chances you have of getting found online. With over 90% of consumers starting their home search online, that’s really the name of the game isn’t it? Leads. It’s easier to generate leads with video than any other medium in part because there is less of it in the real estate space. Most real estate agents, most people, are scared of being on video. They won’t do it, they will get caught up in that self talk, ya know that little voice we all have that tells us “you’re dumb”, “you’re fat” “you don’t know anything”, “you’re competitors are going to laugh at you” which means you can create your unfair share of content – content consumers clearly prefer. Video. I would not just be optimizing for the property address either. If I was a REALTOR® I would be optimizing for the subdivision, community, local landmarks and more. A TON more!
4 Is Better Than 3
If you know how to optimize content like articles and images you can get found online by Google, Yahoo and Bing. But if you know how to optimize video you can get found online not only by Google, Yahoo and Bing but also the world’s 2nd largest search engine, and 3rd largest website - YouTube. Of course, all video is not created the same. Video is just the medium, the delivery method. Video is the needle. It’s not the needle that matters it’s what’s IN the needle. It’s what’s IN your video. People will search for and watch great content but that content has to be created for your ideal client in mind and it should make them smarter. Help them solve a problem or gather information.
OH SNAP!
As if the above reasons are not strong enough motivators to make videos for all your listings, here’s one more, actually there are three. They start with Z. T. and R. They ARE your biggest competitors online. They steal your leads by optimizing the content you create (listings) and drive consumers away from you and to them. And then… (and this is so sad and yet, comical) they sell those leads back to you! Oh SNAP! But, for as much traffic/leads as these three steal from you, they can’t compete with video. While anyone can optimize a RETTS feed from MLS, video requires someone local. Remember when I said it’s all about the best content? Who do you think can create better content. An aggregator like Z.T.R 1,000 miles away or a local real estate agent familiar with the local area, market, schools, employers, proposed legislation, crime, taxes etc. Sure ZTR can create those canned, templated, assembly line videos, ya know the computer sounding voice with the same graphics on 1000’s of other videos but that’s exactly what they are – canned.
You a real estate agent in Phoenix? Fill out the form below to start getting your unfair share. From WordPress to Video, Screen cast to Green Screen I do it all. Let’s talk.
