Agent Advice: The Digital Open House – How to Leverage Tech to Showcase Properties
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In recent years, the concept of the open house has transformed dramatically, moving from the traditional walkthroughs to digital showcases that reach buyers far and wide. As technology advances and the real estate market adapts to new norms, virtual open houses have become a key tool in an agent’s arsenal. Here’s a deep dive into how real estate professionals can harness technology to create compelling digital experiences for potential buyers.
Embracing Virtual Tours
360-Degree Virtual Tours: These provide a panoramic view of each room, offering potential buyers the opportunity to explore properties at their own pace. Tools like Matterport allow agents to create high-quality, immersive virtual tours.
Live Video Walkthroughs: Hosting live tours on platforms such as Facebook Live, Instagram, or Zoom gives agents the chance to interact in real-time with potential buyers, answer questions, and highlight key features of the property.
Pre-Recorded Video Tours: For those unable to attend live sessions, a well-produced video tour of the property can be an effective alternative. These videos can include detailed commentary from the agent, providing context and highlighting unique features. Rechat’s video clips feature is also a great way to highlight home features and the recorded clip can be shared right from an agent’s phone to social media, text or email!
Enhancing Engagement
Interactive Floor Plans: Pairing virtual tours with interactive floor plans helps buyers understand the layout and flow of the property. This combination enriches the virtual experience, allowing viewers to click through different rooms as they watch the tour.
Augmented Reality (AR): AR apps can enable potential buyers to visualize changes within the space, such as furniture placement or wall colors, personalizing the viewing experience and helping them connect with the property.
Chat and Q&A Sessions: Integrating live chat or Q&A sessions during or after virtual tours can provide immediate answers to potential buyers’ questions, enhancing engagement and interest.
Success Stories & Best Practices
Highlight Successes: Share stories of successful sales that originated from digital open houses. This not only serves as proof of effectiveness but also provides practical examples of what works well.
Quality Over Quantity: Focus on creating high-quality, engaging content rather than overwhelming viewers with too much information or too many listings at once.
Promotion is Key: Utilize social media, email marketing, and your brokerage’s website to promote upcoming virtual open houses. All promotion is easy to do in Rechat’s Marketing Center, within the Rechat Experience Management Platform. You might also consider targeted ads to reach potential buyers who are actively searching for properties in your area.
Feedback Loop: After hosting a digital open house, gather feedback from attendees to learn what worked and what could be improved. This will help refine your approach and enhance future digital showings.
Looking Ahead
As the real estate industry continues to evolve, leveraging technology to showcase properties will become increasingly important. The digital open house is both a response to immediate challenges and a forward-thinking approach that broadens reach, enhances buyer engagement, and sets the stage for future innovations in property marketing.
In a market where convenience and accessibility are valued more than ever, agents who master the art of the digital open house will stay ahead of the curve and provide exceptional service to both sellers and buyers.
