We recently interviewed 3 real estate industry leaders from across the U.S. who share a common belief, that video sells real estate – pandemic or not. Here’s what the pros tell us…
Brian C. Smith
"Video has become increasingly important in marketing real estate, and video presentations are all the more valuable due to the current COVID 19 Pandemic. We all know we’re living in an online world. Online platforms allow us to view hundreds of images, particularly through video. Videos are popular because they’re now very short and concise, with great images. They can be viewed any time, from anywhere, and are especially necessary and impactful in our current time of quarantine because we can’t travel, meet people in-person or shop locally. The online world just grew, and along with it, the importance of video in marketing.", says Brian C. Smith, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices EWM Realty, Miami, Florida.
900 Biscayne Blvd PH6207- Miami, FL
Brian C. Smith focuses on luxury residences in Edgewater and Miami Beach. He explained that real estate agents, up to now, have relied heavily on showings or open houses in marketing their listings. Surprisingly, most real estate listings lack professional photos, professional videos, 3D virtual tours, and floorplans. Brian says, "Sellers should work with Realtors who understand the power of video marketing, especially considering the high number of non-local and foreign buyers active in South Florida."
Ryan O’Neill
"COVID-19 has impacted every facet of life and it’s sent shockwaves through the U.S. real estate market, but video allows us to keep selling homes. We can bring buyers and sellers together very effectively through video – and that’s feasible 24/7. Our team of 150 agents relies heavily on video marketing and we’ve found that both buyers and sellers prefer video." says, Ryan O’Neill of the Minnesota Real Estate Team, RE/MAX Advantage Plus
This video of a beautiful lakefront property was recently produced for Minnesota Real Estate Team, RE/MAX Advantage Plus.
Ryan’s team uses high quality video and virtual tours as a vital facet in marketing and the results are there. Minnesota Real Estate Team, RE/MAX Advantage Plus sells more real estate than any other agency in Minnesota.
Josh Lunetta
"In most U.S. markets, buyers are unable to physically travel to and tour a property in person due to COVID-19 travel restrictions and local regulations that restrict visitors", says Josh Lunetta of Dualuna Films
Josh Lunetta has mastered the art of producing edgy, riveting, and attention-grabbing real estate videos. One look at his videos shows the power a video has to evoke emotions and educate buyers on a property. The key to Josh’s success is a focus on the attributes of the home that create a welcoming and expressive experience for viewers and potential buyers. He captures both wide angles and close-up details in a video, paired with a musical track that matches the tone of the house’s design to attract a wide array of potential buyers. This also demonstrates the capability of the listing agent to understand the buyer market and the potential clientele.
Here’s a prime example with silky smooth pans, textbook cuts, and music that will engage home buyers’ senses. Step into the Penthouse – Monaco through the video below.
The Penthouse – Monaco
Josh has the following insights to share:
A well-made real estate video can generate significant results. Dualuna created a video for a $6M home in Venice, CA which was viewed by an investor in the UK via promoted Facebook content. The investor made an offer on the home and the sale closed just weeks later. A video is often used as another arrow in the marketing quiver of a successful agent, and with creative recuts of varying lengths and subject matter, a single video can be used to market on a variety of media platforms to get the most eyeballs on a property where photos may not be enough to seal the deal.
The value of a real estate video comes from what the viewer can see. A standard photo shoot may include 15-25 photos of various rooms and aspects of the property. A video, on the other hand, is shot in 24 frames per second, meaning 24 individual photos making up a second of video content. This would mean a typical two-minute video will have 2,880 photos in two minutes where a buyer can be awed by the beauty of a home.
2701 Via Elevado- Playa Del Rey, CA
Josh also suggests the following tips when creating an impactful real estate video:
- Have the house "photo ready." This typically means a clean and tidy house with proper staging included. If the home is owner occupied, it’s best to put away most personal objects and photos as well.
- You can shoot at all times of the day for various looks, but I find the best shoot time to be between 10:30 am and 1:30 pm. This will typically allow the sun to appear on both sides of the house over that 3-hour time frame to give you the best look for your property. If you’d like to include a "Twilight Shoot," generally 30 minutes before sunset is when you’d want to start to capture that "Golden Hour" look with golden, red, and purple skies.
- Show off the size of the space with wide angle lenses. You can create virtual walk-throughs of a home on a phone or a standard DSLR, but to really capture the size and scope of your properties you’ll want the viewer to be able to see as much as possible with the use of a lens in the 12mm – 24mm range. Typical photo aspect ratios are 3:2, but standard video content is 16:9, meaning your video will have a bit more cut off from the top and bottom. This isn’t a problem with a wide lens though, so this is an important one to keep in mind.
- Music is important. Finding a great song (that you have rights to use) will help propel your video amongst viewers. Low quality music will dim the potential of your video but using the latest Top 40 song will get your video pulled from YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and other media channels. There are great resources such as Artlist.io and PremiumBeat.com that offer high quality music that can match the vibe you’re trying to create in your video.
- Have a strategy for how the video will unfold. The video can be a general tour of the home, or you can create a curated experience with strategic visual highlights in the order you think are most intriguing. I love leaving the backyard as a sort of grand finale, but this can change based on if you’re including a twilight shoot or perhaps shots of the neighboring area.
- Market the video strategically with a few different versions of the video. After creating a typical 2 to 2.5-minute video for a property, I always do a 1-minute cutdown of the piece for Instagram and other social channels. Smaller "vignette videos" have become popular as well, which are quick 5-15 second visual glimpses into the home. This gives your video some legs beyond the initial posting of the video as content that can last a number of weeks with various unique postings.
The real estate video is a tool that goes beyond standard marketing photos to give a particular feel and vibe to your home than can reach viewers at home and abroad.
Brian Smith
Brian is a former Navy Officer who has moved over 15 times, so he understands home buying! In 2010 Brian settled in Miami. He has a keen understanding of the emotions tied to finding a residence. He is dedicated to making your dreams reality. Whether you’re considering a primary home, vacation home, or investment property purchase, Brian is prepared to guide and assist you. Brian has an engineering degree and an MBA in marketing, so he has the ideal skill set to execute a winning process for your real estate project, whether you’re buying or selling property. When Brian is not selling real estate, he enjoys family time, cooking, dancing to Latin music, golfing, or riding his ElliptiGO, Outdoor Elliptical and he regularly bicycles through the Venetian Islands and South Beach. Brian volunteers at Camillus House, a local organization providing humanitarian services to indigent and homeless people in Miami.
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices EWM Realty- Brian C. Smith, PA | 419 W 41 Street, Miami, FL 33140
Ryan O’Neill
The Minnesota Real Estate Team of RE/MAX Advantage Plus was founded by Ryan O’Neill in 2005. The team continues to be the #1 Selling Real Estate Team in Minnesota (for any real estate company) every year from 2006 through today. In 2019, the team closed over 1825 transactions and 525 million in sales. With over 150 licensed Realtors and team members all over the Twin Cities area, the team takes pride in helping buyers and sellers in all areas of Minnesota and Western Wisconsin (and all price points.) And they work with clients at his or her own individual pace and on his or her own individual timeline(s). The team’s goal is always to make the buying and selling experience an outstanding one for each client. In addition, they always want to produce the best results for each of their valued buyers and sellers. Each month The MN Real Estate Team provides free monthly seminars regarding many aspects of real estate: the first-time home buying process, investment property, etc.
In addition, they also host two weekly real estate radio shows: Minnesota Home Talk on ESPN, AM 1500 and The Minnesota Real Estate Show on Twin Cities News Talk AM 1130. Please don’t hesitate to visit www.MnRealEstateTeam.com for any and all of your real estate needs. Call 952-649-1456 or email Ryan@MnRealEstateTeam.com. The #1 Selling Real Estate Team in Minnesota is here to work for you.
Josh Lunetta
Dualuna Films is an innovative video production company that seeks to create cinematic content for brands and real estate projects across the country. Specializing in Brand conscious online marketing for a wide range of companies and projects, Dualuna brings unique style, speed, and unparalleled work ethic to the creative process. Founded in 2017 in Santa Monica, CA, Dualuna has worked with a variety of companies and brands to produce atypical content that breaks the mold.