I had a conversation with a photographer that relocated to Ft. Lauderdale, FL from the Boston area. She is considering being an OnlinePropertyShowcase™ Authorized Photographer. She told me that when she was house hunting she saw a home that had terrible photos of the interior and she had less than zero interest in the home. Everytime she did a search the home would pop up in the search results and again, she would click away from the listing and move on to the next.
One day whe was with her buyer's agent and after they finished a walk-though of a home he suggested that she look at another home a few doors down - she tool one look at the front of the house and told the agent that she wasn't interested because she didn't like the inside. I guess he applied a bit of pressure because they did go in a and she was in for the surprise of her life - she absolutlely LOVED the inside, so much so whe decided to purchase the home.
Now here's the kicker, she was ready, willing, and able to purchase that home SIX MONTHS earlier and the original listing price (it was afterall in her search criteria), but by the time she saw the house in person, its price had been lowered by $100,000.
So that homeowner lost $100,000 plus six months of carrying costs and of course the agent lost the commission and whatever marketing dollars they spent during that time. How effective is that?
I believe that the real estate industry is about to undergo a fundamental change. With nearly 90% of all home buyers using the internet as their primary source of information to locate a new home, the concept of curb appeal takes on an entirely new dimension. Instead of just having an immaculate front yard to impress people as they come to visit the home, the online presentation of the home must be an immediate slam-dunk. Agents must commit to budgeting 1/10% to 2/10% for PROFESSINAL staging and photography for an effective online presentation be it a slide-show, streaming video presentation, 'virtual tour', MLS photo gallery, or any other medium. Just as everything else in media: CONTENT IS KING
Jay Groccia, Principal Photographer
OnSite Studios™
OnlinePropertyShowcase™
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