Real Estate Blog - When Virtual Tours Go Wrong

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When Virtual Tours Go Wrong

Virtual tours are great marketing tools when utilized properly. By properly, I mean when you advise your clients to pick up their trash before the photographer arrives at their home.

Here's a link to a virtual tour I received via one of those awesome e-flyers from a top producing agent in the Austin area. I get about 3 dozen e-flyers a day. I absolutely love 'em! I love them so much I made a rule in MS Outlook to deliver them directly to my trash can :)

What were you thinking?

Posted by Ronnie Bredahl on 08/24/2007 08:47 PM

Comments (29)

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29 Comments on When Virtual Tours Go Wrong

AUG

2007

I subscribe to visual tour and have unlimited tours that I can do, that being said; not all properties are canidates for a visual tour. Sometimes, doing a tour will chase buyers away from the property. This one would have been a good canidate for the tour, but your correct; the owners needed to clean up the place.

The back yard was the best looking photos of the whole tour...

Gary

The outside looked better than the inside. Evidentally the sellers did not get the decludder memo. I have tidied up before I took pictures. It would have been a good idea if agent Chad had done that.

OMG, Ronnie! What was that agent thinking putting that on the internet? The dining room is my favorite. And what responsible photographer (agent) be thinking. Why would you take even one picture for that client? That was funny, but you may have really made a fellow agent mad!!! ; )

Regards,

DavidC

OMG! Is that for real? I thought it was a joke! I wonder what the neighbors would think if they saw the INSIDE of the house.

I really hope that was a joke. When I first saw the outside, I was thinking this is really nice but WHAT happened after you got into the inside. That is terrible. Shame on that agent!!

Ronnie,

Thanks for the post. I can't believe that this tour was posted. Better yet, did the agent tell the sellers to clean it up?

I think the only offers they're going to get from that tour will be quotes from cleaning services. Sometimes you should just say no.

OK, That was hilarious. I feel like I am on candid camera. My 10 year old was looking over my shoulder talking to me and just said "That house is pitiful. At least the outside is nice."

Hello!! Agent Chad should have tidied up??? Agent Chad would be there for a while....

I hope that agent is a rookie. I wouldn't even post photos online of the interior of that home. At least it makes you feel like a good agent when you see things like that.

That is probably the worst tour that I have ever seen!

Oh my Gosh! I can't believe anybody would take those photos...and secondly use them in their marketing campaign. I wonder what the other agents in his office think?

P.S.> Please tell me somebody has called this guy already! :-)

-Keith

RE/MAX Olympic, Manassas VA

www.MyRealtorKeith.com

My guess is the agent will be getting calls from home stagers-this home needs a team of them! Great post

This agent has the #1 team in the Austin area. No joke! He sales tons of homes.

Unfortunately, real estate sales is all about public perception, not about how well you service a client.

Within the industry, the perception can be quit a bit different.

LOL! My Hubby helps with my visual tours. Sometimes he's sent out twice because he refuses to move anything, put the toilet lid down, etc. I would have probably cleaned house before I did the tour.

You can lead a horse to water but you can't make them drink. Applies to dimwit agents also.

AUG

2007

Yes--Chad has the #1 team in Austin Texas! They have alot of buyers agents and sellers agents. I also think the videographer should have made a call to the agent to let him know the state of things--and then there are just some homes that you don't do a virtual tour on and go ahead and pay to have a maid for a morning come in and help. Most of the time its just sellers laziness but sometimes there may be another reason such as an catastropic illness or death in the family.

Some people just aren't very serious when it comes to selling their homes. I can't believe the people let this realtor show those pics.

AUG

2007

Oh man - I actually laughed out loud with those inside tour pictures. Terrible stuff! Thanks for sharing this.

You might be interested in seeing this post of mine:

http://activerain.com/blogsview/178968/Worst-photo-contest

Ronnie - I am bookmarking this. It is going to be a great "what not to show" at my next presentation!

Hey Tara - I am glad to see that you took my suggestion. This is prime stuff for your business. Take care -

AUG

2007

You know that the agent is going to see all the hits on his tour thinking that he has one hot property. Little does he know what's going on.

SEP

2007

I wonder if that house is still available?

-Keith

RE/MAX Olympic, Manassas VA

www.MyRealtorKeith.com

SEP

2007

What a great post and point. Having a virtual tour can definitely hinder as in this case and not help.

SEP

2007

Ronnie that cracked me up, I love the pictures of homes that are still listed in the summer and the ad says hurry won't last and it still has snow in the pictures.

OCT

2007

Here ya go... I posted an awesome Virtual Tour on my website about 2 weeks ago.

Enjoy...

Matthew: This takes the cake..... if you can find it.

OCT

2007

Ronnie:

That is funny. I saw a virtual tour the other day where the pool was green. Ha.

OCT

2007

I was looking at a listing in Tucson recently and the whole family is in the pictures...If by family you mean grandma and two grown sons. They are sitting in front of the TV with TV dinner trays and everything!

APR

2008

Step away from the camera! If you as a REALTOR can't stage a scene, then put down the camera and get a professional to do it. This is comical, but I can't believe that the client was willing to let this fly! My $0.02, Steve

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