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The Future Of Real Estate Video

All of us often wonder what the future holds for various technologies. Those that morph and adapt can survive - the rest will fall by the wayside. Real estate video in particular has unique needs that aren't being realized and forms the future of this niche medium.

Real Estate Video Needs To Expand Outside Of The Flash Video Player

Think about how you are receiving information today from a real estate video. The message is only contained in the video itself. If a site visitor chooses not to watch the video, you gain zero value from the player itself.

The future of real estate video lies in the ability of the flash video container to become of the overall message delivery. A video could then serve as the means of delivering a variety of content about the listing, about the community, or about local services that an agent ("YOU!") can provide. All of this can be delivered to a distant site and made available to the visitor whether or not they choose to view the video.

Real Estate Video Will Become Aware Geographically

If all real estate is local, the future of real estate videos means that a video has to not only know where the content is that is being viewed but also what is geographically close to the video. real estate video can easily become a true aggregator of local content because it knows what's around it (other listings, community information, local businesses, etc.).

The real estate video of the future will have common upload mechanisms that hared be shared by a given community. The content will then be syndicated and have value added by other local neighbors, businesses, local leagues, and civic organizations.

A more detailed view into what's coming: Local and Community-based Real Estate Video and GeoTargeted Real Estate Content Library

Real Estate Video Will Become Contextually Relevant Once Discovered

Your real estate video widgets will also become aware of how the site visitor discovered the widget. The widget then will become an way for brokers and agents to provide contextually relevant information based on the context of what the viewer is looking for. A properly built widget system of the future will even be able to recommend content that might be more correct for a given user.

A more detailed view into what's coming: Content Discoverability and Local Neighborhood Video

Real Estate Video Will Become Far More Personalized And At The Same Time More Organizational

The design and branding of widgets will increase in importance. Widgets branded for a video upload site or a videographer will no longer meet the needs of organizations.

As the number of videos within a real estate organization grows, the tools to manage video content will become more enterprise oriented. Today, most sites upload videos into a very public video channel which when packed with more than a few videos is difficult to manage. Organizations will increase their demand for videos that remain accessible only when the organization decides to make them public or accessible to only a subset of people.

A more detailed view into what's coming: Uploading Real Estate Videos Into Listings and Organizational Widgets (see RAMB's branded video widgets)

The example links are only what is happening in each of these areas. There is still much more work to do and a lot of companies are trying to add to the collective body of future progress. Please share any thoughts that you may have as to the future of real estate video in the comments.

Tony

Tony Grey is a software developer and online media specialist working for a real estate video site that builds cutting edge real estate video and content solutions in multiple languages for use in real estate websites and operates multimedia-enabled websites for real estate brokers and associations. He just launched an Real Estate Educational Media Library website which is a collaborative online real estate education site between MediaDev, S.A. and the U.S. National Association Of REALTORS®. He also is focused on bringing a set of multimedia programming interfaces (APIs) to website developers through his online multimedia and marketing platform site.

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Posted by A. Grey | Vidlisting.com| Real Estate Video Mentor on 03/27/2009 06:06 PM

Comments (41)

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41 Comments on The Future Of Real Estate Video

JAN

Great stuff Tony. It took about a cup and a half of coffee for me to get my head around it this morning. I stuck with it and after following the links liked what I saw. This really could be great especially after done for some time and the group of video library grows.

Great post. I see video replacing the slideshow and panoramic tours especially now with the affordability of HD and improved quality in players. Tour companies will need to get on top of this now and begin offering the service at reasonable prices to local areas through a network of videographers. Price still remains an issue with many videographers charging prices which are not in a range that makes the service worthwhile.

For the do-it-yourselfers, education and training is going to be very important. Editing can be a chore. If done incorrectly, one can actually do more damage than good with advertising. It has to be an end-product which is informative, attractive, and somewhat entertaining to retain attention. The bottom-line is that the end product must serve the purpose of wanting the viewer to want to take action. That action could be a phone call, a showing, an email, forward it to someone else, etc. It is not enough just to have videos on YouTube which is the "angle" we see now. For example, in understanding viewer behaviors online we know that the average viewing time is 3 minutes and the 2 hotspots in video online is the first and last 30 seconds. Therefore, those 2 places in the production are extremely important to create content which entices the viewer to want to take action.

It will be interesting on how it plays out over the next few years in the industry.

Herb: Thank you for taking the time to dig in and grasp where the industry will be going in the near future. We've only taken baby steps at this point. We need to break away from the youtube model for online videos and get to a model which really supports the business needs of the agent, broker, or association.

BW: I always enjoy seeing your comments. let me know when you have a website online. I'll subscribe...

Tony

JAN

Hi Tony,

I am impressed and can definitely see this concept advancing and moving the industry in a positive direction we can use. Thank you for taking the time to post this information - I can't wait to see it take shape. This is definitely a direction and change to look forward to!

JAN

I am having a hard time wrapping my mind around this one. So many properties wouldn't warrant video. I guess the good part is the ability to sell the neighborhood. It is going to have to be inexpensive in the long run.

Gina: Thank you so much for your kind comments and for joining as a member over on our real estate video site. This is just the beginning of the ride. We cant wait for it to take shape either :) There's a lot left to do but things are coming together now into a coherent real estate video story..

Randy: I'd say that the properties that dont warrant a video are the same ones that can sell with little or no marketing anyway. I have several properties that get enquiries monthly and aren't even for sale. Will I use a video to sell those? Of course not.

We are a bit different from most real estate video vendors in that we frame our conversation around the business benefits rather than broad platitudes like "you'll stand out" or any sort of innate technical superiority of the medium. Videos have several tangible business advantages for you in that you can maintain your own branding regardless of where your video appears, use the same portable video content on & off-line, markets your services & local area as part of a property listing, and most importantly (as a selling agent) you can have a direct say in the information that a prospective buyer receives about a property from their agent. What agent or properties wouldn't warrant those? :)

Agree about the inexpensive part especially for professionally produced video... but results oriented pricing can also be viewed as inexpensive as well. we were the first company to introduce performance based pricing for professionally filmed video that cost shifts the fees from production to marketing success (a sliding scale few cents per video view during the first three months). Alternatively, filming and editing yourself can save money if you have spare time.

Thanks for sharing your opinion. You are representaive of the measuring stick that we'll use to see how we are doing in the future. :)

Tony

MAR

Great article Tony...I know you wrote it back in January but its as relevant as ever :)

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4668112n

Good stuff Tony. Video is definitely something that Realtors have not fully incorporated into their toolbox

I've been starting to explore this a little and I do think it's going to add a whole other level to real estate marketing, like localism.com on steroids. I'm going to check out the links next!

Great post - And with the mass distribution sites you can push your video out and catch a lot of eyeballs quickly.

There already is a newer format that could replace or just enhance flash. I for the life of me cant remember what site it is but you can wrap video from a variety of sources, add photos, pdfs, any sort of document etc all from one location. Its like the ultimate virtual tour. The guy who "invented it" or whatever probably didnt even think it would work for RE but it could. Sorry brains fried long day.

hey Tony, nothing less than brilliant...is there a summer camp for this :-) I'd benefit from hands-on training! Missed you (& the best of video) at REtech South, but did pick up on a lot more buzzing about video. Unending innovation...I need to get my little town on the map and get plugged in. I'm going to visit your links and STUDY this a bit. Thanks for sharing this. You organize and explain it all so very well. Cheers!

Hi Tony~ I would love to be able to do some great videos of most of my properties, but this stuff is over my head right now.....

I have gone to 100% video in my blog, and 100% video for my tours. (I am in the investment market, so I do not need to be as polished as someone selling higher end homes)

If you would like to get started with video on the cheap, and play around with the concept, I recommend buying one of the "Flip" video cameras (under $200), and just take some shoots of your day, your property, and what you have to offer. This will allow prospects to get to know you better.

Once you get more comfortable, and as your business grows, utilize a great vendor like Vidlisting.com here to take it to the next level!

I am excited to see the technology grow, and It is great to see guys like Mr. Grey making things happen!

Good luck everyone.

Harrison Painter

Harrison Painter - Gladiator Real Estate Investments

Just when I get comfortable with the latest technology, they spring something new on me, lol. I'm just a beginner in the video end of our business. Looks like I'd better get ready to step up my game!

Video is definitely coming, but the question is how do we raise the quality and truly offer a hig quality video without breaking the bank

Very intriguing information. I'm sure video will play a huge part in the future of real estate

The quality and inexperienced comments are very common and understandable. This is a struggle I see many Realtors face. We are all so worried about the quality of our marketing, but to be honest, most of the time is is endless dribble that consumers hate anyway.

Does this sound familiar? "Honest agent who will work in your best interest"

To quote a line from the 1980's, "Gag me with a spoon!" LOL

We try to be so professional, and so corporate, that we forget the people do not really care so much about that. They want to know they are working with a real person that they can relate to, not some fancy broker in an expensive suite here to take all of their equity in commission. (and that is the way many consumers actually feel about us)

So it does not matter if you start out with some bad video, trust me, you will. (I am experimenting on my blog now, and some reviews are great, and some are like "What?") LOL

Instead of being worried about it and sitting on the sidelines, get out there and make it happen!!!!!!

I promise you with every bone in my body that you will not regret it, and it will increase your business!

Have a Profitable Day Everyone!

Harrison Painter

Definitely looking to incorporate more video in the business

I understand videos important though I apparently have a lot of homework to do and need to take a close look at your links.

MAR

I think Video gives you an edge in todays market. I need to get this going!

Tony - I really like the idea of neighborhood/community videos to give buyers a sense of place. For individual properties I like the video better than the slide shows or the panoramic shots that are stitched together. Thanks for the post.

Tony, sometimes we need to sell the location as well as the house. Video is a great tool to do borh. this way clients from out of town will at least have an idea of what the neighborhood looks like. This is the new tool for real estate agents. Just like the internet is. You need to be on the cutting edge or you will be left bhind. Thanks again!

Tony,

Here is where I see the future of real estate video going.

However, the future I see is:

Agents capturing the raw un-edited clips
Agents upload to a third party editing and syndicating service
Video Channels that deliver specific content based on the listing that delivers the traffic to the channel i.e. a Grand Ledge listing would have a channel link that serves up Grand Ledge specific video options etc.
Low price so that every property can be included in the agents business model.

I personally doubt that the $250 professional real estate videographer will in the future find much of a market. Agents will want a video on every listing and a $200 - $250 price point per video for a 100k listing is just too steep.

Our service as you know is 3rd party real estate video editing and our agent backend includes "blog & Craigslist" code. So when an agent initially uploads the raw un-edited video clips to us they fill out some basic property info.. This builds a listing around that property video. We then generate "blog code" for the agent to use. Here is an example of the blog code output http://povvideotours.com/wordpress/

The agent simply logs in and copy/pastes that code into their blog or craigslist etc. and enjoys all the traffic and the SEO(Search Engine Optimization) benefits that go with having all those static listings out there on the web.

The blog code though much like the widgets you speak of is built around the benefits that video can provide, and if you take a look at the sample http://povvideotours.com/wordpress/ you will see that each has a link to the agents video channel.

The video channel opens up a whole world of opportunity for the agent and leverages the power of a good listing to draw traffic in to that agents content....... firstly by capturing the buyer for 3-5 minutes with a listing video. Then that same blog code/listing offers the buyer a video channel option which further serves up even more custom video content from that agent. Much like what you spoke of in your original post.

But as you indicated this can be pushed even further as we go along and instead of just a general video channel the video channel link could instead serve up videos specifically centered around that listing. So for instance the listing that has a property video tour is in Grand Ledge Michigan then the additional option of the video channel on that listing when clicked would serve up a community tour of Grand Ledge and other local choices such as an interview with a local Grand Ledge Mortgage person or a local Grand Ledge Parks tour etc. All could be custom delivered in that channel! We aren't far from that for sure.

A video channel can include things like this and a whole lot more:

community tours
local interviews
a video with local market statistics etc.
property videos and the list goes on an on

Mark Passerby, HDhat.com

Jeff: wowsa...what can i say when I wake up to a featured post. thanks!

Winston: agreed. There are some a number challenges with video for organizations but a lot of smart people out there working to solve them. Be sure to make your thoughts and feedback known.

Chris: Let me know if you have any questions.

Sharon: Agree. Lots of things are in the works so that you push all sorts of content out to the more qualified, smaller set of folks rather than just pushing content out to everyone.

Shane: Lots of new front end web technologies exist and others are on the horizon. While some of these technologies may survive; others won't. What's good for real esate is that the basics don't change. Systems still needs to be able to know what content to push out to any receiving site regardless of what technology is being used. :) We're focusing on a idea that we call "self-awareness" that works with just about any browser based technology.

Mara: I'm still your biggest fan. you are working to think through how to actually apply new technologies as a user like few others are. thanks for your continued support and openness to new ideas.

Tony

Vickie: you've taken the first big step by reading and learning more. Lots of people far smarter than I are working to solve different parts of how to make real estate video easier and more effective. I'm just amazed at what's being done sometimes.

Harrison: Thanks for the kind words and the confidence in video. I'll just add a bit to your excellent comments and talk a bit about the two schools of thought around pricing right now.

The first is that video is like any other advertising medium and success should be measured just as advertising is. This means that one should work to optimize their video to drive the most views and, more importantly, leads. Measurements and statistics are a key part of this first school of thought. Like other advertising, success is measured by the number of qualified leads that are generated.

The second school of thought around pricing believes that online real estate video is somehow so special that measurement of results around the property video isn't required. Success is measured on the number of listings that an agent gets simply because they are using video.

I'll leave the value judgements around each school of thought to others.

Elizabeth: Thanks for stopping by. Drive to succeed is a good indicator of future success and you've certainly got that. :)

Kevin: Price is tricky if you think in terms of results. I'm of the thinking that $10 of bad advertising is a waste of $10. Free can be expensive as well if there are no results. Where's the line? To me, it's where the value gained is consistently more than the price paid. I'd love to hear your thoughts...

Roland: Thanks for your comment. you are correct that more people are seeing value from their videos every day. We opened our our international brokerage at the beginning of the year and really see what brings results now - we are writing a success guide for our website that sums up our own first hand experiences.

Don, Christine, and Chuck: Shoot me any questions that you have. We have a growing list of real estate video features that differentiate us from other providers. Among other things, our system eliminates a lot of the tedious administrative things like cutting/pasting into listings and having to move content to/from "networks". You may get some new ideas :)

George: we like video too. We think that its a key part of an overall marketing strategy.

Shawn: I agree. We have and are continuing to work on a set of location based tools to deliver all sorts of content to prospective buyers to meet their informational needs.

Mark: I agree in concept. All of the manual process involved with managing content in channels is the part that i see being different in the future.

"Self awareness" is a key part of what we are working on. We have systems now where content just "knows" where it belongs after being uploaded without cutting/pasting or having to be manually identified. Other content types such as documents, images, etc. are also included in the maching process.

My thinking is that brokerages prefer to stay focused on selling rather than cutting/pasting or otherwise manually managing every item of content that they have.

Tony

I have been reading your post this moring..and I must admit..I am lost in the sauce... I am fascinated by the whole concept of video..and what it can do for my seo... I'll have my 1st cup of coffee and try again.. :)

Interesting information. You are obviously a specialist on the subject. Like all technology, it is difficult to begin with and then as it becomes available to the average user, it becomes more usable and easier to understand. Most agents I know want to be able to manage it simply and earn the benefits! Thanks.

I'm interested in which camcorder type is going to be the best to use. Will it be a full blown camcorder or will it be a flip mini?

I was going to ask where to get training but you did just that. The links are awesome and you are a generous guy.

I have been using Windows Movie Maker for over a year and still seem to be getting a great response from it. Upload to YouTube and Realtor.com as well as have it embed on my website... I am looking for new video tools right now - ran into a cool site: Animoto - but not sure what I think about the videos yet... thanks for the info!

Konnie: totally understand. I'm not just talking about today's technology but also how it is going to look in the future (most of what is described is already available to Vidlisting.com members). This can be confusing but I'm always available for questions.

Bruce & Mary: Thanks for the kind words. There was a time when virtual tours where confusing as well as expensive. Then lots of smart guys like Jeff Turner sat down and figured ways to make them easy to use and economical. That same transition is happening now with video.

Denise: Great question. My advice is if you are just starting, use whatever camera is available or fits your budget. As you gain experience and become more involved in real estate videography, you'll know what best suits your needs.

Joe: Vidlisting runs both online and on-site training courses. We also speak at conferences and events. If you have a group that is interested, feel free to contact me at tony@vidlisting.com. You'll think about the possibilities with video in a whole new way.

Nicky: Good for you! Thats a great way to start!

Tony

Very interesting...we were just talking about doing videos for all of our listings and having a library video. I am forwarding this post to my manager.

Rebecca: thanks for your interest. Imagine a video library accessible in your search results on your website or relevant geographic videos available as part of the video content being watched...wherever it located. We've come a long way from a cool looking flash video player, haven't we? :)

Tony

PS - i'd be more than happy to participate in a call if you'd like.

Video. Once you get your feet wet, it's easy. So many folks are saying they need to get on board but not sure why they don't? It's not going to be big, it already is and customers demand real narrated live tours and community video posts as they surf the net.

This appears to be a very informative blog.....with this said, I will read it again later that's for sure when I have more time.

Portsmouth NH Real Estate

Harrison: It's true. The quality of the video really doesn't matter much. It's not necessary to be professional or "corporate". Just be real. That's why I take my MLS photos with my cell phone as I'm driving by the house. They don't need to be professional or corporate - just "real'. It doesn't matter that they're blurry or crooked or that the rearview mirror and trash can got caught in the corner of the frame. It's that "real, raw" look that will appeal to buyers and help sell my properties.

THIS is why Realtors have the reputation they have. Sellers are paying a 'professional and corporate' commission aren't they? To give them anything less is doing a disservice to your sellers and to yourself.

I wish we had Vidlisting available here on ActiveRain. It's an awesome product and would fit really well with our other features....

Rich,

That is a great recommendation! AR and Vidlisting, did you hear that? Could a strategic partnership be in the works?

Sabrina,

You are missing my point and attacking without merit. MLS photos do need to be professional, I never said otherwise.

When I am speaking of video, I am talking more about blog video, basic property tours, and other fun promotional stuff.

My blog has been doing very well, and it is far from a polished production.

I credit a guy named Gary Vaynerchuk (If you go to his website, make sure your kids are out of the room, as he tends to be a little colorful at times) for pushing me to get started on video sooner. I was worried about my production skills, a nicer camera, a green screen, how much it would cost, blah, blah.......but he simply told me to get off my butt and TAKE ACTION! The guy took his wine business from $3 million a year, to $20 million in a few short years, all with armature video.

The research has already been done, people want to see things that are real, not overproduced. While I respect your opinion, the people that are actually taking action, and having success in business, are the people I am listening to.

A simple look at my website will tell you we are professional, and a company that our clients are proud to work with >>> GoGladiator!

Harrison Painter

APR

Denise,

Here are some samples and the brand of camera used:

http://www.hdhathomes.com/tours/195_tourb.html this was shot with a Sanyo Xacti HD1010 The Xacti HD1010 is very simple to use out of the box and relatively inexpensive. Be sure to order any of these cameras from a recognized vendor and read the vendors reviews. Most of the inexpensive versions of these higher end video cameras are what are called "Gray Market". Meaning that you will pay less but they won't have a U.S. Warranty so I suggest a vendor like B&H photo. you can see this camera at http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/569230-REG/Sanyo_VPC_HD1010BK_Xacti_VPC_HD1010_Camcorder_Black_.html you will need to order it with the .7x wide angle lens
FILE: Camera generates a .mp4 file
http://tours.povvideotours.com/tours/137_tourb.html this was shot with our companies customized camera. It is an Aiptek A-HD+ with a wide angle lens forced to fit i.e. the Aiptek is not setup to accept a wide angle so we "modify" it. We have about 150 of these sold now and never a problem with any....it is a great camera. One button simple with very few settings to adjust or mess up. It doesn't have built in stabilization. Unlike much of the footage I edit from higher end cameras this camera seems to lose focus very seldom and does fantastic in lowlight. All of the videos in this blog were filmed with this camera as well http://lansinghomesforsale.wordpress.com/ you can see the kit here http://www.hdhat.com/index.php/camerakit
FILE: Camera generates a .mov file
http://www.hdhathomes.com/tours/134_tourb.html this was shot with Canon Vixia HF10 and was the agents first try with it so he had relatively few changes from what came out of the box. I actually saw this camera on Sale yesterday at Best Buy for $699 plus you will need a wide angle lens.
FILE: Camera generates .mts files which can be a bit less friendly than the .mp4 of the Xacti and .mov of the A-HD+

*All of the above samples are playing at the same bitrate 500kbs and encoded and edited with the same equipment.

We also have a bunch of JVC real estate videos on our site but I don't recommend any of them. The JVC's film in a proprietary format .mod that needs converted to be edited in most software resulting in lost time and quality.

Mark Passerby, HDhat.com

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