A lot of Realtors claim to be better at marketing than most of their competitors however, when I browse the MLS I am floored by what a poor job most "experts" do at marketing their properties.
Almost 90% of buyers now use The Internet to find a home. After restricting their search to neighborhood, price range, square footage etc. the next thing they look at is PICTURES! And some of the pictures I see are pretty bad. I would go as far to say that some look like "accidental discharges" (you know...the one where your camera goes off accidentally while pointed at the floor)
Today a lot of us are so focused on texting, 800#'s, and various ways for buyers to reach us instantly. I fear that we are forgetting what motivates buyers to call in the first place. Yes I know that we still get sign calls and by all means we want to answer that call promptly when it comes in. But let's not forget that the largest source of buyers is now The Internet; and on The Internet buyers want to see pictures... a lot of them. If they're bad you run the risk of losing that buyer forever.
When the inventory of homes is as large as it is today it's more important than ever to get the attention of buyers with good photography. I have seen pictures of tables, sofas, fireplaces (and I mean just the fireplace) and even TOILETS! This does nothing to get a buyer to call on a property.
I have dabbled in photography long before I ever knew that Realtors worked on commission, so I guess this might explain my frustration with what I see. With today's cameras it really is not difficult to do a decent job if you just give it a little thought and effort.
I, for one, have ventured on to a more advanced technique called HDR (High Dynamic Range) photography. This is a process that requires no flash for indoor pictures and provides a really nice balance of light; even when shooting very large rooms.
Is anyone else out there is using HDR? I'd love to hear how it's working for you
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