You know you need virtual tours for your multifamily properties, but you’re just not sure what to do next. In one corner, there are professional virtual tour cameras which are expensive and complicated. And you may not even be certain you or your team will have the bandwidth to figure out all its ins and outs.

In the other corner, you have smartphone video tours and virtual tour camera apps. True, those seem easy, but are they professional enough or will you end up with a glorified TikTok video?

It’s true when you’re comparing do-it-yourself smartphone video tours to professional tours with virtual tour cameras, there’s quite a bit to think about. So, to help give some guidance, here are a few key aspects you should consider:

  • Look at your resources
  • Consider accessibility and compliance
  • Think about the tour’s overall impact

Look at Your Resources

With professional virtual tour cameras, you can create 360 tours, 3D tours, and incorporate professional photos. There is polished, perfect, dynamic and rich media available.

For example, buying a high-quality professional 360 camera for real estate can give you a very professional 360 tour for your website homepage. Or investing in a Matterport camera can assist with high quality 3D photos and 3D virtual tours. Both can be edited to show only the best parts of the property. And that doesn’t come cheap. Virtual tour camera equipment is an investment – even if you don’t go with the best 360 camera for virtual tours. Or, if you don’t want to buy a virtual tour camera and take the time to train your team on how to use it, you could hire a team to it for you such as Realync Studios.

When you see 3D tours or even professional photography of multifamily communities, it’s of a model or floorplan. That’s why it’s important to pair video tours with 3D tours so prospective renters get a real look into each available aparmtnet. In the end, even if you go with middle-of-the-road versions rather than the best virtual tour cameras or services, shooting these types of virtual tours is often cost-prohibitive and time prohibitive. While these are great experiences, you should combine 3D tour creators with a DIY smartphone video tour.

Consider Accessibility and Compliance

The caveat with DIY smart phone video tours is that you need to make sure you have an actual virtual tour app on your smartphone. By trying to record natively on the phone and then sending it to someone, isn’t going to be the best experience for you or your prospect. Not to mention, your virtual tour software platform should be compliant with Fair Housing Act and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). Nor will a virtual tour camera automatically ensure your video is Fair Housing WCAG compliant – even the best camera for virtual tours can’t guarantee that.

Additionally, if you google “how to make a virtual tour with android” and pull out your phone and shoot, you have other issues. You can’t edit or add music. It isn’t cloud based. It’s much harder to send to something and it’s harder to stick within the branding guidelines of the overall property. While a smart phone video tour can be easier on your budget, you should still have an app – a platform that is built for real estate multifamily tours.

Check out how to give a personalized apartment tour via video

Think About the Tour’s Overall Impact

When a virtual tour is cloud-based and compliant, it’s easy to package up and send to a prospect. 360 virtual tour software and tours shot with a virtual tour camera don’t always have that—although Realync does. When you combine a DIY smartphone video tour with a virtual tour platform designed for multifamily like Realync, you have a powerful tool that can personalize each video for each individual prospect quickly and easily.

3D and 360 video tours are great video tours and it’s why we added it to our suite of virtual touring options, so be cautious when vetting multiple tools. All you need is an all-in-one. From unit specific videos to amenities that will resonate with a specific prospect, Fair Housing and WCAG compliant, and the training provided, Realync offers a complete package. A complete package accessible from a smartphone – which is much more than any professional virtual tour camera can provide. There’s really no comparison.

Get In Touch!

Close more leases, market more effectively, engage with residents and, as always, keep it real. Do you have a question or suggestion? Or want to learn more about what you read? Email us at contact@realync.com. We’d love to hear from you!