Virtual tour creators became popular last year. Now, with markets starting to open back up and leasing teams welcome back in-person tours, many teams are thinking it may be time to say goodbye to their virtual tour software and virtual leasing solutions. It is, after all, almost budget season. So should leasing teams think about dropping their virtual tour creator to make room in their budget for other needs?
Letting go of a virtual tour creator and reverting to only offering in-person could not be a more significant mistake. Here’s why.
Consumer Desire and Demand Have Changed
Even before 2020 brought in person touring options to a grinding halt, today’s consumers were starting to get a taste for the virtual tour world. Then, once virtual became the only option, multifamily companies upped their virtual game, looking for and offering the best virtual tour creators they could find. And prospects responded.
In fact, 2 out of 3 people want more virtual tours!
If your leasing team automatically assumes that opening in-person tours again means going back to the way things were, that is absolutely not the case. Virtual tour creators need to still be a part of your budget because teams need to stay or get equipped to connect with prospects and residents. And they want options. That includes live video tours, prerecorded video tours, in-person or self-guided tours, 3D virtual tours, or 360 virtual tours. Teams should be able to offer 100% virtual, 100% in-person, or anything in between to stand out and meet the needs of today’s prospects.
The Market is Also Changing
As consumer sentiment towards virtual touring and virtual leasing grows, the market opportunities for those areas are also growing. So, when we say 100% virtual, 100% in-person, and everything in between—It’s no longer just a nice-to-have, it’s a must-have. That means having a virtual tour creator that works for your property.
Multifamily real estate touring basically involves self-guided, in-person, or virtual – either live or prerecorded. And if you don’t have those options available, your competition down the street likely does.
Multifamily is moving into a more e-commerce model than ever before. Consumers are equipped with information, and they can whatever they want when they want.
For most leasing teams, now more than ever, they get one shot to land their lead, ensuring they capture their lead’s attention. That means knowing how to create a virtual tour and how to make it personalized to specific prospects. If leasing teams don’t have all touring options in their toolbelt, they can miss out on converting a lead to a lease? You’re definitely doing yourself a disservice in the long run if you don’t offer multiple touring options.
Virtual Leasing is Cost-Effective
The above clearly demonstrates how prospects want a virtual touring option and the market is shifting that way as well. However, to make it fit into today’s ever-tightening real estate marketing, sales, or operations budgets, it needs to be cost-effective.
Video can be a ballooning budget item and cost has to fit in the budget. If done the right way, that is certainly not a problem. If you decide to hire a professional videography crew and create a single, perfectly polished piece, it’s going to be expensive. Or, you could budget for a virtual tour creator for real estate like Realync.
With the Realync platform, teams continue to produce hundreds of personalized videos for their prospective and current residents. Their videos aren’t only being used for just marketing either, but are actively getting leases signed.
Virtual tour creators are not something to be left out of your 2022 budget. Communities that leverage virtual touring platforms will find it to be a powerful, low-cost weapon and accelerate leasing numbers.
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!
