Chasing Property Listings in Naples? — Improve Your Photography & Marketing Instead
As a commercial photographer focusing on real estate photography in Southwest Florida, particularly the Naples / Marco Island area, I sometimes wonder why some real estate agents spend so much energy and resources competing over “for sale” properties in the area. Why? Because it’s backwards thinking.
Most of today’s buyers are finding their properties online. With this in mind, their first impression is based on a photograph, location and price.
Rather than battle someone over attaining a particular property, a real estate agent may benefit more by focusing instead on building a stronger brand than your competition. This means giving your marketing a boost, and a great way to do this is by improving your real estate photography.
Why A Strong Brand Is Important
You might wonder why having a strong brand even matters — after all, it’s all about the properties you’re trying to sell, right? And doesn’t the Naples and Marco Island area pretty much sell itself? Well… not quite.
Getting the contract for a property can be meaningless if you don’t know how to sell it, and you need to be able to market yourself just as much as any particular home. The way to do this is to improve your online presence, which is a major part of your brand.
Your brand involves everything — your logo (if you have one), your website, your marketing materials, your advertising, etc. — and will shape how you’re viewed in the public eye. Having effective marketing will boost your brand and make you more prominent in the community, both online and in the real world.
For instance, if you’re using effective marketing strategies, have strong SEO, and are more visible in your community, chances are potential clients will turn to you before your competition. This puts you in a better position for more clients and sales, rather than fighting hard for a property, getting it, then wondering why you can’t move it because you’ve expended all your energy as the cycle continues.
Build Trust With Potential Buyers
The Southwest Florida real estate marketplace is one that takes a lot of trust — a person or family seeking a new home in Naples will seek an agent who understands their wants and needs and won’t rest until they find the home of their dreams. They need someone they can rely upon during their search for a home, especially if they are completely clueless about how the real estate marketplace works. How you market and portray yourself is a great first step to showing your legitimacy and portraying yourself as someone they want to work with in their hunt for a home.
And since first impressions are so important, consider the “For Sale” signs you see in front yards all around town. What is on almost all of them? A picture of you, the real estate agent who controls the property. Have you ever considered why that is?
Because you want to introduce yourself to your potential clients, and show yourself as someone they would like to have in their corner. You likely chose your very best headshot for the poster, hoping to convey a feeling of confidence. If the headshot is bad, those who pass by and see the sign won’t want to work with you, it’s that simple, and the same goes for your real estate photography.
Get Professional Real Estate Photography
Think about any time you’ve ever looked at an apartment or house online. How is the property being marketed to you? Through pictures. And if the pictures are bad, it’s going to make the property look unattractive.
Since almost everyone begins their housing search online with big real estate sites like Zillow, Realtor.com or Truila you need to make sure the images you put online are doing the property justice and portraying it in the best light. The only way to ensure you are properly showcasing the home is to use professional real estate photography.
Using professional commercial photography can give you an advantage over other agents who take the photos themselves, some even using a cell phone to take the pictures. A professional real estate photographer knows how to dress and light a space to showcase its features, and make even rather mundane rooms look beautiful.
If you want to get a leg up even further on your competition, you can add in virtual tours, virtual staging, twilight photos, property feature videos or even a combonation of any of these features which are gaining popularity in the real estate world. These features will allow people to “tour” the property online from the comfort of their own home, giving them an idea of what it will look like inside and out when they come to see it in person.
When you’re ready to improve your online presence and marketing with some professional real estate photography in Southwest Florida, seek out the services of Jon Kreider at Sun Services SW. A commercial photographer servicing the Naples, Marco Island, and Bonita Springs communities, Kreider specializes in real estate photography and video, bringing homes to life online before they are viewed in person. Visit Jon online or shoot him an email at Jon@sunservicessw.com today to discuss your real estate photography needs.