VisualTour.com™ Contact: J. L. Winn, TRF Systems, Inc.
JLWinn@VisualTour.com 954.345.9701 ext 220

Source: National Relocation & Real Estate Magazine, January 2002 Issue

Virtual tours are no longer the exception in today's real estate marketing tool kit. As more virtual tour vendors have become available in many locations, today's real estate professionals finally have a choice in tour providers .

More and more, real estate agents are learning from their customers that they define a virtual tour very differently than what many of us first thought. As consumers started wanting more from their tours, agents and brokers decided they also wanted something that provided them with more value than just some spinning pictures. After all, $100 for four spinning pictures is a lot of money if you have alternatives that deliver more value or cost less money-or both.

Our research indicates that in a hot seller's market, buyers use virtual tours as a way to narrow down their search quickly before contacting a local Realtor to see a house in person. Buyers learn through trial and error that some homes are sold before they can see them in person or make a legitimate offer, so they must act quickly. These consumers place a high value, not just on virtual tours, but on the tours that show properties still for sale.

To help attract these buyers and earn their loyalty, a Realtor must either create the virtual tour themselves or must have a local full service provider who can guarantee the tour is live in just a couple of days after ordering the tour. Most of these tours are shown on the Realtor's Web site, as the national aggregators often incur delays in getting this information online where the Realtor has more control over their local Web marketing. Buyers value accuracy in your online listing inventory as much as you do.

Most sellers want to showcase their home through virtual tours, but may express a reluctance to show a full 360-degree view of some rooms. There may be something expensive or private they don't want displayed to strangers on the Internet. And the listing agent may not want to show some inappropriate features (the kids toys piled up in the corner, sagging wallpaper, poorly lit areas, etc.)

Smart brokers and agents want to leverage their marketing and branding investment to include everything they do-business cards, mailers, yard signs, printed flyers, and their Web site and virtual tours. A Realtor-centric virtual tour enables the broker and agent to include their own logos, personal photograph, contact information and e-mail address.

Some of today's advanced virtual tours such as those from VisualTour.com enable the listing agent to determine how much of each room and exterior scene to show and to include many more scenes to showcase all of the features of a home or property.

For agents who don't yet use a digital camera, they can get full service VisualTours, which can include their own logo, photo, and contact information, too.

The tours can do more than just show a few rooms. They can help buyers to save you time and to contact you directly from the tour to give your more qualified leads. In the end, you'll have more control, reduced costs, more targeted leads from your Web site, and attract more sellers and buyers.

By J. L. Winn

About VisualTour

VisualTour (www.VisualTour.com) is developed by TRF Systems, Inc. of Coral Springs, Florida. Incorporated in 1991, TRF Systems is the leading provider of innovative digital photo management software and services in a number of vertical markets. VisualTour.com is recommended by the Council of Residential Specialists, the Allen F. Hainge CyberStars™, and the Real Estate CyberSpace Society. For more information, please contact J. L. Winn at TRF Systems at 954.345.9701 or by email at JLWinn@VisualTour.com. VisualTour.com is a trademark of TRF Systems.