By Patty McNease, Director of Marketing with Homes.com
Real estate professionals are missing a golden opportunity by not making use of the video possibilities on their iPads, according to licensed real estate broker Michael Krisa, a freelance Internet marketing consultant. He praised the importance of using iPads to create videos in Homes.com’s Secrets of Top Selling Agents webinar, “iPad Video Made Simple: Pinch, Zoom and Swipe Your Way to Profit!”
Krisa is always shocked to learn that real estate brokers and agents don’t make use of the all-in-one movie studio-type applications that are available to them, comparing it to buying a Porsche and leaving it in the driveway, using it just to listen to the radio.
Videos not only help to generate a paperless environment, but can create the appearance that you are an authority about what you speak of.
“You can shoot with some simple apps and create very high-quality videos, edit them and upload them directly to the web,” Krisa says. “When people watch videos, the subject is perceived as an authority. If you can be articulate, you can be seen as an expert in your niche.”
Consider these statistics: four billion videos are viewed every single day and 25 percent of them are seen on mobile devices. By 2017, it’s expected that 80 percent of all mobile traffic will be video, since it’s the way that people are consuming news in today’s age. Additionally, one of the most popular search terms in Google starts with “how do you…” and a large percentage of the content served up is video.
“Furthermore, 73 percent of homeowners want to work with an agent doing video but less than three percent know how to do that,” Krisa says. “It’s a sad truth, but an awesome opportunity for those willing to roll up their sleeves, do a little work and tap into this marketplace in order to reach those home sellers who are looking for those that do video.”
Krisa has heard all of the excuses from those not using video—“it’s too expensive, too hard, I don’t have enough time,” but in actuality, he says that most of them just don’t know what to say and don’t want to look foolish.
“You have to get over yourself,” he says. “People are looking for authenticity and transparency. When people watch videos, they look for congruency of what you’ll say and how you’ll act. If content is specific to the audience, they will watch. If you are answering a question or solving a problem, they will watch your content. People want someone they know and trust.”
Step up to the Mic
If you make a video and people have to strain to hear what you are saying, they will disengage within five seconds, according to Krisa, as 70 percent of what makes a great video is audio.
He recommends iPad users get the Makayama case, which the tablet can easily snap into, and then be mounted on a tripod. You can also snap on a light and microphone—all of which totals about $200.
Another addition should be a wide angle lens, which Krisa calls the “realtor’s best friend.” When showing a property or listing, it’s vital to get the best image and have the whole room in a frame, so he recommends investing a little in the equipment.
Apps to Know
If you have an iPad, there’s already a native app installed that you can use, but it uses a narrow depth of field and doesn’t have too much control with its white balance. Here are several apps that Krisa recommends people try instead.
ProCamera 7: This app, which is also available for the iPhone, lets you zoom in and better control the focus and exposure. If you pan around a room and bright lights suddenly shine through, you can simply change the exposure and keep moving through the room seamlessly.
Vizzywig: A key attribute to this app is its focus lock, but it also has the bells and whistles that lets one build a movie by taking clips and adding effects (such as dissolve and fade). “I can build a movie in live time and I can put pictures in the video,” Krisa says. “This funky app also has the ability to let you have six different mobile devices all shooting at the same time and using the iPad like a switching control.”
Green Screen: Real estate agents seem to really like this one, Krisa says. This app makes it easy to create incredible green screen videos right on your iPad, meaning with a simple green background (such as a shower curtain), you can add in images or backdrops to help you tell your story, explain an idea or express yourself in other creative and unique ways.
iMovie: The ultimate movie making app, which lets you create a movie or start new projects (trailers) with templates already created. Much like the other apps above, any real estate pro should be able to master it and make great videos in no time at all.
Register here for upcoming Secrets of Top Selling Agents webinars from Homes.com and visit the Homes.com blog for real estate pros for more online marketing best practices.
For more information, visit http://connect.homes.com/
Reprinted with permission from RISMedia. ©2014. All rights reserved.
