BiggerPockets

I would love to hear your opinions on virtual tours. After doing some research into the cost of hiring someone or buying the equipment to do the tours myself, I'm overwhelmed. I am just getting back into the real estate business and am planning where to spend my time and money most effectively.

I have a professional grade camera and tripod but need the rest, i.e. bracket, software. Some questions I have are:

Do virtual tours enhance your business?

Do you hire someone to produce the tour or do you do it yourself?

Do you feel your time is better spent on something other than creating tours or do you find it adds to your bottom line as well as adding a personal service to your clients?

Was it difficult to learn to use the equipment and software?

On average, how much time do you spend creating a virtual tour?

I am interested in a package from Real Tour Vision that doesn't include a camera or tripod and will work with my digital camera. After looking all over the net for equipment providers, I found them to be the most professional and cost effective. If you have had an experience with them, I would appreciate your input as well.

Thanks in advance for your time and any answers you may be able to clarify for me.

Thanks for your input Mark. I am sure the listings get looked at more and traffic goes up but market conditions as well as other variables affecting your listing will determine the sale. It's always good to know what type of experience someone else has had with a product or company though. Take care and thanks again!

Another service I'm looking and comparing with other services is:

realestateshows.com

Thanks for your input Kelsheikh. I'm starting to believe that it's not an option whetheror not to have a virtual tour as much as whether or not to hire someone to do it, do it myself or find something in between.

It's good to hear from someone who is doing it themselves and know that you are having success with it. I wish you the best and hope it all works out good. Thanks again!

I use 'Visual Tour' and think it was one of the 'best value for money' marketing tools I have made.

You are provided with the software to produce the panoramas from a series of still photos. You then upload the file to 'visual tour.com'. The website automatically disseminates it through a number of real estate portals and there is an additional fee to link to Realtor.com.

The website emails you a viewing report weekly - breaking down how many times and where the tour has been viewed.

I had initial outlay for the software and then pay a monthly fee for the service

Here is an example: http://www.visualtour.com/shownp.asp?T=1353866

It is incredibly easy to master and produces really professional results

Hope this helps

Not to be a downer, but I think the importance of a virtual tour is way over-emphasized.

Sure, they don't hurt. But, I don't think they help that much either. Seems very 2004 to me.

I think 2008-09-10 will reward price much more than virtual tours and such.

Just a thought here...I attended a seminar last week and the presenter said virtual tours were kind of cold, and on the way out. The new thing is a walkthrough with continous comentary. Kind of like a Youtube video, but more professional. The whole thing can be done with a hand held cam corder for $300 and up. Maybe some video editing software too. Bottom line, think video not virtual.

I hear ya Caroline. I'm not exactly Brad Pitt either.

This seminar guy was saying that he has a few stock clips of himself (shot against a blue screen background) introducing various generic parts of the house, like "And now, let's take a look at the beautiful kitchen." After he "shoots" the video walk through with the naration, he edits the "canned" clips of himself into the video. He also adds text to highlight key selling features. I have not seen a finished product yet but it sounds pretty cool.