ComScore Report: U.S. Online Video Rankings

According to ComScore, in December 2011, 182 million U.S. Internet users watched online video content in December for an average of 23.2 hours per viewer.Google Sites, mostly YouTube views, are at 7.9 hours and Hulu at 3 hours.

In October 2011, over 200 billion online videos were viewed globally with YouTube delivering 2 of every 5 videos worldwide.

As for search engine rankings, Google clearly still reigns supreme with Google Sites “leading the U.S. explicit core search market in December with 65.9 percent market share (up 0.5 percentage points), followed by Microsoft Sites with 15.1 percent (up 0.1 percentage points) and Yahoo! Sites with 14.5 percent.”

All this translates to: yes, your real estate videos must get on YouTube and eventually, on Google search results.

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Source:  ComScore

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The Dilemma Between Tours: Why Video is Virtually Better

The terms “virtual tour” and “video tour” may sound confusingly interchangeable, but they are actually very different. Historically speaking, virtual tour preceded real estate videos and is still a popular option for online promotion today.  Now let’s note the pros and cons between the two.

Virtual tours are usually more cost-friendly in terms of labor, equipment, and the time it takes to produce it. It allow the viewer simple controls by situating the camera in the center of the room and spinning the view around. In the process of making a 360 virtual tour, a wide-angle camera takes continuous photos of the room that are stitched together.

Still, there are disadvantages to sticking with just virtual tours for all your listings. Consider the following:

• Virtual tours are unable to give rooms their depth and fail to show how one space  is related to another.
• The controls sometimes leave viewers frustrated as it takes time to master them.
• The visual effects aren’t very stimulating, leaving little to impress viewers.
• Overall, because the spaces seem flat and distorted and the tour requires many clicks to control, there’s no real sense of journey felt by the viewer.

On the other hand, full motion video tours provide an excellent viewing experience. With existing and potential clients expecting only the best promotional tours from you, you’re sure to impress your market with only the best quality videos.

• Property video tours create a strong emotional connection with viewers by taking them around the property as an actual realtor would, allowing viewers to understand how each space is related and connects as the tour goes on.
• You can enhance the viewer’s  experience my dictating factors such as narration, music, and the ability to structure the content of the video with other media such as photos and other clips, making it an excellent tool for marketing luxury homes.
• The tour is also more interactive, allowing viewers to pause, fast forward, rewind and replay whenever they please.
• Video tours allow for better storytelling on your part as a real estate agent, letting you show viewers what you want them to see, when you want them to see it—perfect for showcasing not only a property’s unique features but also the beauty of the surroundings outside the home.
• Social integration is also a cinch with video tours, as you can share them on your real estate company’s YouTube channel, your LinkedIn profile, Facebook or via email.

Video tours are just within your reach—literally and financially. With technologies like the HD video camera,— property videos, agent videos and listing presentation videos are now easy to make. For more professional presentations, Agent Image TV offers customized real estate videos for marketing your properties or real estate company.

Agent Image welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail or inquiries to:  info@agentimage.tv or use the comment form below.

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Using YouTube to Bring Real Estate Traffic to Your Website

After Google acquired this popular video hosting platform, Youtube has been utilized as a venue for effective marketing for almost any kind of business.  Why? Because optimized YouTube videos tend to rank high for relevant keyword searches.  Thus, placing a link to your agent website on your YouTube video channel brings more potential buyers and sellers to your website.

Here are the other benefits of hosting your agent videos and property video tours on YouTube:

• By using a virtual openhouse strategy,  your company and listings gain increased exposure to audiences around the world.

• Youtube has an embed code and a video sharing option for every video you upload. So if you have a real estate blog, it’s easy to embed a video into a post, or add the featured video on your website’s homepage or listings page.

• If pictures can showcase a home better than mere text description, imagine how powerful a video can be to the prospective buyer.  This allows them the experience of touring the property at their convenience and contact you once you get them interested.

• With captivating real estate videos on your site, sellers are encouraged to list their homes with you since you have the tools to market them better and sell them faster.

Need help with video? We’ve got you covered.

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Your Real Estate Company’s Video Channel

Video blogging, or vlogging, is a great way to start and build an interactive relationship with prospective home buyers and sellers. When done right, having regular video posts on your real estate blog will do wonders  for your business. Here are some quick tips to help you vlog efficiently:

• Create a dedicated video channel. When uploading videos to hosting sites like YouTube or Vimeo, upload your real estate videos on a separate business channel so that it won’t get mixed up with any personal videos you already have. This will also encourage people to follow and subscribe to your video channel.

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Build Brand Recognition Through Real Estate Commercials

Although online video advertising is steadily gaining popularity, television commercials or TVCs are still a trusted method when it comes to promoting your brand to a wide audience.  If you’ve already started putting up property listing videos on your agent website, you might also want to consider allotting a budget for a professionally-produced real estate commercial on your local TV channel.

Agent Image, a trusted provider of  real estate marketing products, is now offering real estate video commercials to help you promote your brand by leveraging the power of video. These video marketing packages are geared specifically for real estate and cater to the needs of agents and brokers, as well as foreclosure specialists, FSBO, real estate attorneys, mortgage brokers and title companies, among others. (more…)

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Ideas for Your Next Real Estate Video Blog

Just like any other web content, your property videos, agent videos or video tours should all be relevant and up to date. If you are a video blogger, then you should know that there are a wealth of ideas out there as to what you’re next video blog post should be.

Here are some quick ideas on how you can showcase the areas you’re specializing in:

• Showcase local businesses. Highlight the town’s favorite café or restaurant and strike an informative but entertaining conversation with the owners. Ask the staff what their specialties are and what they love about living and doing business in this town. Give a brief history of popular establishments. Tell them about your own favorite spots to relax. This assures viewers of your local expertise and that you’re not just another agent who only wants to talk about figures and statistics.

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Using Video for Your Next Listing Presentation

Have you exercised your efforts to get into the front door of a prospect seller, only to pull out the same presentation that many other agents commonly use? If you’ve been doing what it seems like the same listing presentation over and over again, maybe it’s time to think about revamping your presentation style.

Why Video?
People, by nature, are highly influenced by visual cues. What we see with our eyes instantly engages our emotions and sets first impressions. When it comes to listing presentations, powerful communication tools like a listing presentation video will definitely help set you apart. This is especially true if sellers are comparing you to agents who have approaches that are less engaging. (more…)

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How do Videos Help Your Real Estate Business?

In our previous articles, we’ve discussed how video blogging can be a perfect way to post tips and information that will be of great value to home buyers and sellers. But in terms of exposure, how much do videos help your business?

We know that properly tagged and captioned videos will make it easier for search engines to index your real estate website or blog. However,  the impact of video spans wider than results page ranking.  While opinions on the impact of video vary, real estate professionals have already voiced their sides on what they believe to be the advantages of real estate videos. (more…)

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How Long Should Your Real Estate Videos Be?

In our previous blog posts, we’ve discussed how videos of client testimonials and property tours are great ways to engage your site visitors and keep them coming back until you convert them into actual clients.

However, special effects, audio, and resolution quality won’t matter as much if you don’t factor in the length of your video. Similar to text content, where people mostly don’t read the entire text, audiences will only remain interested for a certain amount of time when watching your real estate videos.

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Real Estate Videos and Google Rankings

If you have a real estate website, you probably dream of showing up on the first page of Google results. You’ve got all the common SEO practices in check and probably wondering what other optimizations can further improve your website rankings.  Well, how about video marketing?

If you haven’t considered it yet, one of the best things that may help you reach your ranking goals is to consider adding real estate videos on your agent website. Here are some notes on how online videos help your search engine rankings and how you can optimize your video content:

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