As we head into March and towards the first official days of spring, the real estate industry begins to gear up for what is traditionally known as a strong selling season. Although spring selling season will look and feel much different in 2021 due to the ongoing pandemic-related lockdowns, real estate professionals have adapted to the industry’s current conditions.
In response to these lockdown limitations, one method our dynamic team has utilized more than ever is to host virtual open houses. Despite not being able to physically welcome visitors and potential buyers into a home in-person (for now), we’ve made strong digitally-minded shifts in our approach to home showings.
However, virtual open houses aren’t always a smooth operation and come with their own unique challenges.
After hosting many virtual open houses over the recent past, our team has acclimatized to the digital shift and nailed down a few key tips to hosting a successful virtual event. To learn about what they are, read our ultimate guide to hosting a virtual open house below.
Staging Your Home
While this part may seem obvious, it’s always important to ensure your staging standards don’t slip ahead of your virtual open house just because visitors aren’t seeing your home in-person. We’ve talked at great lengths about home staging tips and their importance when selling a home, and those same ideas still apply to virtual open houses.
Whether you’re showing your home to a live or private audience, keep in mind that they will be seeing your home for the first time through your camera. This means that more subtle design and staging details could be missed at first glance or be simply too small to see.
We suggest using more bold, eye-catching colours, furniture, and decor than you would normally in order to really make your home “pop” on camera. Additionally, using home staging tips that make your home look bigger is useful for virtual home tours as oftentimes handheld cameras aren’t as effective as showing space and depth as the human eye.
Planning Your Tour
After your home is nicely staged and looking its best, it’s time to plan out your virtual home tour. This means having a clear and intuitive tour path that mimics the natural traffic flow of in-person visitors. Really get into the mind of a potential buyer and think about what they would want to see when inside your home.
From choosing your home tour pathway, how long to spend in each room, and which details you want to show off most in your virtual open house, your virtual open house should have a well-thought-out and considered plan. Avoid unintuitive room transitions, awkward timing, or glazing over important features of your home that buyers would want to know about.
Getting the Word Out
Once your home is all prepared for your virtual open house, it’s time to get the word out about it. The best way to attract an eager audience for your virtual open house is to generate a buzz about it ahead of time online.
Regularly use social channels to advertise your virtual open house ahead of time to build awareness across your social media audience. Additionally, take advantage of real estate agents’ personal newsletters or blog pages to market and promote your virtual open house directly to their specific client audience.
However you choose to get the word out about your virtual open house, it’s important to start posting your ads early and regularly so your online following takes note.
Experience is Everything
As seasoned real estate professionals, we’ve helped countless clients get the best price possible for their homes by focusing on the buyer experience. One of the best ways to do that is by highlighting a home’s most appealing lifestyle features to your open house audience.
While it is a bit of a real estate cliche, it’s true that it’s almost equally as important to sell a lifestyle as it is an actual home. Spend some time reflecting on the best parts of your home and neighbourhood in great detail. Then, think about ways to communicate those lifestyle features creatively.
Does your home theatre have an impressive projector? Turn it on! Does your back deck look spectacular all lit up at night? Take the tour outside! Do you have a spa-like bathroom? Fill up that soaker tub.
The whole idea here is to paint a vivid picture of what life could be like in your home for your potential buyers by crafting a memorable virtual open house experience.
Are you thinking of listing your home for sale ahead of the hot spring selling season? Get the most out of your home sale by ensuring you get help from a knowledgeable and experienced team of real estate professionals like us. To learn more about how we can help you, contact our team here today.
