The Importance of Good Real Estate Photography

With over 2 million active real estate licenses in the US, realtors must find ways to stand out from the competition. We love discussing ways to help you achieve this goal. Of course, digital marketing techniques like SEO, social media and blogging can help agents grow their business. One of the most powerful means of selling homes, however, is photography. Humans are visual beings, so the more effectively you can represent a property on your website, the greater your odds are of making the sale. Keep reading as we break down the importance of good real estate photography!

First Impressions

Almost all consumers turn to the internet to find local businesses – including real estate agents. This is where your digital marketing strategy comes into play. But it also emphasizes how important online content is when it comes to first-time clients. Your website is the client’s first impression of your business. For real estate agents, a website also gives buyers the first impression of properties themselves. In other words, those online home photos are that first impression – and first impressions are powerful. Poor-quality or amateur photos can dissuade prospective buyers. If there are only a handful of images of the property, clients will also search elsewhere. High-quality photos (and lots of them) make properties look extraordinary. Plus, they give buyers an opportunity to view every room and every detail before getting in their cars. When you represent your listings with high-quality imagery, you also show that you care. You are invested in showing off the best, which can deepen buyers’ trust in your business.

Faster Sales

Ready for a not so surprising statistic? Good visuals make a major impact on sale time. Homes with professional photography sell 32% faster than those with average looking images. In addition, homes with multiple photos tend to sell twice as fast as those with just one or two. The logic of this is simple. Professional real estate pictures display your properties in their best possible light. Online browsers are more likely to click on a listing if it is attached to attractive, high-quality property images. Professional photos also give prospective homebuyers a sense of higher value and quality. When this is the case, you may find that you have to negotiate less (meaning of course, a faster sale). Even if you enjoy the showing process, faster sales mean a freer schedule, giving you more time to network. If you’re tired of waiting for your listings to sell, you must realize the importance of good real estate photography!

Higher Selling Prices

As well as selling faster, homes with professional photos tend to sell for higher prices… $5,000-$15,000 more to be specific. Once again, this has to do with perceived value. Professional photos boost the apparent value of a home, compelling buyers to visit the property sooner. This is why homes with high-quality photos are on the market for a shorter period of time. When this market window shortens, homebuyers aren’t going to wait around to negotiate. They feel that sense of competition and make an offer at or even above asking price if they must. There are specific types of professional photos can garner higher selling prices. Homes with extra crisp DSLR photography take the cake. Digital single-lens reflex cameras (DSLR) are more advanced than standard digital cameras. They can use many different types of lenses to capture more precise images. Some light photo editing can also boost image sharpness.

Catering To Busy Buyers

Purchasing a home is time consuming and emotionally taxing – especially with navigating lenders and securing mortgages. Most of us don’t have much spare time for house shopping, especially with full time jobs and families in the equation. For this reason, prospective buyers will do anything they can to simplify the buying process. Competitive agents should have a common goal: to market high-quality homes in a streamlined fashion. If a buyer can be convinced of a home’s value and potential simply by navigating to a website, their decision process becomes much easier. They can quickly narrow down their pool of candidates by assessing listings alone. This can help them maximize their time allotted for open houses. It can also enable them to coordinate the pre-approval process with local lenders. If buyers are left guessing about any of your properties, they will look elsewhere. If they stick around, there will be questions, longer showings and a potentially extended negotiations process. Cater to busy buyers and their precious time by displaying high-quality images of your properties online.

Supplementing Marketing Efforts

Chances are, you have other digital marketing efforts in place to grow your business. Professional real estate photos work to make these strategies more effective. Most online marketing is image driven – and in real estate especially – photos are everything. If your current campaigns use mediocre images, they probably aren’t converting as much as they could be. The beauty of high-quality real estate images is that they can be used across platforms. Upload a sneak preview of a new listing to Instagram and run social ads on Facebook that display available homes in your area. Because professional real estate photos are so impactful, it’s vital to use them across multiple channels. This boosts the visibility of existing properties and gets you selling those homes faster.

The importance of good real estate photography is vast. From those valuable first impressions to faster and higher sales – it’s key to invest in professional photos. How strong is the imagery on your listings? Let us know if you could use some local photographer recommendations or have any comments in the thread below!