How to Conduct a Successful Virtual Open House

Open houses are a great way to showcase your home for sale. In fact, open houses have used a standard formula proven effective to close deals – dressing up homes and showing them to potential buyers for better visualization. However, open houses have taken a detour since the pandemic hit, with home buyers and sellers both wary of physical contact.

Fortunately, technology has become a driver of change, and virtual open houses have become more popular and relevant in real estate. Before the pandemic, several home sellers have used this method, albeit not as creative as now.

 

What is a Virtual Open House?

 A virtual open house is more like a physical open house, only done virtually. A virtual house tour is perfect for homebuyers who live far away or don’t have the time to go to a physical open house. According to a Redfin-commissioned survey in 2021, nearly 63% of people in the US who bought a home in 2021 made an offer on a property they hadn’t seen in person, further proof of how effective virtual open houses could be.

There are two ways to conduct one: pre-recorded and live. Pre-recorded open houses allow you to film content before publishing it on social media platforms. On the other hand, live open houses are streamed at the property, with potential buyers watching in real-time. In pre-recorded house tours, you can edit clips and ad text inserts on the property’s dimensions, and you can host this wherever you are. You can also practice your timing with pre-recorded tours and can edit out mistakes.

Meanwhile, a significant advantage of live open houses is that you can answer home buyers’ queries in real-time because you interact with them while doing an on-screen walkthrough of the property.

 

Top Benefits of a Virtual House Tour

Here are some of the benefits of conducting a virtual house tour:

 

1. A wider buyer pool

One key benefit of online open houses is reaching a broader demographic. Residential real estate is a competitive market, so you must make your property visible and accessible to many potential buyers. Traditional open houses would usually attract people in the nearby area. Virtual open houses can reach out-of-town or out-of-country buyers looking to move to the site.

 

2. A cost-effective method

Whether we admit it or not, the truth is, doing traditional open houses could consume a lot of time and energy. With virtual open houses, potential homebuyers can view properties from the comfort of their home, saving them time and cost to travel. Well-curated virtual open houses also allow buyers to view a property more precisely than still images.

 

3. Greater safety

Virtual house tours are a perfect way to alleviate health concerns. COVID-19 restrictions may be easing now, but the pandemic is still in sight, so a virtual open house is a great way to avoid physical contact with other people.

Home sellers might encounter a few challenges with virtual open houses, such as having a poor internet connection, especially when conducting live home tours, so be sure to double-check your connectivity beforehand.

 

How to Conduct a Virtual Open House

 Planning to conduct your own virtual open house? Here are some helpful tips:

 

1. Choose a platform.

With many social media platforms available, be sure that you choose platforms where homebuyers or home investors go to search for properties. For pre-recorded home tours, you can go with Facebook or YouTube. You can utilize Instagram or curate it for potential home buyers and set it on Zoom or Teams for a live online open house.

 

2. Do your homework.

Whether you tapped a real estate agent to conduct your virtual open house or do it yourself, you must anticipate inquiries from buyers. Prepare a program flow and know your key points. Map out the route you want to take, i.e., show the second floor first before the ground floor or vice versa. You should also highlight other details like closet sizes, garage space, and the neighborhood.

Make your house tours short but concise. If you are doing a scheduled live virtual open house, make yourself available on some weekends since a majority of people are available at that time.

 

3. Hire a professional.

One of the best ways to provide top-tier virtual house tours is to hire a professional videographer and editor that can capture the best features of your property and more. Professionals will utilize their skills to give viewers the best possible experience in seeing your virtual open house by using high-definition video. Some will use drone footage to help buyers appreciate exterior features like pools or backyard space. If you like to do online banners or print ads, you can also hire a photographer who can take photos of your home.

 

4. Advertise your virtual open house

Once you’ve finished your pre-recorded or live virtual house tour, the work doesn’t stop there. If you are doing a live virtual open house, send an invite two weeks or a week earlier to let people know. Tell your real estate agent to update your home listing with the virtual open house information and send emails to interested clients.

 

Final Thoughts

Virtual open houses carry the same goal as traditional open houses—attracting interested buyers and selling the property. Just remember that a successful virtual open house does not stop after the open house, so it’s important to keep in touch and follow up with potential buyers. If you have the right approach and selected the right platform, you can expect some interested buyers to ping that chat box or send an email soon.

But lastly, if you don’t have the resources or time to conduct a virtual open house and prefer to close a deal right away, you can reach out to Shorefront Investments. We buy houses in any condition and in any area. Just fill out a form or call us at 850-713-4866 to schedule a meeting and get a no-obligation cash offer in 24 hours without paying for commissions or any additional fees.