Real estate photography quality matters to your

online presence

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Data Based Ads, Inc. Real estate photography quality matters to your online presence 2

ContentsThe upside of quality high-resolution listing photography ................................................................3

The real estate photography opportunity ................4

How the big portals present your images... .............7Zillow ................................................................................. 7Trulia .................................................................................. 7Realtor.com ...................................................................... 8Your brokerage website ..................................................... 8

Where high-res photography makes a difference... 9Virtual tours ..................................................................... 10Video ............................................................................... 11Email ................................................................................ 12Print collateral .................................................................. 13

Make a commitment to quality photography .........14Minimum image standards .............................................. 15High-res image distribution .............................................. 17

Data Based Ads, Inc. Real estate photography quality matters to your online presence 3

The upside of quality high-resolution listing photography

In competitive online venues where the participants often bemoan the fact that the playing field has been leveled, surprisingly few of them exercise an relatively easy advantage – clear, high-quality, high-resolution listing photos.

If you’re looking for a way to help your real estate brokerage stand out, consider creating a standard for acceptable photography to be used in company listings, and make sure you have programs in place that deliver that photography, in its high-res and/or optimized format, to every online marketing venue you’re syndicating your listings to, and to every online tool that displays your photos.

There is a wealth of evidence that

● buyers prefer looking at larger, better photographs

● buyers look longer and are more engaged with better photography

● buyers make a ‘quality’ association with the brokerage that consistently displays clear, quality photographs of its listings.

● Quality photography sells listings faster

Data Based Ads, Inc. Real estate photography quality matters to your online presence 4

The real estate photography opportunity

No one marketing any product, much less what is likely to be the most expensive and life-altering purchase a consumer will ever make, would consider using anything but the most professional photography to depict their product.

So why is it that there are so many poor real estate images out there?

● Some of it can be attributed to agent apathy or lack of photography knowledge

● A lot of it has to do with the way listing data gets distributed – even the good images can get ‘dumbed down’ by the distribution process

In any case, there is an opportunity to overcome these issues and create a standout presence online that personifies your real estate brokerage.

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See the difference...

Are your prospects seeing this?

To the right is an approximated 640 x 480 (typical) MLS image vs a 1080p image below.

Although not all online venues have the capacity to increase the size of your image to full 1080p height, many do - and your photos should be set to take advantage of the large display. Approximated 640x480 MLS image

Approximated 1920x1080 display...when they could be seeing this?

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See the difference...

Artificial enlargement

Many portals will take an image, regardless of the size, and blow it up to a “large” image. The result is a washed-out, pixelated image that looks worse large than it did at its original size.

In these cases, the larger you make them, the worse they look.

This is NOT what you want to see

Approximated 640x480 MLS image

640x480 MLS image artificially enlarged to 1920x1080

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How the big portals present your images...

Zillow

Zillow’s ‘View larger’ setting will blow up the original size of the image up to 150% of it’s true size to a max width of 1024 pixels. By limiting the enlargement to 150%, they minimize the pixelation, while still offering a larger image.

Still, the a truly high-resolution image will look best.

Trulia

Trulia will enlarge a photo to fit the user’s screen. Not ideal as the screen grab below right demonstrates (click for enlarged image). Don’t let this happen to your images.

Data Based Ads, Inc. Real estate photography quality matters to your online presence 8

How the big portals present your images...

Realtor.com

Realtor.com’s image viewer is 640 x 480. A good choice given that their inventory is intitally garnered from MLSs across the country.

A ‘View original size’ link on the photo viewer links to the original size photo. A good reason to provide full-size, high-resolution photos.

Your brokerage website

Take a look at your own brokerage website. More likely than not, your site has an image viewer for large photos. Is your brokerage taking advantage of that feature by providing high resolution photography on all your listings?

Almost every portal gives individual agents the option to upload better images to their sites, but given the task of uploading high-res photos to each site separately, many agents don’t seem to think it is worth the effort, evidenced by the general lack of participation.

A brokerage that wants to make the commitment to make quality images a part of a marketing plan may need to find a provider that can feed all of these sites from a single source.

Data Based Ads, Inc. Real estate photography quality matters to your online presence 9

Where high-res photography makes a difference...

Consider these questions in reference to your own experiences online...

● How often do you click on an image, real estate related or otherwise, hoping to get a bigger representation of what you’re looking at?

● How often, when watching video, do you click the full-screen icon in order to see the video better?

● And why do you have that giant-screen TV in your living room?

Because bigger is better, clearer, easier to view and tells a story with more detail.

And how often are you disappointed when you

● click an image and link to the same size image you were looking at in the first place?

● Click the full-screen on a video and get a bigger, but grainy and washed out presentation?

● Find a channel on TV that doesn’t have an HD counterpart?

This is the frustration you’re putting your real estate buyer prospects through when you settle for syndication of inferior-sized listing photos.

Data Based Ads, Inc. Real estate photography quality matters to your online presence 10

Where high-res photography makes a difference...

Virtual tours

Your virtual tour undoubtedly has a full screen viewer.Make sure your images fill the screen - that’s what viewers expect.

Data Based Ads, Inc. Real estate photography quality matters to your online presence 11

Where high-res photography makes a difference...

Video

YouTube videos can be output at 1080p, even when created automatically if your vendor has the right resources. But high-res video is useless, unless it is made using high-res photography.

Full-screen videos playing in high-resolution are now a consumer expectation.

Data Based Ads, Inc. Real estate photography quality matters to your online presence 12

Where high-res photography makes a difference...

Email

Your HTML emails should link to a high-res web presentation, preferably the listing detail page on your website. But when multiple photos are included in your email - make sure that each links directly to a high-res version of that particular photo.

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Where high-res photography makes a difference...

Print collateral

If your marketing tools database allows print formatting for brochures, postcards and advertising in high-quality production real estate books, you’re going to want to have your best photos available.

While the web can be somewhat forgiving, high-level print is not. Print standards require 300 pixels per inch, which means that you 640 x 480 MLS photo only qualifies to be printed at just over 2 x 1.5 inches.

Now while there are exceptions to this rule – lesser print methods like laser printers and newprint do not require quite this level of resolution – the bottom line is that if you’re going to print, you need quality, high-resolution photography.

Data Based Ads, Inc. Real estate photography quality matters to your online presence 14

Make a commitment to quality photography

Especially if you’re a high-end brokerage, making a commitment to quality photography across the board will escalate your perceived value by all who view your listings online – that would be ALL of your potential buyers.

Consider researching some of the capable photog-raphers in your area and working out a value proposition that benefits your agent and the photog-rapher. Given that some agents like to take their own photographs, consider group meetings to discuss photo tips and successes. Educate your agents in the basics of good photography.

Finally, make a commitment to

1. Minimum standards for all company listing photos

2. Distribution of high-res images to all listing venues

Data Based Ads, Inc. Real estate photography quality matters to your online presence 15

Make a commitment to quality photography

Minimum image standards

Consider these and more. Though some are fairly subjective, it gives you the opportunity to enforce your policies and enhance your brokerage’s image.

● Size minimums – 1920 pixeles wide is currently at the top end of computer monitor and HDTV screen resolutions. The vast majority of potential displays fit into this pixel width.

● Adequate lighting – if there’s a dark spot in an image, the photo should be retaken. Time of day and adequate flash or lights need to be considered. Why would you post a photo in anything less than the optimal light?

● Showing-ready – no pets, wrinkled beds, messes, clutter. Even a perfectly photographed image can be ruined by the content. Good images are worth the effort of a good cleanup. If the seller won’t do it, the agent should. It, too, is a relection on your brokerage.

● Camera quality – Quality does not mean expensive – but ideally, the camera range should have a bit of a wide angle. Smartphones take lousy photos for the most part. The viewer can usually tell it’s from a smartphone by its quality – and that lack of quality screams lack of effort.

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Make a commitment to quality photography

Consider your camera

Short of using a professional to photograph your listing, consider one of the first steps in good photography – choosing the right camera.

These photos were taken by an amateur from the same spot using each camera’s automatic settings. They have not been retouched in any way.

A good SLR camera can give even an amateur a much better result in focus, lighting and range (wide angle). And with today’s SLRs, you don’t need to do much more than frame and shoot. Even some higher end point-and-shoot cameras take great photos. Just make sure you have good light. There are plenty of resources for good photography tips to augment a good camera.

The case for a good SLR camera is pretty clear. And with some setting tweaks, even this photo could have been improved upon.

Droid Razr (Android)

Point and shoot – Panasonic DMC-Z57

SLR (single-lens reflex) – Nikon D80

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Make a commitment to quality photography

High-res image distribution

Once you get the standards in place, you will find that your MLS takes your high-res photos and makes them low-res (for bandwidth purposes). If your MLS is your distributor to the big portals – even to your own brokerage website – you will not see the full effect of your quality photography in your marketing displays.

Look for a database provider that can provide a one-time upload of your high-res photos and feed them to your portals and social media, as well as create tours, videos, emails, brochures and other marketing tools right out of the database.