Closing the gap between finding a home and the first viewing

Why make buyers wait almost four days to view a property when a virtual tour provides an immediate opportunity to engage and convert?

A recent survey of 2,000 homebuyers, commissioned by Matterport and conducted by OnePoll, discovered it takes almost four days between finding a home online and getting a viewing. Although the delay can be for a number of reasons – accessibility to the property, availability of agents to accompany the viewing or the busy schedules of the buyers – a virtual tour could deliver an instant solution that helps in a number of ways.

Convert the prospective buyer more quickly – although 3.74 days doesn’t seem long between finding a property online and getting a viewing, it is enough time to lose an agent a buyer. How? Very few homebuyers limit themselves to looking at just one property so it’s highly likely that the buyer may see, enquire about and visit an alternative place while they’re waiting. If they offer on another property and proceed, it’s an opportunity potentially missed due to a delay in getting the prospective buyer through the front door.

Enthusiasm peaks when the decision to book a viewing is made, so serving a virtual tour immediately is the ideal way to capitalize on keenness, and it’s the perfect marketing medium to fill any gap between the viewing request and the actual physical visit.

Aid the agent

Agents are busy people and although a full viewings diary is reflective of brisk business, the volume of visits can put resources under enormous strain. Nothing dampens the spirit of a keen buyer requesting a viewing more than an agent who can’t accommodate them for two or three days. Virtual tours provide a vital interim experience for home movers when they’re at their most eager to see as much of a property as possible.

Virtual tours are a great step up from scrolling through photographs and looking at static floor plans, with the added benefit of 3D dolls house views and the ability to tour a property using a virtual reality headset, which provides the next best experience to being there in person. This type of interactive encounter is designed to become an agent’s viewing assistant as much as it is a buyer conversion tool – either filling in before an accompanied viewing takes place or acting as a ‘first viewing’ filter as part of buyer qualification.

Appease the vendor

While selling a property is all about attracting attention, it’s not a license to have an open house all day, every day. Many vendors find it difficult to accommodate a stream of viewings, especially if the viewer wants to visit during unsociable hours or the seller is a landlord with tenants in situ. Agents who offer virtual tours as part of their standard service can offer vendors the flexibility of remote viewings to minimise disruption and intrusion. Vendors will also benefit from the ‘filter’ facility that virtual tours offer, with only the most genuine, invested buyers going on to request a physical property visit.

Getting started begins with a free account and if you’d like to upgrade your viewing service with Matterport’s virtual tours, get in touch with our team today.