REAL ESTATE PHOTO EDITING: WHY REALTORS CAN’T SURVIVE WITHOUT DIGITAL STAGING

One of the many areas that have developed in the realty industry is real estate photo editing. Gone are the days when the best way to make homes look real and convincing to prospective buyers was by physically arranging furniture and photographing it. 90% of home buyers now use the internet to make their purchases directly and without visiting homes in person. This makes it critical for real estate agents to be able to convince their prospects as to why their listed properties are better than any other. In today’s age, this simply cannot be achieved without the help of digital photo editing.

Human beings are naturally visual creatures – they require the right stimulus to be inspired to make a decision. While physically staged photos are effective in bringing in customers on the internet, they come with limitations that make taking them tedious and expensive. Digital photo editing, on the other hand, helps realtors decorate their listings without having to shell out the excess time, money and energy. These resources can then be used on other, more productive pursuits such as adding more listings, creating a better real estate marketing campaign, or simply several alternate digital stage renders.

Here are 6 key reasons why realtors cannot survive in the real estate industry today without editing real estate photos digitally:

#1. It Is Faster

Staging real estate physically may help create a picture, but this comes at great cost. The process includes the days (if not weeks) involved in renting furniture, getting said furniture moved, hiring a decorator, a landscape designer, and a photographer, and finally, completing the photoshoot. The trouble increases if the property is located in a remote area or on the upper floors of a high-rise apartment. Other issues that may crop up include delays in the moving process, scheduling issues for decoration and photography, and the risk of getting furniture pieces broken or causing accidental damage to the estate.

Digital staging, on the other hand, does not involve any of these hassles. Real estate photo editing is done 100% virtually, which means that the realtor does not have to lift so much as a finger to get anything “moved.” All real estate agents need to do is have a set of photographs of the property listing submitted to CG experts. The virtual staging artists will then utilize their imagination and technical capacity for rendering digitally staged real estate photo edits. There is thus no need to spend all those hours in having to rent, move or schedule. 

#2. It Is Budget-Friendly

Traditional photography and even videos involve heavy expenses. The cost of renting various furniture and accessories, along with hiring movers, decorators and photographers together can run up a bill that could go up to hundreds (or even thousands) of dollars. If the property does not get sold fast, then it will cost an additional fee for every month that the property stays on the real estate market. For instance, a 2,000 square foot property would require a budget of around $2,000 per month to be staged. Such expenses can be borne by a few realtors who have enough to spare, but not everyone has such kind of money.

Digital staging, on the other hand, can be done at a much lesser cost. The process does not require any physical moving, which means that realtors need not spend any money behind transport, furniture or staff. In this process, empty rooms can easily be digitally filled using furnishings, decor and accent pieces. CG artists generally charge a nominal one-time fee per room/image for their real estate photo editing service. This means that the cost for digital photo editing of an entire property will amount to much less than the physical photography of a single room. 

#3. It Enhances The Selling Point

When a home buyer browses real estate online, they go through hundreds of properties before even considering to zero in on their preferred choices. When they do make their decision, it is motivated by how they visualize living in their chosen home, and whether this visualization creates a positive image in their minds. This is impossible if the images are that of empty rooms, or if the photos have any visible shortcomings, such as low quality or bad lighting. 

Digital staging enhances a property’s selling point by highlighting the positive elements and editing out the negative ones. Using tools such as 360-degree view allows prospects to view rooms as if they are standing there. CG artists can easily add furnishings, decor, and accessories in a vacant space digitally to create a convincing “lived-in” picture. Details such as images in TV screens, burning fires in fireplaces and vibrant outdoors through windows help inspire the prospect to visualize. Furthermore, the real estate photo editing process can easily weed out unwanted objects, scratches, discolorations, or lighting issues that can draw the customers’ attention away.

#4. It Helps In Targeting Multiple Markets At Once

No two real estate buyers are the same – they have different wants, needs, and ideas that they want to be fulfilled. It is therefore evident that a decor that works for one, might not be as appealing to another. For instance, if the prospect is from a middle-income group, they will not be able to fully appreciate the property if its photos consist of decor made for luxury homes. Appealing to both these categories at the same time and for the same space can be tricky to achieve if the property is staged physically.

With digital photo editing, however, this problem can be easily solved. As CG artists create digital stages virtually, spaces can be easily customized on the basis of key factors such as the buyer’s demography and preference. Realtors can have the same property digitally staged in multiple styles and shown to several different buyers at once. That way, real estate marketers can directly target the needs and wants of multiple real estate markets at once – all with the help of real estate photo editing. 

#5. It Personalizes the Customers’ Journey

It is a no-brainer that an empty room (let alone its photo) can never be convincing to a home buyer. While high-quality staged photographs and videos may seem like a good way to make listings lucrative, they cannot be customized to appeal to everyone. This makes them appear as visibly generalized to a mass of prospective home buyers. These homebuyers who then see the real estate photos feel as if they are viewing property second hand. 

Digital staging, on the other hand, showcases real estate properties in their full 3D glory, and without the help of anyone “introducing” the home (like in videos). This helps prospects visualize how they would like to live in every room of the home they are viewing without interference. Being able to do this visualization on their own gives them the feeling that the experience is created just for them, and which helps them to be attracted to the idea of buying the property. When buyers get a clear understanding of how the home and each room in it look, they can easily determine if the home is perfect for them or not. 

The real estate is anything, if not highly competitive. Simply staying in business is not enough. To be successful, real estate agents have to make it a point to stand out of the crowd in order to get themselves known and have quality conversions on a consistent basis. In today’s day and age, when most homebuyers shop online, this cannot be possible without the help of real estate photo editing. 

A far cry from physical photography, virtual staging gives real estate agents a multi-dimensional advantage. It lends a futuristic look to their listings and offers their customers a highly-personalized experience. This helps them uplift their personal branding and online image, which in turn helps in them getting better business. All of this happens at a much lesser cost and without having to go through the difficult steps involved in physical photography. It is no wonder that any realtor worth their salt cannot survive in the market without digital staging.

Interested in trying out digital staging to boost your real estate business? Feel free to contact us for virtual staging services. Our team of experienced professional CG artists will create high-quality digitally staged graphics for your listings that will attract your prospects’ attention the moment they see it.