A great video can make the difference between you quickly renting out your property to great tenants, and it is staying on the market for a while. Considering that the majority of marketing is done online these days, a professional looking video can be incredibly valuable.
At Windermere Property Management, we believe that video produces great results when marketing your property and helping to get it rent ready. But we also know that a poor-quality video can do more harm than good. Which is why we have put together this article detailing the best ways to film a great video tour.
Create A Plan
Prior to filming, figure out a plan on which route you’re going to take around your property. This will help you avoid backtracking or having to film the same area multiple times. The following are some tips to keep in mind when planning the route:
- Clean and clear the property. Make sure the property is spotless and completely free of any clutter. We advise hiring a cleaning or staging business to assist you.
- Open all doors. This will help remove any disruptions, and help you walk through the property freely.
- Begin filming from outside. Curb appeal is key to attracting a quality tenant. Just like in a physical property showing, the curb appeal can make or break your marketing efforts. Therefore, make sure to reinvigorate its look and feel.
- Capture the best features within the first minute of the video. This can help you improve the video’s retention rate.
Introduce the Tour
It’s a good idea to give your prospects a brief introduction to your property at the beginning of the video. Keep it brief, and to the point. In the introduction, make sure to include the unit’s address, rental price, and the move-in date.
You don’t have to be on camera when speaking. That said, make sure that your phone’s mic picks up your voice clearly.
Light the Room
This is key to filming a great video. Natural light can turn a dull room into one that is airy and spacious. Ideally, you’ll want to film the video either earlier during the day or during a late afternoon.
If the sun rays beaming through your windows are too strong, close your blinds or curtains just a little bit. That’s because strong sun rays can cause the video to become overexposed.
Another thing you’ll want to pay attention to is backlighting. If you shoot directly into the source of light, your camera will have a difficult time focusing and the background will be blurred out. As such, make sure to keep the source of light on your back versus facing it directly.
Take a Steady Shot
A shaky video is going to be a distraction to your viewers. When taking the film, try to keep your hands as steady as possible. We advise that you stand against the wall or within a corner and grasp the phone closely to your body. Then, slowly and carefully, move your torso and film the room, showing off your properties best features and renovations.
Alternatively, you could consider buying a video stabilizer. You can also make a steadicam on your own - there are lots of resources online resources to help you do so.
Keep Your Fingers off the Lens
This may seem obvious, but when filming, it’s easy to block the lens and only realize so when you’re editing the footage. So be mindful of the position of your hands and watch the video back to make sure the screen is clear.
Avoid Using Zoom
Although most phones have a zoom feature, you may want to steer clear of using it. The functionality may make items appear closer, but it does this at the cost of clarity.
In your video tour, you want to have the clearest image possible, so your prospects get to see your property at its best. So, instead of zooming on a subject, walk closer to it to grab a tighter shot.
Edit the Footage
Editing the footage makes it cleaner and much easier for a prospect to view than if the footage was. The good thing is that there are a multitude of apps you can use for this purpose. They include the following:
- iMovie.
- Splice
- VidTrim
These can help you trim individual clips, add a soundtrack, slow down or speed up clips, and even ad a text overlay.
Bottom Line
There you have it. 7 tried and tested tips on how to film a great video tour of your rental property. Property showing has never been this easy!
For expert help, look no further than Windermere Property Management. We help property owners in Spokane, WA achieve stress-free rental ownership.