Does Real Estate Need Its Own YouTube?
With the popularity of YouTube which launched a short 5 years ago, viewing video online has exploded. In fact, the watching of video on the web has increased over 40% in just the past twelve months. Currently, 2 billion videos are watched online daily!
As for the demand in the real estate industry 72% of sellers are saying they would be more likely to list their property with an agent who uses video marketing, yet less than 1% use video to market their property. Pretty strong statistics if you are into the laws of supply and demand.
So why not make videos of your listings, upload them to YouTube, and be done? One of the problems with YouTube, and many other video based sites, is the listingʼs video will get lost in the crowd. We all know how easy it is to go from watching a video on a specific topic that brought us to YouTube, to videos of cuddly kittens and silly kids biting fingers because of the related videos that are displayed on the same page.
In many cases, videographers will offer the mass distribution of your video to places like YouTube, Vimeo, Viddler, etc… but when the potential buyers are looking at it, all it has is the videographer’s name and maybe the property address. The viewer/buyer is hard pressed to get anymore information on the property other than what is on the video and if itʼs not branded with your information, links back to your site and social media icons it can make it tough to find you.
We are here to introduce you to a great new site to showcase your listingʼs video and yourself. A site that has the potential to become the YouTube of Real Estate. Welcome to Real Estate Live TV.
Real Estate Live TV is a worldwide, video based real estate website for Realtors to showcase their listing, marketing and informational videos. RELTV is a true search engine where a site visitor can input the desired city, price, and even beds and baths to find just what they are looking for. Think of it as a video only IDX portal. The problem it solves is your video being lost in the crowd by providing a platform to feature only real estate videos. If you are looking for a deer beating up a fat man in the woods don’t worry YouTube is still great for that. I am also not encouraging that you not upload your videos to YouTube, this post is more about helping gain exposure for a portal that I feel could become a huge consumer destination.
On RealEstateLiveTv.com, each “Property Detail Page” has the agents picture, company logo, and full contact information. Agents can upload several types of listing videos (Residential, Commercial, Apartments, etc.) whether they are For Sale, Rent, Lease or Swap and even upload local area informational video guides. I especially like the use of the Google Maps and Walkaround Jack plug ins used below the video, images and MLS description. In addition, for each listing the agent is able to upload two videos (one for the property and an additional for the agents personal marketing, neighborhood information, different language, etc.). Plus, you can upload up to 50 still photos, full property description and 3 files/disclosures per video for property disclosures, property brochures, plats, you name it. These differentiating factors and real estate specific features are why I feel a portal like this is needed in an industry where video is about to explode.
Videos can be up to 15 minutes in length. The more information you provide, the longer the site visitor will stay. All content will be centralized on their own fully branded home page with their marketing video, similar to the way YouTube allows for channels.
I also love that there will be NO ADS interfering with the content of these pages. So how much does all this cost, YouTube being free and all? For their launch special which runs through Jan 15th, 2011, we are offering all tech savvy agents a FREE account for their first 5 listings!
If you have more listings and like using their service you can upgrade plans which start at $25.00. If you decide to join during the launch special you will keep your original pricing for as long as you maintain your membership.
So get out there and get those videos made of your listings and yourself. Now is the time to separate yourself from your competition and pick up market share, video can be a big help with that.
RELTV is also launching in November a Live Show feature! You will be able to host your own LIVE TV style show to discuss anything and everything real estate!
Sign Up Now to get your first 5 listings added for free.
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Service looks great, but once again ignores your neighbors to the north.
Chris,
Great, timely post.
Video is an absolute essential in real estate (see my thoughts at http://p1fran.com/2009/12/video-killed-the-real-estate-star/), and, in the future, I believe that video will become THE method of marketing homes. The trend in that direction is huge and obvious.
I also agree that real estate videos get lost in the mix on YouTube. I think a real-estate-specific video site is a no-brainer.
Will this be the one that captures the industry’s fancy? Only time will tell, but I for one think this sounds like a great idea…
Best,
Michael
Chris,
Great info as always. I always know I’ll learn something when I wake up just visiting your site.
I completely agree with you and Michael that video is an absolute must, and it’s only a matter of time before it’s common place in real estate.
This site sounds interesting but my hang up is how likely will the public start looking for something like this? I have professional vids shot of homes and always am thinking of new ways to get people to watch them, but just aren’t sure whether or not these platforms are going to gain popularity with the mainstream public. That will be the trouble going forward with video I think, having agents find ways to display them. I use a dedicated website for each listing. (Ex: http://www.5700Coughran.com)
Cheers,
Josh
We started out using a Flip cam with a magnetic wide-angle lens to do informal video tours for our out-of-town clients. We are now posting to our own YouTube channel, Coldwell Banker YouTube channel, Facebook, our website, etc… I feel like our real estate videos get lost on YouTube. A website dedicated to real estate video would be a great idea!! Thanks for posting!
Great point Josh. My goal is that a large portal like Realtor.com would pick them up and integrate the technology where the consumers are already looking!
I love the idea, but won’t pay $40/month for a site with limited traffic. I already post video on Youtube, Facebook, Realtor.com, Real Living, and Postlets. All of that costs me much less than $40/month and the public is already seeing these sites. I wish them luck and will consider in the future… but not now.
Chris,
There is no denying the power of video.
The Coldwell Banker YouTube Channel has been very effective for a more targeted approach to reach the real estate consumer on the number 2 search engine.
By establishing a separate channel just for real estate video you may attract the people most interested in buying and selling real estate and perhaps people closer to the actual transaction process. That being said, there have been many real estate only websites come and go, I agree with Michael, would this one have staying power?
Brokers would still need to upload videos to multiple channels for maximum exposure, you just don’t know what search engines people are going to use.
As always thanks for finding new resources for the RE industry and bringing them to our attention.
Regards,
LA
Linda your welcome. I think my goal is that when you think real estate video what site do you think of? NONE thus the need.
Parrett group I agree. Take the 5 free listings. Also see my comment above about this type of technology integrating into the already established consumer known search portals like a Realtor.com, Trulia etc…
I think there is a definite need to have something like this. The call to action aspect alone is huge! The fact that the people are staying on your video channel and not off watching cuddly kittens makes this product a no-brainer for real estate agents.
As for the traffic issue. Yes, YouTube does have more traffic. But most of the traffic there is looking for those cute puppies or darling children. The ones that are specifically looking for real estate videos have a hard time finding them.
I think if this site can get some good funding and some good site work rolling they can own the market on real estate video and get some major traffic.
Remember, when sites like Zillow and Trulia started nobody had heard of them. The same holds true for ActiveRain. But now all of those are getting millions of hits each month. I think getting the traffic is going to be easier than some may think. I mean agents are going to be telling prospective clients where to get to the videos, brokerages will be promoting their channel here too. I bet if the big box companies get the opportunity to set up something like this for their agents with call to actions available, they will even want to jump on board.
I’m jumping all over those 5 freebies!
I understand your thought of the integration, but wouldn’t they just add the (Realtor.com already does) video to their own offerings? Plus I just wish most of those sites would go away (not RELTV of course). Too much noise and, eventually, a threat to my profession.
Great post though. Even if I choose not to use certain products, I darn well better know about them. You never fail to inform.
I am not to familiar with Real Estate Live tv but am not ruling it out. I personally use wellcomemat.com. I love it! I pay for the pro version which is $25 a month. The tools that they have are out of this world easy. The platform and website I think is much more professional than realestatelive or youtube. I have been a member for 3 years now and have not found a company so focused on the customer first. I think that Tech Savvy needs to check them out. Oh, did I mention they are the first to do a “Video Report!” I am 100% satisfied with wellcomemat.com. Anyone doing video needs to check them out. http://www.homesbydale.com
Josh – Neighbors to the North? Canada? They can sign up for memberships. We have listings from the UK, Costa Rica and Vietnam. So sign up for a membership today. If you have any problems, contact the RealEstateLiveTv directly, they’re very easy to deal with!
How would said videos be distributed through the MLS? Will there be non-branded versions as well?
Let’s face it, the primary source for much of the traffic of serious buyers comes from public facing MLS sites, which remain far too limiting on how realtors can market properties … so much so that in my case, if I have my own youtube channel and I were to link one of my property videos there through the MLS it would be pulled.
So …
PS … have you seen Vidlisting.com? They’re doing some really interesting stuff …
How hard would it be for youtube to add the category real estate? Or Google Videos for that matter?
A brand home page sounds like a plan! Did they say worldwide exposure?
Commerical Agents should be thrilled! (longer sale cycle in some case-must be cheaper than loopnet).
Here’s the page that describes all that value:
http://www.realestatelivetv.com/subscriptions/subscribe
Oh wait. Did I read that right? Is this for FSBOs or Agents? The section on what they offer FSBOs makes me wonder . . .A site that tries (promises) to offer too much at one time makes me cringe, but I’m with the Parret Group. 5 free listing could make me a believer.
Oh, by the way, I googled an address of a property on real estate live tv and well, I didn’t find the video.
Real Estate Live TV has a lot of backlinking, SEO and page ranking to do. . .We all know that real estate is a competitive market. They might want to extend that free trial.
This site kind of reminds me of Tweetlister. It had a novelty offering in the beginning, but then I started to ask myself why reinvite the wheel? We have systems that work. (I don’t know. I clearly have mix feelings). . .
What’s up Chris!?
First I gotta say – I’m a huge fan of the site. You guys fill a need for sure.
Jim Duncan’s commment is spot on. ARMLS (Greater Phoenix) uses flexmls which allows agents to embed non-branded videos. It’s too bad youtube embed code has youtube branding because that’s a rules violation, but at least there are some REALTOR®-centric pay-for sites out there (Animoto and WellcomeMat) that offer non-branded video embed code.
All REALTOR.com, Zillow, Listhub, (whoever) needs to do is figure out how to pull the video embed code already associated with the listings through the pipes. It would immediately get the videos to the eyes of the consumer.
I think the fact REALTOR.com charges REALTORS® to add video to their listings helps maintain the huge discrepancy between those wanting video and those using video. It just hit me that with the acquisition of listhub, they are able to protect that revenue stream since they won’t let their competitors have videos either. Damn.
Thanks again for all the great tech articles! And for letting me up on the soapbox.
Video is a very important piece for REALTORS to focus on. People shop online so much that you have to be able to give them as much data and “feel” as possible about the property. Even on our live chat tool we offer a video feed to play a listing videos. That has shown great promise for automotive and will also work great for real estate. These types of sites have a lot value until the day the biggest players start integrating video more aggressively which should happen very soon in my opinion.
We have had tremendous success in the Baton Rouge, LA market with getting Realtors to list on http://www.brHomelistings.com primarily because it’s free AND because we push for agents to include video. In fact the listing pages highlight video first when it’s included and also buyers can filter out listings that don’t have video–a real incentive to include video!
Wow! This is just fantastic!
I am in total agreement with the above post…video is very useful in marketing a home and is extremely inexpensive to create…not to mention it is a green marketing strategy which is perfect for LA right about now, and I do marketing for 2 LA agents–The Rich Group! So I love this!
My question to you is, will this new “TV” channel have it’s own marketing strategy…in other words, how are the home buyers and investors out there going to come to know if it’s existence and to consider it a credible source…one they’re likely to go among their first few clicks of searching the market?
Obviously we as members of RealEstateTV.com will be promoting our listings by including a link to it everywhere else the listing is promoted, but what is RealEstateTV.com planning to do to gain awareness among the consumer communities out there?
PS: Did I mention I love this!
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I think video is important but not so much for listings. While there is a wow factor, they are not very good for a couple of reasons.
The lack of ease of good “edited” videos. Most agents are not very good at it. Pros can be a little pricey for most listings.
If you are doing it to appease a seller, then grow a pair, 25-35 well taken wide angle lens photos do more than enough to portray the home.
Better to have 25 good photos than a mediocre video.
As the end user it is so much easier to navigate through a bunch of photos than a video
Sites like these were actually discussed at a recent REBarCamp. And I believe the points are very valid:
1) Buyers look for REAL ESTATE, not videos. They want to see ALL properties in their market for sale that meet their requirements. Why would anyone choose to look at a site that probably has less than 1% of available properties for sale?
2) Realtors will NEVER remove sold houses or change prices on sites like these. They just won’t. Therefore, the inventory will be not current, in addition to 99% of the available houses not even shown.
3) Why would someone pay to upload videos to a site that buyers have no interest in? Especially when there are plenty of sites that offer free uploads? Buyers are searching on real estate sites that feature ALL listings, such as the MLS, Realtor.com, Zillow, Trulia, etc.
RealeFlix was a similar site. They just folded, as have others. This concept is just flawed in every possible way. It just doesn’t make any sense.
For a property video to be relevant content to an active home buyer it needs to be connected to an active listing.
So at the end of the day as video explodes onto the scene sites like Realtor.com, Trulia and Zillow that have huge active listings and certainly company sites like Remax and Coldwell Banker will be the aggregator with a simple button to click “Show listings with video”.
I suspect as this plays out those videos linked on these big sites will be true videos and not an oversized photo slideshow shoved into a video player.
Wellcomemat now filters those out and doesn’t allow pseudo video photo tours and so will other sites that want to attract buyers looking for real full motion tours.
All the other video sites that regularly popup I just call Whack a Mole Sites ….they popup and soon after the market whacks um!
Mark Passerby, HDHat.com
As at least one other poster said. Real Estate DOES have it’s own “YouTube”…it’s Wellcomat.com
The difference with a youtube channel and Wellcomemat.com might seem small, but it is huge IMHO. And it has to do with SEO.
When someone watches a video on youtube, in simplest terms, youtube gets the Search engine cred. So if you link to a youtube vid in your own website, you are doing yourself a disservice. Your website does not enjoy the benefit of having video content.
Well, somehow, Wellcomemat has overcome this. If you have your vid hosted by WM…your site gets the SE cred. THIS IS BIG!!
http://www.PropertyTube.com is the “YouTube of Real Estate” It looks like it accommodates the whole world and it’s completely free. You are able to search listings by area and all the properties are showcased by video. Agents and real estate companies get there own “channel”. This beats any other platform attempting to be the “YouTube of Real Estate” It still looks pretty new but the platform looks great! I expect this site to blow up..