Engagement is the Name of the Game When It Comes to Listing Photos! How Are You Doing?

If your home is on the market, you probably know that you need to have lots of pictures posted to market it well. After all, most buyers start their home search on line, which means that this is typically the showing that your listing will receive. When the buyer comes through your front door, this is actually the second showing that your home will receive from that buyer.

Future buyers aren’t the only ones viewing, and critiquing, your online photos.

Friends and family looking on behalf of a buyer, other Realtors, home inspectors, and appraisers are all looking at those photos too - and commenting to each other and the buyer.

Probably Realtors are the most critical. If we see less than perfect photos, we are thinking…
Why did the seller do that? What was that seller thinking? Why would the seller allow those photos on the MLS?

Of course, not every listing will be a model home but it is important to set your listing apart from other listings. Make sure that your property is shown in the best possible light.

So even though you may not be able to do everything to make your home like an HGTV clone, there are some things you can focus on ...
* Clean all the kitchen counters off. Even though you use your Keurig every day you can put still put it away for the photos. Clean the magnets off the refrigerator. PLEASE put away the dishtowels hanging on the stove and the sponges in the sink.
* Make all the beds!
* Put the toilet seats down!
* Move any trash bags, laundry baskets, and wastebaskets out of the pictures. When taking pictures of your garage or driveway, move the trashcans out of sight. Roll up the garden hose and put the fertilizer on the yard rather than left in plain view!
* Pick up all the small rugs on the floor. They are visually distracting in a photo and they may be a slip hazard when your property is shown.

* Don't leave the cable cords wandering around an empty room in a vacant home. Roll it up or try to push it back into the wall!
* Turn all the lights on and open the drapes and blinds. Your buyer is probably not moving from a mushroom farm. Most buyers value sunlight.
* Don't post any pictures of a room with you reflected in a mirror, taking the picture.
* As charming as your children and pets are.... do not put them in the pictures of your home. At a minimum, they are distracting because they are so darn huggable. At worst, you can be jeopardizing their safety by sharing their photos with strangers.
* Try to add a few photos of the neighborhood or nearby parks and other recreation areas. Buyers like to know what is nearby.

Here’s what you can do to improve your photos on line …
~Make sure you hire or use a professional photographer. A professional photographer knows how to take a picture even in a small bathroom with lots of mirrors and not show up in the picture! It is worth it to put your best foot forward.
If all this sounds like too much to handle on top of getting ready to move, then call the Lise Howe Group at 240-401-5577 or email us at lise@lisehowe.com. We pride ourselves on our great marketing, including still photos, video and 3-D marketing. We will make sure that your photos and video are as special as your home is!