Elevate your marketing without breaking the bank.
Walkthrough videos can help more potential buyers connect with your listing. While you could pay a professional to create them for you, it’s not beyond your reach to tackle on your own and achieve pleasing results. Here are some tips for taking the DIY approach.
Get equipped
Your phone camera is all you need to get started, but you may want to use an app that lets you adjust the automatic settings. Use the highest frame rate you can and set the shutter speed to at least twice the frame rate, so the image won’t flicker. If you’re willing to make a small investment, get a tripod with a slider for smooth pans across a room and/or a gimbal for steadier shots as you move through the home.
Set the stage
If there is any last-minute decluttering to do, tackle that first. Is there a pile of mail on a counter or shoes by the door? Hide anything you don’t want to show, including your own gear. Close closet doors and toilet seats.
Light it right
Turn on lights and open curtains. If you can choose your timing, a partly cloudy day gives the best natural light.
Chart your course
Walk through the home as if you were touring it yourself and notice what you find most appealing about it. Make a list of the shots you want for your video, in the order you will show them. Plan to take at least two 5-10 second clips in each area and edit your best shots together later. Especially in important parts of the home, like the kitchen and living room, take more video than you think you will need, so you’ll have plenty to work with if something is flawed.
Get to the point
Start with an inviting scene of the exterior of the home and then quickly go inside. Your audience will decide almost instantly whether the video interests them, so don’t delay the action with a long intro, large logo, or lots of text.
Go with the flow
Follow a logical progression through the house, so viewers get a sense of how the spaces relate to each other. If there is a back yard or other outdoor space, be sure to walk out into that area from the home. You can speed up or cut out boring transitions like long hallways, but be careful not to confuse the audience about where they are and how they got there.
Keep your focus
When you move from one room to another, the light levels may change and your camera may lose the focus you want. You can work around this by taking separate shots in each room.
Remember the audience
It’s easy to get caught up in the fun of making movies and forget that the goal is to let viewers see through you and imagine themselves in the home. A cinematic closeup of an art object may look great, but the art likely won’t convey with the home, and viewers want to be able to see the whole room. Have confidence in the home to keep the audience’s interest and don’t distract them from what they came to see.
Put it all together
Edit your video to include the strongest scenes in the most direct and pleasing order. If you add music, be sure you have the rights to use it across all platforms where you’ll post. Keep any text minimal and try not to cover too much of the screen. The simpler you can make your presentation, the easier it will be for viewers to feel that they are walking through the home right by your side.