Zoom, Facetime, TikTok, and Facebook Live are all great tools. So, why not use them as your free go-to virtual tour app for your property? You can do that, but you’ll quickly find that they don’t get the job done.
Ultimately, it boils down to functionality and needs within the multifamily industry. FaceTime was originally built for individual/personal use. Zoom was built for business meetings across industries (not more so a way for families to connect ever since COVID). The point is that these tools don’t offer the same benefits as virtual tour software. Virtual tour software, like Realync 👋, was built for the multifamily industry.
When you are investing in a virtual tour creator or app for your community, you want one that’s meant for leasing teams. And, most importantly, you want a tool that caters to how prospective renters shop – online, in-person, or a blend of both. Below we dive into our top reasons why FaceTime and Zoom aren’t the way to go in multifamily.
Lack of Analytical Insights
There is extreme value in data-driven decision-making. However, helpful analytics are difficult to get when using apps like Facetime or Zoom as a free virtual tour app or free virtual tour software.
The best virtual tour software and apps built for multifamily are going to allow for robust data collection. You want more than just the high-level data like how many people liked your videos on a social media platform. You want to know what each individual prospect is doing with your videos and what part of the video engaged them most.
Those types of insights will inform your overall leasing and marketing strategies. They will help your leasing and sales teams know what step to take next with prospects and allow them to complement the actions your prospect is taking. If they viewed a link you sent or they had a live virtual tour, you and your team can use that information to inform your personalized follow-up. Whether it’s a phone call or email, you’ll be able to stay top of mind with useful, relevant information and next steps based on the insights your data analytics provided.
No Integration Opportunities with Existing Systems
Virtual tour apps should seamlessly integrate with your existing multifamily technology. The most popular free video apps don’t have the ability to share information with your CRM system or PMS software.
If you’re going to do virtual tours or integrate video into your leasing and marketing processes, you’ll want a platform that will talk with the rest of your tech stack. That allows these systems to pass data back and forth. You’ll be able to examine broad analytics paired across systems to see what’s working and what isn’t, what types of prospects are reaching out for virtual tours, and how many of those virtual tours are turning into in-person tours or signed leases.
The Need for Multiple Apps
With apps like Zoom or FaceTime, you most likely will need to use other apps or software tools to edit. They don’t provide a one-app solution to record and edit all in a centralized place. You’ll end up having to layer other apps to get the results you want.
For example, you may record a video tour with one of the free apps available. However, you’re then finding and using another app to layer graphics or text or branding on top. Or if you want to include music or voice-over, you’ll need a different solution to layer. Or if you want to stitch specific clips together, Zoom doesn’t have a way to do that in the native app. With a built for multifamily video leasing solution like Realync, all of those things are possible within the same app without laying in other apps.
Poor End-user Experience
With some of these apps, the end-user experience can be a bit clunky or overly complicated. Part of the reason for knowing how to create a virtual tour is to create an easier experience for the prospect. With Zoom, they would have to download and use the Zoom app. With FaceTime, the prospect would need an Apple device. If they have an Android, that’s going to be a hiccup in the process.
With Realync, however, those potential struggles are largely eliminated. It’s one-click for a user to join and there is no software needed to download. It provides the ease and simplicity both leasing teams and prospects want in a video tool.
Compromise Brand Integrity
Many marketing dollars go into creating a brand identity, building brand assets and ensuring those brand standards are met. From color palettes to logos to fonts, each property has a carefully designed brand they don’t want to compromise. With some of the free virtual tour apps out there, it’s pretty difficult to keep all those brand standards in tact.
At the corporate level, marketing teams don’t have insight into what those video experiences look like or what the conversations entail. With the Realync platform, however, those brand standards are all integrated into the software. Your property’s color palette, fonts…all of it is included and easy to use. That ensures videos and experiences appear seamless and consistent across all vehicles.
In the end, when it comes to virtual tour apps, it can be tempting to go with the free or very low-cost options. However, when you add up the real cost, including what you don’t get, you will quickly realize why less isn’t always more.
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