Property listings: why photos are no longer enough

Property listing photos were long the be-all and end-all of selling. A good set of photos, a wide angle, a blue sky, and the listing was ready. But today, every listing looks the same. The same framing, the same bright living rooms, the same grey sofas. Here is why photos alone are no longer enough, and how video completes your listing so it truly stands out.

The problem with photos

Photos are not bad. They have become ordinary. Three problems keep coming up:

• They all look alike. Scroll through ten listings on a portal: it becomes hard to tell them apart.
• They show rooms without connecting them. A photo of the living room, one of the kitchen, one of the bedroom. But how do you get from one to the other? Where is the kitchen in relation to the garden?
• They sometimes distort. Very wide-angle lenses make rooms look bigger. Buyers know it, and they are wary.

The result: the buyer looks quickly, compares prices and moves on to the next listing.

What the buyer feels

A buyer does not choose a house from a list of rooms. They choose it because they can picture themselves living there. They imagine morning coffee on the terrace, dinners with friends, the children in the garden.

A still photo conveys these feelings poorly. It does not show the light moving round, the calm of a street, the volume of a living room under exposed beams. That is everything that makes people fall in love with a house, and it is exactly what photos lack.

Photos all look alike. A film lets you feel the place. And what you feel, you want to live.

Photo and video: a winning pair

This is not about dropping photos. They remain essential on the portals, and buyers use them to check a detail. The ideal is to combine them:

| Medium | Its role | | --- | --- | | Photos | Inform, let people go back to a detail | | Video | Convey the feeling, make people want to visit | | Drone views | Place the property in its surroundings |

Video connects the rooms, shows the outdoors and the view, and above all it travels on social media, where listing photos never go.

Concrete examples

The places filmed by AchMedia Real Estate have been seen by more than 100 million people, without paid advertising. No set of listing photos reaches that level of visibility.

On Koh Samui, a villa was filmed then published on social media, with its price shown. It was then sold. In Marrakech, Riad O'Zeen totalled more than 108,400 views thanks to its videos, and received many requests for direct bookings. Two stories, one conclusion: video goes where photos do not.

How to go about it

1. Keep quality photos for the portals, taken in natural light and without excessive distortion.
2. Add a video that follows a route: arrival, entrance, living spaces, outdoors, view.
3. Film by drone if your house has a garden, a pool or a view.
4. Share the video on social media and add it to your listing when the portal allows.
5. Take stills from the film: they give your whole listing visual consistency.

To prepare your house before the photos and the film, follow our preparation checklist.

Getting your photos right anyway

Even if video takes over, good photos are still useful. A few rules:

• Shoot in natural light, shutters and curtains open.
• Hold the camera straight, at chest height, to avoid leaning walls.
• Avoid extreme wide angles that distort rooms.
• Tidy before every shot: one stray object draws all the attention.
• Choose the order of the photos: the most beautiful first, then a logical route.

A good set of photos reassures the buyer who has already watched the film and wants to check a detail.

Stills taken from a film

A video shoot also produces still images. Taken from the best shots, they are highly consistent with the film: same light, same grading, same point of view. Used on the portals, they give your listing a visual signature that immediately sets it apart from the neighbouring listings.

What buyers really look at

Buyers spend little time on each listing. Their eyes go first:

1. To the first image, which decides whether they open the listing.
2. To the price and location.
3. To the living spaces and the outdoors.
4. To the video, if there is one, to get an overall picture.

That is why the first image and the video deserve the most care. Read also our article on the hook in the first 3 seconds.

The right order of images in a listing

The order of the photos counts as much as their quality:

1. The main photo: the strongest, often the facade, the pool or the view.
2. The living spaces, to show the volumes.
3. The kitchen.
4. The bedrooms, starting with the most beautiful.
5. The bathrooms.
6. The outdoor areas, garden and terraces.
7. An aerial view, to place the property.

This order follows the route of a real viewing and helps the buyer understand the property. Putting the film at the top of the listing, where the portal allows, changes things further still.

When to redo your photos

If your listing has been online for several weeks without enquiries, or if visitors say they are disappointed compared with the photos, it is time to redo the presentation. Redoing the images is often the moment to switch to video, and to revive interest in a property the market has already seen. Read our article on how to sell your house faster.

Frequently asked questions

Do the portals accept videos?

More and more portals let you add a video or a link to one. Check the ones you use. Either way, the video can be shared on social media.

Should you redo the photos if you already have a listing?

If your photos are dark or old, yes. And if your listing is not generating viewings, adding a video is often the best way to relaunch it. Read why a house isn't selling.

Is a phone video enough?

For a simple property, a well-shot phone video is better than nothing. For a property of character, a professional film with drone footage makes a real difference.

How many photos should a listing have?

Enough to cover each important room and the outdoors, without repetition. Fifteen beautiful photos are better than forty approximate ones.

Should you retouch the photos?

Light adjustments to brightness and colour are normal. On the other hand, altering reality, such as replacing a grey sky or erasing a defect, always ends up disappointing the buyer.

How much do professional photos cost?

It varies with the photographer and the size of the property. A complete video shoot often provides stills too, which saves paying for two services.

And your listing?

Watch our films to see the difference from a standard listing, and discover our guide to property video. Let's talk about it in 20 minutes, free of charge.