TOP TIPS FOR DIY ESTATE AGENCY VIDEO CONTENT

Over the past few years the use of video in a business marketing strategy has increased ten-fold.  The benefits of using a video on your business website has shown to increase conversions by up to 80%, which is incredible.

In a people industry, it is of huge importance to build a rapport with your customer as quickly as possible, and there is no faster or more effective way to do that, than to make a video telling the audience about you, or your company or your team and explain how you can help them.

Whilst it is better to utilise the services of a professional videographer or video company when you are making website video, the social media platform arena can easily be utilised with a video made on a mobile phone.

So, we have prepared a list of top tips for using your phone for corporate video, and a second list of ideas for the best video results.

TOP TIPS FOR USING YOUR PHONE FOR CORPORATE VIDEO

1.    Where possible use a selfie stick or a phone tripod to steady the phone and give a more professional feel, these can be picked up for bargain prices on Amazon.
2.    Don’t hold the phone underneath your face.  Few people can pull of this angle, and you want people to see your face and expressions clearly.
3.    Think about what you are going to say, have a practice run-through (especially important if you are new to videoing yourself) and, if necessary, put a couple of notes on a sheet that you can refer to.
4.    You need to keep it brief for social media, so practice does make perfect and the more ‘filler words’ you can cut out (‘um’ and ‘err’ for instance) can get that time down.
5.    Think about your background, the lighting and which way you need to hold the phone!  You do not want to be near a busy road or lots of noise, or out where the wind is whipping past the phone and distorting the sound.  You do not want to be on a road with your competitor’s boards behind in the distance. You don’t want to have the sun behind you or a big glass window where you will end up a silhouette against a bright blur.  You are better to hold the phone landscape for social media, remember to have the camera lens at the top or you will be filmed standing on your head.

TOP TIPS FOR VIDEO CONTENT

1.    Firstly, why not introduce yourself with a little insight into why you do the job, how long you’ve been at it, do you live locally, have kids at local schools etc. People love a ‘hero story’, explain why you got into the industry, what drives you to continue in it, and how you go about delivering top tier service in your chosen patch.
2.    How about a guest on your vlog (video blog)?  Maybe one of your industry suppliers, grab the portal account manager when they come to visit or your reference supplier etc.  You only need to ask them one question and it could be about their business, recent industry news or what they love about your brand specifically.
3.    Ask your clients to get involved at their happy points – offer accepted, contracts exchanged, collecting keys for move-in, just solved an issue or given a great service that you are being praised for.  If you don’t ask then it’s unlikely a client will volunteer, but a lot of people are used to making phone videos now, so you might be pleasantly surprised. If they say no to video, they will probably give you a photo and a review!
4.    Give a news update and offer your advice or opinion on the subject.  Just be chatty and keep it brief and easy to follow. With most social sites you can even add the transcript to run across the screen, in case the viewer cannot put the sound on!
5.    Give away some free advice, never sell on a social video.  If you have a free download you can direct them to a webpage that captures their email if they are happy to subscribe, but don’t fall foul of general data protection regulations.
6.  Run campaigns and competitions.  People love a #ThrowbackThursday and getting to see photos of your staff as cute babies.
7.  Start giving tours of properties with your own commentary.  A well paced walk through of a property with key benefits and selling points highlighted as you go will offer a new level of insight to those scrolling your social media feeds. Or utilise the Instagram stories functionality and create a story for each room.

 

Video content from agents is having a real moment on social media right now with a lot of people getting involved doing no more than what we have outlined above.  A selfie stick, a good dose of self confidence and a brief but concise message is all you need to increase your engagement and brand awareness.