Most people erroneously think that there is that one elusive “next best thing” that can be used exclusively to sell their home, and don’t understand that any

successful marketing plan has to incorporate a hybrid approach to maximizing exposure for any listing.  We at The Sugar Team understand this and therefore, incorporate a diverse marketing plan to appeal equally to local buyers, out-of-towners and other real estate agents.  That’s why we do everything from putting up the most eye-catching yard signs, hiring a professional photographer, custom-designing full-color flyers, advertising in the local newspaper, performing open houses (when appropriate), paying for spotlight ads in Realtor.com and Zillow, to getting the word out throughout the Internet, whether it be Craigslist, facebook, Trulia and of course, the Multiple Listing Service (MLS).  However, if you were to ask, “what is that one marketing tool that is head and shoulders above the rest, what would it be?”, it probably would be Virtual Tours.

Virtual Tours are an interactive, multi-media presentation of a listing through the Internet that combines still photography, music, animation, panoramic photos and key community demographics, all wrapped up in one seamless, professional package.  Virtual Tours are distributed to the MLS, Realtor.com, personal Websites, social media sites, among others.  As upwards of 89% of buyers begin their search via the Internet, the more exposure on the Web, the better.  Virtual Tours fulfill the function of feeding to multiple sites, getting crucial information to as many people as quickly as possible.  At the same time, since we design the Virtual Tours, we maintain control over how they are viewed, maintaining their true integrity.

Probably the one aspect that Virtual Tours understands more than any other marketing tool is that when we are selling a home we aren’t just selling a piece of property, we are selling a lifestyle.  Nothing embodies the true feeling of a mid-century modern than the sultry jazz stylings of a Stan Getz and nothing captures elegant South West architecture like a beautiful flamenco guitar.  At the same time buyers always want to know “what the neighborhood is like” and Virtual Tours are great because they incorporate a 360-degree panoramic photo of the front of the house, providing the buyer an idea of the home’s surroundings.  Virtual Tours are the next best thing to actually being there in person.

Of course, we at The Sugar Team are not only huge proponents of Virtual Tours, we take them one step further.  First, we hire a professional photographer to shoot our listings and we use those beautiful images in all of our Virtual Tours.  Second, using the “sell a lifestyle” motto, if the home is close to the University of New Mexico we’ll include images of the campus, and if the home is by a library, golf course or dog park, they also will go in the tour.  Virtual Tours coupled with an agressive marketing plan which attracts locals, out-of-towners as well as other agents, and you’ve got yourself a dynamite team dedicated to selling your home as quickly and as painlessly as possible.

Useful Links

The Sugar Team Site

Search Albuquerque Virtual Tours

Albuquerque Multiple Listing Service

Real Estate Seller Marketing Tools