Your Substandard Photo Could be Damaging Your Listing

It's really not enough to say, "Pictures of your email listings are very important!". They are *imperative* to your success in marketing properties. Studies have proven consistently that property listings without pictures sink to the bottom of the MLS barrel. Even one picture is better, but you - you, who markets yourself as being in your clients' best interests, have no excuse for not taking the time or spending the money for some high resolution, staged photographs that show the buyers exactly what you want them to see.

If you have a listing with one blurry photo, don't expect people to beat down your door asking about it. Perhaps it's not enough that most buyers are going to whip by your listing like racing greyhounds; the ones that actually look at your listing - you know, the ones you want to CALL or EMAIL you - are going to look at that blurry photo and come to some uncomplimentary conclusions about the home's worth. If you obviously don't think the home is worth having some careful pictures taken, why should they think it's worth the price it's listed at? Why bother calling at all about a place that's bad enough to only merit one lousy photo?

Decent quality pictures make a subtle statement about the home's value; obviously a home that has been given stellar photographic treatment must be worth such treatment. Despite the importance of cold, hard facts (the living room is 12x12 feet; the property is 3 acres), giving home buyers great pictures to look at is going to be what makes them call or email. Humans respond to visual cues. You can spout facts and figures all over the listing, but it won't equal the power of the beautifully staged photographs of the "large sitting room, perfect for entertaining" and the "stunning view of the lake".

Pictures are a two-dimensional walkthrough. They can be staged, just as homes can, to emphasize the positives and de-emphasize the negatives. You don't have to hit your clients over the head that a room is small; a different perspective can turn small into "big enough". A cramped kitchen can be given some extra space with a few steps back. There are many tutorials on how to stage your home so as to get the best pictures. A good set of photos can encourage people to actually come and see the place.

If you decide to take your own photos, read up on perspective and home staging. Try to see the home how a buyer would see it and take pictures of the features that you would call a buyer's attention to. If there's a great view, take a picture of that, too. Photograph the rooms in as much natural light as possible, to give the impression of lightness and airiness. Photograph the home in bright daylight. There are many tips on the Internet that can help you in your quest to get the best pictures.

An alternative is to hire a professional photographer, who has high-quality equipment and experience with photographing real estate. Often, these people have tricks of the trade that can make dark spaces look bright and small spaces look larger. Their fee can save you a lot of time and effort producing photos that don't really give the home the look you want it to. Consider this route especially if you are too busy to take the time to take pictures and modify them to suit the site or MLS you're posting them on.

Buy, borrow or hire a good camera. It's more than worth the money and time. Pictures can make or break your listing. Use them wisely, use them a lot and make sure they showcase the great points of the property while minimizing the defects.