In the post-pandemic world, ensuring that your commercial property can be toured and understood remotely is essential for it to compete in the marketplace.  Due to the Pandemic, tenants are increasingly wary of letting strangers walk through their buildings–this is especially true for multifamily.

Reasons for the increasing popularity of 3d Virtual tours:

  • Social Distancing Requiremetns
    1. Showings are more complicated now than ever—many buyers are hesitant to view space, and many tenants don’t want strangers in their buildings.
    2. During this time, commercial properties with 3d virtual tours will stand out against their competitors.
  • 3d Tours create More traffic
    1. More than 50% of buyers said they’d consider buying a house sight unseen if theyere was a 3d tour for the property.
    2. Matterport cided data that shows that agents who use 3d tour technology sell properties 31% faster and at a 9% higher price.
  • 3d tours Help tell the story of the property
    1. 3d tours create virtual spaces that a buyer or tenant can use to understand the layout and feel of a property.  They help convey the visual information that can be difficult to explain in text or in still photos.
    2. Some 3d tours also create floorplans or “Dollhouses” that help make it easy for a prospect to visualize the space.
  • 3d Tours help with Out of Town Buyers/Tenants
    1. Prospects are often looking at many options from far away, and you have just a few moments to capture their attention. A 3d Tour makes it easy for them to understand.
    2. “Decision makers aren’t always able to tour every property, 3d tours give them a feel for the space and ensures that your building is in consideration.” Peter McGuone, CBRE, SVP

What different types of tours are there?

    • 3d Virtual Tours–these are rendered, and allow you to virtually walk through a property.  Matterport is a good example of this sort.
      • With 3d Virtual Tours, lots of scans are processed to create a rendering of the space.  These are the most immersive, giving a user the ability to tour the space.  These are also some of the most challenging to create.  For an example see this video.  
      • Also, for an overview of all the major providers of Virtual Tour Software, see Ben Claremont’s video on the subject.
    • Virtual Tour–think zillow’s tour feature.  These tours aren’t rendered, so really they’re more like a collection of 3d pictures, that are labelled.
      • You can still click on “Living Room” or “Foyer” and look around the different 360 pics, but you can’t virtually walk through the building.  On some platforms, you can click on an adjacent picture, and it will take you there, but it’s not as smooth as a 3d Virtual Tour.
    • Video Tour–This is a video tour.  They can be guided or unguided.
      • Guided – These are useful and often can be a great supplement to a 3d virtual tour.  The guide can walk through the space, describing the features and benefits of the space,
      • Unguided – Think of a video camera being taken through a property–Zillow has a video tour feature and most of the videos placed there are unguided video walkthroughs.

We’d love to hear your experience with 3d Virtual Tours.  As a Broker–do you currently use them and have they been helpful?  As an Owner–how important is it to you to have 3d tours on your listings?