Video is being lauded by the industry as the next big wave. Not long ago, it seemed daunting to think of creating a video and posting it on your website. The tools were expensive and the ROI (return on investment) was not too obvious. Internet download and streaming speeds weren’t supportive either.

With small form factor high-definition video devices like Kodak’s Playtouch, taking great video and sharing it on the Web has become extremely simple and inexpensive. More consumers are flocking to online video sharing venues for information, further proof that film is more engaging than plain text. Google has also begun to place higher priority on video content in its rankings. During the month of October alone, Americans watched over 42 billion online videos!

So real estate agents, take note.

How to tap video in your marketing is an intriguing challenge. There are numerous ideas to consider. But whatever you create, heed the 60 second warning. Shortly after that threshold, consumer attention begins to wear down. Get into the two minute timeframe and you’ve likely lost the audience completely. Of course unless you’ve got some ‘intriguing’ footage media would pay millions to get their hands on.

Whether you choose to create a video to welcome your website visitors, neighborhood information and news videos, home staging tips or client testimonial videos, the 60 second guideline is ideal. It’s just the right amount of time needed to deliver a message with focus, while retaining your audience’s attention.

There is also a strong argument for 45 and 30 second clips. As you practice creating short, focused videos, you’ll get better at cutting the length of your clips for certain types of videos.

How to make the videos compelling is the next opportunity. Besides practicing with lighting and sound to ensure you have solid quality, content and flow play a critical role in the convincingness department.

Large consumer product giants figured the 60 second machine ions ago. Just like in advertising, some tricks and rules apply also to marketing videos. Through years of research and testing, corporations that largely use advertising to sell products figured how a 60 second film should be structured. They apply the same format pretty much in all their advertising campaigns and run them hundreds of times each day on TV costing millions of dollars each year. Because they deliver results. Whether the ad is in 60”, 45” or 15” format, the structure is invariably the same.

While there will be many and much more creative minds than mine out there, here is one story idea you might want to practice with. Irrespective of what your video is about, the points to remember are those that pertain to the structure and flow of the video. It’s the success formula.

Where relevant (may not apply to a property video tour), such as a staging tips video, use the first few seconds to highlight a problem. An issue that the audience associates with and relates to. Second, introduce your solution. It might be you. The home sales pro with tons of staging experience. Thirdly, share some tips on how to effectively stage a home. The next scene should be of a beautifully transformed space. A before and after shot also works great as an option, because it offers a benchmark and tangible proof for the audience. It demonstrates that you are capable of transforming their place into a more saleable home.

To go further, you could close with a secondary, powerful benefit scene. Like a happy client shaking hands with you right next to a ‘sold’ sign. Alternatively, a scene of you delivering the last lines of the video clip with a big smile, next to the ‘sold’ sign, will also do.

To recap, here is your ideal video flow:

i)               problem set up / a relevant scene where in the course of a typical process, an obstacle or challenge is encountered
ii)              introduce the solution
iii)             visualize the solution / product at work
iv)            show results / proof that the product or service delivers
v)             compelling benefit visualization

Start by writing down your copy. Once it’s ready, read it aloud. Edit it and re-edit it until it flows right. Next draw up a scene sketch above each sentence, to capture the visual flow as you envision it for your video. Decide on the shoot location and line up any models you want to include in the clip.

Try using this formula in your next video project and let us know how it turns out. Maybe a clip to convince your website visitors that you can make their home search experience easier and stress free. We’d love to share it with our community on our message boards. And of course, if you have questions along the way, drop us a note.

No one knows the real estate market better than real estate brokers and agents. Each month, Point2 produces a survey that indicates your local market direction and expectations 3, 6 and 12 months out, with specific feedback by your fellow REALTORS® to support their views, whether optimistic or pessimistic. Great advance market indicators, insight and ideas you can use to improve or alter your approach, or adjust your plans.

Be first to get this powerful information each month, free, ahead of public and media distribution, and get a chance to win a shiny new  iPad at the same time.

Just answer a few quick questions as part of the Real Estate Confidence Index survey (It only takes a minute – literally) and you are automatically subscribed to receive the survey results as soon as they are compiled. For each month that you complete the survey and provide an email address to contact you at, you are entered to win an iPad – which Point2 is giving away once every 3 months!

Complete the survey every month and your name will be entered into the drawing up to three times!  It’s that simple.

Ready, set, go! This month’s survey is only open until Monday, February 28th. Simply click the appropriate link below:

United States
Canada

Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

Consistently one of the highest traffic consumer search sites for listings, Point2 Homes views continue to grow each month.  If you use Point2 Agent or have your listings syndicated through Point2, your listings are already appearing on Point2Homes.com.

That’s a perfect start.

Want more?  If you want to have your listing at the forefront of millions of eyeballs, then it makes sense to feature your listing right front and center.  Point2 Homes’ Spotlight Ads provide you with this ability.

Premium featured placement for your listings on Point2 Homes can be yours for just $25.  Your listing will be displayed prominently, in front of many thousands of potential buyers, for 30 days.  That’s less than $1 a day.  Can you afford to?  Can you afford not to?

Here’s what one of our long-time members Norm Fisher has to say about his experiences with Spotlight Ads:

“…You’ll likely double the number of detailed views your listings receive on Point2Homes. I spend most of my advertising budget online and Point2 spotlight ads deliver the best return on a cost per click basis.”

In addition to Norm, many of our members have had great success using Spotlight Ads to advertise their listings.  You can too.

You can purchase Spotlight Ads for any of your listings very easily.

View our quick tutorial to learn how.

**Contest is now closed.  Stay tuned for more giveaways from Point2 Agent.**

Right now, our Canadian members have even more reason to purchase Spotlight Ads during the month of July.  We’re giving away a brand new Apple iPad.  In order to receive an entry into the draw, you must purchase a Spotlight Ad for Point2 Homes during the month of July.  The more you buy, the more entries you receive.

For full promotion details please click here.

And so to our Canadian members as we near Canada Day, we’ve got something you simply can’t refuse…tons of exposure for your listings on Point2 Homes – plus a chance to win an iPad.

That’s right.  We’re giving away a free Apple iPad (16GB Wi-Fi + 3G) to one lucky Canadian member.

Are you Canadian?  Then here’s how you can make this happen:

1. Purchase a Spotlight Ad for your listing(s) on Point2 Homes.
2. Sit back, relax, and enjoy premium listing placement on Point2Homes.com for 30 days.

Meanwhile, Point2 will take every Spotlight Ad purchased during the month of July and automatically enter you into the draw for the iPad.  At the end of July, we’ll draw the name of one lucky Canadian member as winner.

Seems pretty simple, right?  Believe me, it is.  Feature your listings with a Spotlight Ad on Point2 Homes right now.  Remember, the more Spotlight Ads you get, the more entries into the draw, and the more opportunities to walk away one iPad richer.

But, “How do I buy a Spotlight Ad?” you may ask.  Simple – just follow the steps here.

Enjoy your long weekend!

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And for our American and international friends here’s some fun Canadian trivia:

Did You Know?

Most Canadians don’t actually live in igloos.  Although this summer has been cold enough so far to probably have had them.

The majority of us don’t say ‘eh’ to an exaggerated degree.  I personally say ‘hey’ a lot more than ‘eh’.  Semantics.

The beaver is probably the most hardcore of all creatures.  You do not want to get into an argument with a beaver.  You will lose.

Alright, alright, I’ll stop shouting.  But just in case you haven’t been subject to the media bombardment surrounding Apple’s newest tech toy, the ‘bigger-than-an-iPhone-and-smaller-than-a-laptop’ gadget has been causing quite the stir among technology lovers everywhere.

Reminiscent of Star Trek’s PADD (Personal Access Display Device), the iPad has been proclaimed as “the best way to experience the web, email, and photos”.  This may be true, but I was hoping the newest Apple wunder-gadget would have a few more of the things that most people consider essential in a personal computing device.

No USB port?
No multitasking?
No camera?
No SD Card Slot?

I mean, c’mon…when held captive, Dr Arik Soong was able open every lock in an entire San Francisco prison using nothing but his PADD! Alright, maybe that was in space, on television, and about 150 years in the future. But still… no camera?!  Even my bulky laptop has a camera in it.

Call me a Luddite, but I’m pretty content with my current technology setup.  Perhaps I will be more inclined to pull out my credit card when version two or three comes along – or when the elements I consider a necessity are included.

But that’s just my opinion.  The bigger question is:  How will the iPad fare in the eyes of increasing tech-savvy real estate agents?  The iPad has the potential to be a game changer for real estate.

Just how, you ask?  Here’s just a few of the benefits we spotted…

- Real Time Access – make appointments, check your email, or make VOiP calls anywhere
- High def video, pictures, and virtual tours of properties
- Digital listing presentations
- Bring up neighborhood goodies from the likes of Google Street View, Yelp, or Zillow
- Possibilities for future killer apps are almost limitless. Custom mobile-CRM anyone?
- Go paperless – take care of contracts on the fly. Faxes are so 1980.

So what do you think?  Do you plan on investing in your very own modern day PADD?  Will you pre-order or brave the mobs when the iPad hits store shelves and give ‘the best online experience ever’ a try, or is this just another case of too much hype and not enough substance?