Post COVID-19- Resetting for growth with virtual tours

The COVID- 19 brought a sudden change into the business climate all over the world. We saw lockdowns, curfews and self-isolation policies being implemented at lightning speed to prevent the spread of the virus. This sudden change, affected many businesses who were not ready for such a rapid shift. 

This rapid shift created a lot of issues and challenges for many businesses, big and small.  To avert the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses around the world had to react in so many different ways. As we move forward into what I will call the next phase, now is the time for businesses to strategize and seize the opportunities emerging in the recovery period. I would imagine that this should involve conducting learning reviews to gather insights on lessons learned from the pandemic, and then use these to strategize and develop actions to enhance their businesses now and build strategic resilience for the future. I believe that businesses that take these steps now will be well positioned for more opportunities rising post-COVID-19.

Moving forward from this experience- ‘The COVID-19 crisis’, any company that invests time and energy, adequately prepares by envisaging upcoming risks and coming up with the right actions is more likely to turn potential surprises into strategic opportunities.

The COVID-19 outbreak left a lot of industries in Nigeria ravaged, Real Estate inclusive. For the Real Estate industry, most often it is vital for potential buyers to scrutinize a property before purchasing. During the pandemic, this was almost impossible due to the lockdown and afterwards buyer behavior change due to COVID-19 concerns and increased risks.

Although the reality was that the pandemic made social distancing a priority for all of us, there was still a need for housing.  Realtors began to seek out new ways to increase their reach to potential buyers. The rest of the world rapidly shifted to digital platforms to keep their businesses running and clients engaged, it was only a matter of time before the real Estate industry also took the plunge. Thanks to our virtual tours, which  gives a comprehensive visualization of properties, this has increased the rate at which its Clients sell properties.

A virtual tour can be described as a digital recreation of any physical space, be it an indoor or outdoor location, such as ware-houses, shopping malls, offices, farms, parks, hospitals, hotels e.t.c.

We use a specialized rig in shooting 360 images or videos, which are then stitched together to create the illusion of walking through any space online on a phone, PC, tablet or VR headset to get a more immersive experience.

There are several ways we implement digital house marketing strategies, we have:

• 360 Virtual tours

With a proprietary specialized camera rig, we create customized 360 virtual tours for our clients. Today, the increased availability and affordability of 360 cameras makes it possible for people to create virtual tours at ease, however quality has always been an issue. In presenting images or videos to potential buyers online, it is imperative that they must be of high quality. Most virtual tours produced with certain 360 cameras all look the same, however utilizing a customized camera rig always gives the opportunity to create unique tours for various clients.

• Virtual Staging

This is a very helpful tool for potential buyers, allowing them to envision fully furnished rooms in vacant homes. It involves the creation of virtually staged photos of vacant homes, producing exceptionally photorealistic staged photos. Because majority of potential home buyers say that the photos are the most important factor when viewing a home online, it is imperative that the output from any virtual staging is realistic.

• VR Experiences

Virtual Reality experiences can be created from our virtual tours, which make it a more immersive experience for most of our clients. We have implemented a number of briefs which included not just the production of online virtual tours but also making them compatible for VR viewing.

• 3D Virtual Tours

From floor plans we can create 3D Architectural models of properties and make virtual tours and VR experiences out of. These can be viewed via mobile phones, PC, tablets and VR headsets as well.

There are also options to add more information to the tours which can include anything from text, still images, videos, tour guide videos, voice overs, testimonial videos to animated graphics.

The Real Estate industry needs to embrace the new landscape, which is mostly delivered digitally. We should see an increase in investment into digital platforms and services that can deliver strategies to reduce overhead cost and keep business afloat. I believe that 360 virtual tours are a great option for real estate agents to display their properties without a physical tour and it has proven to be the most cost- effective option.

As the market adjusts to this new normal of social distancing and to be prepared for a similar situation in the future, these tours will continue to play a key role in real estate moving forward. I also believe that before the pandemic, a few companies had already adopted this format, this pandemic has certainly pushed this format into high gear!