How to Win More Real Estate Listings with Animoto

For the past 12 years, I have been teaching real estate professionals how to take advantage of easy-to-use tools like Animoto, and I consult on technology best practices to help agents grow their real estate businesses.

After being a fan and advocate of Animoto’s Slideshow Video Builder for several years, I’m very excited about their new Marketing Video Builder that is available to Animoto Professional and Business subscribers, or anyone using the free account.

Here are 4 features in the Marketing Video Builder that I’m really excited about and why real estate agents should check them out.

1. Storyboards

Think of storyboards as pre-built templates that are designed to help you get started with your video project. By choosing a storyboard, you will be guided through how to create a great marketing video from start to finish. There are currently 3 real estate storyboards to choose from:

Property Listing

I’ve already previously shared 3 easy ways to use Animoto to stand out online and win more listings. Everyone should start here to stand out from your competition when meeting with prospective sellers to win their business. And while you can use both the Slideshow Video Builder and the new Marketing Video Builder to create property listing videos, there is a beautiful storyboard that is perfect for anyone just getting started with video.

Agent Testimonial

Word of mouth is still the best referral that you can get so you should absolutely amplify any rave reviews that you get with the power of video! That said, most people are shy when it comes to promoting themselves, which is why the Agent Testimonial storyboard is so handy. If you’re not sure how to showcase awards that you’ve won or your clients’ rave reviews after working with you, use this storyboard as an example to follow.

Listing Presentation

I always say this no matter what you’re posting on social media, whether it’s a live video or an edited video that you create with Animoto – don’t be overly concerned about view count. It’s all about getting the right view by your next seller. So, make sure to have at least one really good HD-quality video on your iPad or tablet, downloaded — not streaming. This will ensure that you’re able to show off videos of your properties wherever you are — at listing presentations, in-person meetings, or on-the go — whether or not you have internet access.

2. Voice-over

Video is the next best thing to showing someone a property in person, and it’s a great way to demonstrate your sales skills to prospective sellers too. The Marketing Video Builder has a fantastic voice-over feature that you can use to record your voice directly into your Animoto video project. I recommend recording in a quiet room and using a microphone (the one included on your earphones is better than not using one at all). Simply record yourself as though you were walking the viewer through the home, block by block. You can always go back until you get each recording exactly the way you want it.

3. Text Control

While recording voice-over is a great way to give someone a tour, you’re going to have to attract attention to your video with no audio on at first if you plan to post the video to social media. That’s because a majority of videos on social sites such as Facebook and Instagram are auto-played with the sound off until the viewer has decided to click to watch your video with the audio on.

Luckily, all of the video styles and/or storyboards included with Animoto’s Marketing Video Builder include animated text that draws the viewer’s attention as words fly in and out of each block of your video.

You can also create a video project that is centered on providing data or education through the use of text, such as with this Market Report video created by Maria Rey-Perez of Weichert Realtors in Clinton, New Jersey.

4. Collages

Video length and video completion percentage are important factors being considered in Facebook’s optimization algorithm to determine how to prioritize content in the news feed. Collages are a great way to standout by showcasing multiple images at once so that you can capture attention quickly and then tease viewers to a lead capture page or a listing page where they can learn more and contact you.

Ready to try out the new Marketing Video Builder? Look out for more Animoto tutorials from me coming soon. Then, join the Animoto Social Video Marketing Community Facebook Groupto get inspired and share your videos.