How to Make Real Estate Videos for Marketing a Home

Are you a realtor or real estate agent looking for innovative ways to showcase your properties? Animoto's free online video maker is a simple and efficient tool to help local businesses penetrate the crowded market with gripping real estate ads.

94% of marketers said paid video ads had a positive ROI for their business. To help you capitalize on this potentially enormous growth lever, we have compiled a list of the three most critical tips you can use right now to start selling more real estate.

Read on to find out how to make use of video, what to record, how to record it, and finally, how to best edit and publish your real estate marketing content.

What to record in a real estate video

The numbers are in! According to the National Association of Realtors 46% of buyers, regardless of age group, found video tours to be helpful in their home-buying process. With nearly half of all home buyers utilizing video tours as a resource, these videos are an untapped goldmine for real estate professionals.

Before you can start your foray into the world of real estate videography, you need to have a strong understanding of what buyers want to see. This includes:

Listing videos

It should be a given that prospective buyers would like to see the property. This is your opportunity to give a full rundown of the property and all it has to offer. Integrate text into your content to highlight the property's personality, history, and features. Be sure the buyers know that early-20th century ranch-style home is the perfect place for them and their family.

Neighborhoods & community videos

There is no reason to limit your videos to the single home you are selling. The ambiance and character of the locale may be an important factor in the home-buying process. There are myriad of things you can highlight in a community video, including:

• Endorsements from neighbors

• Profiles of nearby schools

• Parks and recreation centers

• Overviews of local restaurants and venues

• Festivals, community get-togethers, and neighborhood clubs

Lifestyle videos

Some neighborhoods have very distinct characteristics, servicing specific buyers' tastes. By creating lifestyle videos, you can enamor prospective buyers with the idea of integrating themselves into idealized ways of living.

Trying to attract buyers in their mid-twenties? Highlight the highest-rated cafes and bars. Looking to attract older homemakers? Showcase theaters, picnic-friendly playgrounds, and libraries. Tailoring your ad to target demographics is a tried and true method for increasing conversion.

Focus on the specifics

Every home has those specific interior design bits that set it apart from the competition. Spiral stairways, kitchen islands, 70s-era conversation pit, you name it. Taking time to specifically showcase the unique details of a home is a great way to make each home stand out from the rest.

Keep it concise

Make sure your real estate videos are prioritizing highly topical, immediately relevant information to stop your audience from quickly losing interest. Quickly hook your viewers with an engaging opening line, then close the deal with a strong call to action. Take a look at our Real Estate Service Promo template that packs valuable information into just 11 seconds:

For more top-tier real estate ideas for marketing a home with videos, see our blog filled with real estate video ideas.

How to record your real estate video

Even if you know exactly what your target buyer wants to see, you can't afford to skimp out the quality. Ensuring that the video setup is solid and the content is of a respectable quality is paramount to creating the kind of visually engaging content that is bound to rope buyers in. For starters:

Script the video

This may be the most important aspect of creating coherent video content with a natural flow. Scripting is the best way to ensure that you include everything you want to say about the property, from the interior to the yard, the roofing to the tiling, and everything in between.

Ensure all eyes are on the property and that viewers aren't distracted with too much on-screen text by adding Voice-over. Use this feature to verbalize square footage, highlight charming features, and more.

Stage the house

You want to be sure that the house looks as good as possible for potential buyers. This is doubly important if the house currently has people living in it. Buyers get a much better feel for the size and feel of the space by seeing a furnished, decorated home in the videos.

With that said, going through the house and making sure it is tidy is a must before you begin shooting photos and videos. Here’s a checklist with a few ways to tidy up your property:

• Rake the yard

• Sweep the patios and decks

• Wash or move all visible cars

• Pressure wash the driveway

• Stage the lawn equipment

• Consider staged setups such as a lawn picnic or a barbecue

• Clear all indoor counters

• Open the blinds

• Sweep and/or vacuum the floors

• Close the closest doors

• Make sure bedspreads are wrinkle-free

• Close toilet seats

Use quality equipment

Probably the most expensive factor, as well as the one of the most important, making sure you are using the right equipment is of major import to any marketing effort. For the purposes of real estate marketing, it would be best to use:

• A DSLR camera.

• A tripod equipped with a slider.

• A wide-angle lens (35-34mm).

Even if you can't record a video, you can still take high-quality photos and turn them into a professional video. Just drag and drop them into our free real estate video templates!

The best way to edit a real estate video

In addition to easy-to-use templates, you can edit your videos in aNIMOTO! Our free online video editor comes equipped with a wide array of highly useful features, including:

• Several aspect ratios
• Logo watermarking
• Templates and storyboards
• Voice-over
• Integrated video feedback tools
• Free music library
• Access to stock photos
• • More

Aside from this, it is important to note that large portions of traffic come from mobile phones. To that end, it is directly to your benefit to ensure your videos are optimized for mobile viewing. Animoto offers a variety of video aspect ratios to accommodate for many different platforms. For example, vertical videos like the one below might perform much better on Instagram Stories and TikTok. Read more about how to create mobile content on our blog.

Create a real estate video with Animoto

When it comes to creating and editing professional real estate videos, Animoto's intuitive templates, editing tools, and stock media library make us an all-around great choice. With these use-friendly tools and video-making tips, you are in a prime position to leverage the power of real estate video ads.

Start making your first video for free!

Real estate videos FAQs

Are real estate videos worth it?

Yes, 46% of buyers found video tours to be helpful in their home-buying process! Real estate videos can also help you to get newly available properties in front of new buyers and boost sales. Since many buyers begin their search online, videos can help your listings stand out before the tour.

How much do real estate videos cost?

Creating a real estate video with a professional video producer can cost hundreds to thousands of dollars. With Animoto, you can create real estate videos for free. Just sign up and use our easy-to-use real estate video templates to get started.

What should I include in a real estate video?

Your real estate video should include high-quality photos and videos of the property you’re selling. It should call out key selling points like square footage, bedroom and bathroom counts, special features, and more. Finally, it should include your company’s branding, the seller’s information, and where potential buyers can learn more.

How long should a real estate video be?

Real estate videos should be between 3-5 minutes for maximum viewership.