Staging your home should start Online!

I was recently called by a national builder, for whom we are their premier stager, to assist a client in staging their home to make it more appealing to potential buyers. Upon arrival, I met with the homeowner and was pleasantly surprised by what I found.

The homeowner was a licensed real estate agent who knew enough about staging homes for sale to have already completely de-cluttered and de-personalized the home. In addition, she left me with no recommendations about the state of her home. After a brief visit that included a conversation about previous showings to potential buyers and feedback from other activity on the property, I noticed the real estate flyer sitting on a table in the foyer. The photos on the flyer were dark, narrow and hard to see. I was having a hard time making out the rooms in the pictures. This led me to inquire about any other marketing the homeowner may be doing, including any online marketing. The homeowner informed me that she had been doing her marketing through the agency she worked for and that this agency is a nationwide real estate franchise with access to over a dozen web sites and web search engines dedicated to real estate sales and marketing.

After reviewing her online marketing, which closely resembled the flyer I had found, I asked her if she had considered using a camera with a wide angle lens or creating an online virtual tour for potential out-of-town buyers who may be interested in looking in her area. Her response was no, she hadn't.

Since I never attend an appointment without my camera, I offered to retake photos of the home with a wide angle lens and create a virtual real estate tour that she could attach to her online and published marketing materials. After seeing some of the photos I had taken, the homeowner was excited not only about the opportunity I had presented her, but that I had given her a different perspective on the tools she was using to market her home and the homes of her clients.

The lesson here is that in this tough real estate market, we, as consumers, REALTORS (pick the appropriate one) and home stagers, must look outside the professional box we've created for ourselves and view our marketing techniques from another angle, perhaps from a "wide angle", in order to reach our goals.

Our recently staged Showhomes:

http://www.realestateshows.com/show.php?mls=basic&id=369194

http://www.realestateshows.com/show.php?mls=basic&id=365969

http://www.realestateshows.com/show.php?mls=basic&id=365654

http://www.realestateshows.com/show.php?mls=basic&id=365399

SHOWHOMES, AMERICAS LARGEST HOME STAGING COMPANY,AS SEEN ON:

Jennifer