Jason LaVanture

So I get hired by a young couple with a baby to shoot a virtual tour for them. They're looking to move out of state, back home to be closer to their family. They both work so, they tell me that it's ok to go ahead and shoot while they're not there and explain where to find the key. So, I get there and enter the home.....OH MY GOODNESS WHAT A MESS!!

Baby clutter everywhere!! Toys, stroller, baby chair, etc. Then, up on the counters and tables, there was enough paper work and receipts to bring the Pentagon to it's knees.

As I stood there in amazement, with my mouth wide open in disgust, it suddenly occurred to me what an old professor once said. "If you don't take the time to think about it, sometimes, you'll miss the obvious". I can't even begin to imagine how hectic it must be for this young couple. Both working two jobs and taking care of a baby.

I'm sure that if I had shot the tour "as is" which is stipulated in my contract, they would have noticed the mess and realized what they should have done. So, I took mercy on them, held my breath and jumped in.

I proceeded to move the clutter from room to room as I shot each one. It took me twice as long to shoot but in the end, tour builder 4.0 VR Software made up for some time and it ended up being a very nice looking tour. One that they were absolutely ecstatic with!! They were amazed at how I could make the house look so much better in a virtual tour. I think they thought that I used Photoshop to remove the mess!??

Anyway, on the drive home, I decided that this would never happen to me again.

I created a check list. A few simple tips that I send to my clients ahead of time to ensure a "better virtual tour".

1) Make sure that each room is free of clutter. A virtual tour always looks better when the home looks "neat and clean"

2) Try to remove any unnecessary furniture as well. Sometimes there are just a few too many chairs and each room will look better if it seems "roomier".

3) Keep the family pictures down to a minimum. Your prospective buyer would like to imagine their own family living there as they view your home. Don't take that away from them.

4) We want the home to be as "bright" as possible. So, make sure that all the blinds are open and all lights on.

5) Leave a batch of chocolate chip cookies in the kitchen for the photographer. This, of course, has nothing to do with the virtual tour itself. I just like chocolate chip cookies :)

I've sent this list to my last 2 clients and I can't tell you how much smoother each shoot went. They both thanked me for the tips and for taking the time to ensure that they had the best virtual tour possible. (plus the cookies were great!!)

Hope this helps. Now I'm off to the gym to work off those cookies. I have another shoot tomorrow and she said something about oatmeal chocolate chip...mmmmmmm.

Mike Vega
Sarasota Virtual Tours
www.virtualtoursarasota.com

Last night's Alan's virtual tour presentation was very educative, fun and enjoyable. I couldn't connect to the Webinar because of security issue with my laptop for the first 20min or so. I 'm glad I can go back, download and watch again.

Thank you so much RTV team for setting up the new online virtual tour software and a very easy to use online Tour Management System for their individual business owners like me. 'How little I know' was my feeling after watching his show, as far the newer technology and all the gadgets that are around to day. Things are changing fast for sure and only with the help of RTV will I ever catch up! The webinars and extended education classes are the BEST that I've ever attended online.

Ben's webinar the IMAGE is amazing for learning to take good pictures of homes and businesses while the FORMULA is the show to watch for marketing and sales. As a Worcester virtual tour provider looking to be the best in my region, I know that I'm on my way! The Formula 44 certainly kicked my interest and eagerness (and I'm sure it did to lot of others who watched it last night), to learn more about growing my JayPhotos Virtual Tour business to the next level. I look forward to many more inspirational Webinars like 'The Pitch' and creating hundreds of flash virtual tours in the near future

Thanks RTV,
Raju Alagawadi
JayPhotos Virtual Tour
Worcester Virtual Tours
Order a virtual tour: 203-313-7420

This a Pismo Beach virtual tour provider, being as efficient as possible is at the top of my list. I recently tried the new Google browser, Chrome. I have been an avid Firefox user with no problems in the past, so 'Why fix it if it ain't broken?' Well, Firefox didn't break, but I was having problems with loading several pages I use often, including my own website. In a bind, I went with my brother's suggestion to give Chrome a try. I wasn't dazzled, but I wasn't let down either. If you have an internet presence (like a website or online portfolio) then you'll find this interesting.

Aside from being what I would consider my areas top producer of flash panoramas I'm also an SEO expert in training thanks to the #1 Virtual Tour Company in the world, one of the 1st things I noticed about Chrome is what they call an "incognito" window. Without getting nerdy on everyone, the incognito window claims to not use any of your information when browsing-no cookies, no cache, no passwords, nada. I found this interesting, useful, and painfree.

How is the incognito window interesting? Becuase if you have a website and would like to see how it ranks, this is your best bet for actual non-biased resluts. What do I mean 'non-biased?' If you don't clear your browsing history on a regular basis (why would you?) then Google stores it and eventually starts steering your search results in your direction, which I am usually quite happy with. However, after a couple days of not clearing my browser history, my website starts to rank better... on MY brower, but maybe not yours.

Speed Performance. Although some Chrome vs Firefox research has shown slightly better performance with Chrome, I haven't noticed a huge difference. Although if your computer or laptop is low on resources, (like less than 1.5 Ghz RAM, and I am one of them) and Firefox is starting to get really sluggish, then check out Google's Chrome. In all fairness, when Firefox was an infant, it ran similarly. As more hackers attack the new browser, I am sure Chrome will have to build more walls, too. Time will tell.

In Conclusion, I like Chrome, and would like to see more customization, which I am sure is on the way. It is great for laptops, which I do a lot of my Pismo Beach Virtual Tours on, but still prefer Firefox on my desktop for its extensions and organization. Hope this helps someone out there! :)

Kyle Murphy
KM360 Virtual Tours
Pismo Beach Virtual Tours
Order a Pismo Beach Virtual Tour today: 805-709-5577

Can we get a drum roll going? We are ready to roll out the new Dealer Site 2.0 Upgrade! We've tweaked and honed the system in order to offer it to new and existing virtual tours dealers at the same time!

For existing Dealer Site customers, you have the option to keep your current site just the way it is, or take the FREE upgrade. The upgrade will not happen automatically. If you want this upgrade now, just drop an email to dealersite((AT))realtourvision.com and say, "I want the upgrade on my site!"

With the brand new Content Management System that comes with the upgrade, you will now have the ability to add/remove pages at will, change your template, colors, fonts etc., and add all of your social links. Most notably, your 360 tours will now import into your dealer site automatically!!

The upgraded sites have all new templates, similar to the templates seen already on the Agent Site Program. Remember, you can sell these agent sites to your clients at no cost to you, and then make residual income for as long as the site is live. If you haven't seen the Agent Site Program yet, you really need to check it out!

Please note that any changes you make to your current Virtual Tour Dealer Site will be rolled over into the upgrade, so don't hold off on editing your site in the meantime. Go ahead and do it now.

For prospective Dealer Site customers, visit our website to get going on your new site. Our website goes into great detail about what we have to offer you. Login to your TMS now and click on the button on the left for Virtual Tour Websites to get started. You asked for it, we listened! We think this upgrade is going to knock your socks off!

Team RTV & Byte
Virtual Tour Software & Digital Marketing Training
866-947-8687 Ext 4
http://www.RealTourVision.com