Virtual Leasing Tours: 10 Reasons You Need Them Now

Virtual tours have become incredibly popular in a very short amount of time.

While a lot of businesses and apartment homes transitioned to this virtual leasing technology, others might still be questioning their value.

For those who identify as the latter, we’ve compiled a list of 10 reasons all real estate businesses need a virtual leasing tour right now.

1. Virtual tours offer extensive information for your property

We’ve all heard the saying “a picture is worth a thousand words”—so what does that say about 360º images stitched together to create an entirely panoramic view of a property?

Not only do they provide virtual imaging of your property, virtual tours like Panoskin can also offer features such as virtual staging, floor plans, a site map, info buttons and more to consolidate all essential information into one dashboard.

This point is especially important right now, during a time where in-person tours aren’t always available to renters.

2. ROI can be achieved pretty quickly

Virtual tour statistics show that ROI for virtual imaging is estimated at less than four weeks.

Between boosting interest as well as engagement, by investing in this technology right now your business could see results well before busy season even picks up, making it an extremely valuable asset.

Not to mention, real estate businesses everywhere are quickly jumping on board the virtual tour train—you don’t want to fall behind by holding off or not inquiring at all.

3. They give people options and more flexibility

Still amidst the ongoing pandemic, people may not be comfortable physically visiting a property just yet.

Virtual leasing tours provide options such as a guided or self-navigated tour in addition to in-person tours so that prospects can decide what fits best based on comfortability and preference. 

Virtual alternatives as well as other digital options have increased in popularity immensely over the past year, and are projected to keep expanding to give prospects the flexibility they need

4. Virtual tours are essentially a 24/7 open house

Expanding on the previous point, virtual leasing tours provide a 24/7 open house, eliminating dozens of obstacles commonly seen in properties that only offer in-person tours.

Below are a few common obstacles virtual tours cater to.

• Busy schedules
• Out of state renters
• Physical obstacles
• Individuals with a disability
• Pandemics/epidemics
• Time restraints
• Viewing multiple different properties

As you can see, although becoming more popular amidst the pandemic, virtual leasing tours are beneficial for so many reasons, and ensure accessibility for all.

5. They can be added to a website or listing

Whether it’s an apartment community or a standard business that might require on-site visits, virtual tours are pretty versatile. They can live on your website or on a listing service.

For virtual tour providers such as Panoskin, once you receive your property tour all you have to do is leave it to us to integrate any and all content from LCP360.

Not only is the process easy, but adding a tour to your listings will help increase visibility immensely.

Consumers are actively searching for properties that provide virtual tours and 360 content, so if you have it, your listing will be sure to stand out among the local pack.

6. Google favors listings with 360 content

As for your Google My Business listing, adding high-quality content such as professional photography and 360 virtual tours will guarantee a boost in your businesses ranking within search results.

This is because virtual tours are interactive as well as engaging, so prospects spend more time looking through them.

In fact, real estate listings with a virtual home tour get 87% more views than those without.

Google notices this increased engagement, and thanks to its algorithm, will label your tour as valuable content, and therefore will boost your listing so more renters can see it.

In addition, having a Google virtual tour allows prospects to find your tour and listing via Google Maps, optimizing the discovery process and increasing your chances of being found locally.

7. They can be leveraged virtually anywhere

Most notably present on property websites and in galleries, virtual leasing tours can be leveraged just about everywhere.

For starters, you’ll want to choose a virtual tour provider with easy sharing and embed codes that can be used for almost all marketing purposes. See below for just a few popular placement ideas.

• Post to social media
• Add to Facebook listings
• Send via email
• Add to a lobby touch screen
• Add to your website chatbot or widgets
• Use QR codes to better access your tour
• Leverage through ILS and Google listings
• Add it to other website content like blog posts

As you can see there is no shortage of places you can leverage your virtual tour—and the more placement, the better chance it will boost your ROI.

| Related: 5 Things You Can Do With a Virtual Tour from LCP360

8. They are an excellent resource

Sure, photography acts as a wonderful resource for renters to come back to when deciding on a property.

However, photos don’t quite tell the whole story.

Having a virtual leasing tour on your website that renters can not only tour, but reference as much as they would like during their home search will guarantee the chance of an informed decision.

In-person tours don’t offer that kind of information to resort back to. Having a virtual tour is having a 24/7 open house that provides a lot in regards to information.

Not to mention, consolidating all digital content within your virtual tour provides a seamless and all-encompassing experience.

9. Virtual leasing tours streamline the leasing process

Expanding on the point above, virtual leasing tours make the entire leasing process easier, especially if they provide advanced features.

Whether a prospect is on a guided tour or is self navigating, going through a virtual tour can incite interest and ultimately lead renters to a new stage in their home search process.

Not only that, but actionable CTAs and links to online documents connected to a virtual tour will encourage renters to take that next step.

10. Any industry can benefit from them

Unsure of whether or not a virtual tour would benefit your property? Below are various industry sectorsLCP360 has worked with in the past to create custom virtual leasing tours.

• Multifamily
• Commercial real estate
• Commercial office
• Storage facilities
• Senior living
• Student housing
• Hospitality
• Healthcare 
• Entertainment & event venues

If there’s a space that needs to be seen, virtual leasing tours can help.

2021 will be the year of technology, and all industries can reap the benefits of a virtual property tour especially when it’s used correctly.

Virtual leasing tours can do it all

It’s not always easy to find an asset that can really work for you while simultaneously resonating positively with consumers.

Virtual leasing tours have become so popular for a reason. Up your marketing and your customer support by adding this advanced digital tool to the mix in 2021 and see what all of the hype is about for yourself.

Learn more about virtual tours.