From Photograph to Advertisement: Enhancing Your Visual Marketing

Back in 2007, the US spent an estimated $149 billion dollars on advertising in an effort to increase brand recognition, move product, and sell services. The process of attracting consumer attention is big business, and it's never been more competitive. Of the average 5.8 hours of leisure time people have each day, there's hardly enough room for all 24 million companies in the US to capture a consumer's undivided attention, but it's not for lack of trying.

Advertising has become so integral to our daily lives that very few of us even question it. Love it or hate it, we all know when we see an ad, as they tend to have those surreal qualities – those fundamental ingredients in the recipe for desire.

For real estate agents, marketing tends to work on two fronts: market your listings and market yourself.  Both feats require a substancial level of planning and effort, but if done right, you can quickly separate yourself from the pack.  Of all the things you can do to enhance your marketing, improving the core photographic elements should be at the forefront.

Turning photographs into advertisements

In terms of marketing yourself, a proper portrait is a must.  For real estate agents, your face is as important as your brand, and having an archive of four or five quality head shots will help you to advertise yourself as an industry professional.  Take these sample photos of real estate agent, Eric Billingsley, that compare a photo taken by a friend and a photo taken by a professional fashion photographer:

The five professional photos Eric received cost $200, but he assures that the “photos have more than paid for themselves.”  I know who I would choose if the two photos above were competing agents. Quite simply, professional photos resonate that above average quality that attracts consumers when purchasing products or services.

The same idea needs to be applied when marketing your listings.  A home is one of the biggest purchases a consumer will ever make, yet the visual marketing used to sell homes does not always stimulate a sense of desire. Photos have always been an important feature when marketing real estate, and even more so now as the majority of people shop online.  Here’s another comparison put together by Papilios Real Estate Photography that shows an amateur and professional photo of a listing.

The bottom line is that quality visuals attract buyers, please sellers, and enhance your visual appeal.  If you haven’t already, take the time to critique the photos you’re using to market yourself and your listings, or better yet, ask others to provide honest feedback for you. Ask yourself what the images say about you and your business, and determine if they can they be improved.