A 360° virtual tour is made of panoramic photographs allowing viewers to interactively explore a property. This very immersive process allows your prospects to see themselves inside the property and thus to really get the feel of it. It is a real added value on the promotion of a property.
We have integrated into Apimo a tool to directly create virtual tours from the software, without additional costs, nor the need to use a third party application.
Here is an example of a virtual tour made by uploading into the software a 360° photo shooting:
The most common virtual tour starts with a 360 degree camera that takes a picture of the entire room.
A wide array of user-friendly panoramic cameras are nowadays available. You just have to put the camera on a tripod and take one picture per room. Once the picture is taken, the camera will generate a JPEG file just like your regular camera.
If you open the photo on your computer, you will see a totally distorted file, but don't you worry! Upload the file to the relevant property, into the photo section, just like any other photos from your camera. The software will automatically detect the 360-degree shots and lead you to a handy tool for navigating through the photos.
This solution is already integrated free of charge in Apimo. However, you may need to purchase a 360 degree camera, like the Ricoh Theta range which is in stock at FNAC, AMAZON etc...
For our test shots, we chose the Ricoh Z1, available at FNAC:
Think about purchasing the tripod too, we at Apimo tried two models: an all-terrain version (to be put on a table or a stand) and a classic version (to stand on the ground):
Head to the photo tab of your property file, load the JPG files like a classic photo and the software will display a "Panorama" button on each photo.
By clicking on "Panorama", you will find a complete interface which allows you to manage the navigation from one room to another by adding cursors.
Not only is it fun to make, but this virtual tour will also be automatically displayed on your email property proposals.
According to Google, "The virtual tour doubles your chances to catch the customers’ attention by proposing properties with photos and 360°"*. It is therefore in your best interest to integrate this media in your listings!
Your virtual tour will then be broadcast on compatible real estate portals and on the interactive extranet brochure. The majority of portals and websites highlight the virtual tour with an icon or a dedicated tab, it is a good way to advertise your real estate listing and to get an edge over competing real estate agents.