How does virtual staging work?

It’s wise to consider virtual staging as a tool that goes hand in hand with a showing, open house, or even home staging.

Instead of treating virtual staging as a more cost-efficient alternative to these, which it is, virtual staging is both a filtering aid and a nudge for buyers. Not only will it allow clients to compare better and contrast properties, virtually staged homes generate more and faster leads for real estate professionals.

The process of virtual staging is straightforward given the proper tools. For example, a broker might consider allowing the seller to take their photos or insist on having their photographer visit the seller’s home. The latter allows for better quality control.

Then, the heart of virtual staging lies within the art of digitally furnishing and decorating the photos. Some small virtual staging studios or real estate businesses only use Photoshop. However, quality work requires 3D modeling and specialized rendering software that gives that photorealistic edge. 

Do you need virtual staging for your business?

The real estate industry gets more competitive as more data is put up online: square footage, price,  location, neighborhood quality, and more. 

One critical differentiator in today’s economy is how information is organized and presented. All these details about a listing can be centered around a visual anchor – a virtually staged home. This is likely to be the only element in a listing that will draw emotion from a client, hopefully, positively.

Over 90% of real estate firms have websites, and property listings are its most common features. And so your listings have to cut through the noise. Furthermore, virtually staged photos are pieces of content that can be repurposed for different campaigns, channels, or even clients

For instance, if you have a client you know to have a specific taste in interior design, you can have a special package for them different from the default one on your website.

Virtual staging would also be a good fit for real estate firms whose clients still reside in their homes when it’s put up for sale. While virtually staging an occupied home requires some bit of effort, it’s less invasive than open houses, and home staging should clients be opposed to these.

What are the advantages of virtually staging your listings?

Jumping into virtual staging comes with practical benefits. It’s cheaper than home staging. It’s also faster to set up and can be done in a matter of hours, from photography to digital rendering. As alluded to, its customizability can adapt to varying tastes among clients. 

Ultimately, virtual staging is about first impressions and lasting impressions. The images on a webpage are the element that will first catch the buyers’ eyes. As virtually staged homes are likely to elicit warmer reception than empty ones, the listing will likely generate stronger buyer interest.

While a photo of an empty kitchen or living room will display how it looks, virtually staged spaces will showcase how it could look, which is much more compelling imagery. This is why realtors have reported that staged homes sell faster and above the asking price.

Virtual staging is here to stay

Digital technologies will push eCommerce to new and innovative ways of selling goods and services. Real estate is no different. 

Even as virtual staging is still relatively new, there are already highly advanced techniques of virtual staging being prototyped, particularly through virtual and augmented reality.

Consumers and families will discover new ways of being charmed into buying new homes. Virtual staging or digitally decorating homes is low-hanging fruit for real estate firms. 

With proper attention to one’s digital platforms, virtual staging is an effective and inexpensive way to generate leads and close deals.