West Columbia SC Real Estate Blog

The modern use of the phrase "a picture is worth a thousand words" is attributed to Fred R Barnard. He used it to promote the use of images in advertisements that appeared on the sides of streetcars in the early 1920s.

The idea is extremely valid for today's competitive, internet driven real estate market. Most realtors do not realize just how fast a potential purchaser will eliminate their property listing from contention. In less than a second a purchaser can click the mouse button and move on to the next property during an internet search.

Why go to all of the trouble to list a property, syndicate it to a million web-sites, create a virtual tour, and publish it in some real estate magazine if the pictures do not convey a sense of the property? We are supposed to be the experts at marketing the property. That is what we are mainly hired to do.

Selling is a transfer of emotion. If the purchaser is not feeling something, he or she is probably not buying. How many times have you heard a buyer say it just feels right. It is not magic, there is a reason that it just feels right. Something about the way the property has been presented feels good to the buyer.

We, the expert marketers, should be looking very hard for everything that makes the property unique. We should be finding out from the seller the things they like most about the property. Finally we should be telling the story of the property through pictures and text. There are some great opportunities for creativity on every listing.

 Try to look for ways to convey feelings whenever possible. Sometimes, by taking pictures in the evening you will create another whole look and feel for the property. If you know what the seller liked about the property, you will have a better chance of showing that to your potential buyers. It will also help you when you write your text about the features.

We owe our sellers a fighting chance on the internet. With a little due diligence and some creativity, we can grab a potential purchaser's attention. We may even get him or her to say that there is something about this property that just feels right.