The Challenge
Differentiate from competing real estate marketing providers & diversify service portfolio
HomeVisit established itself in 2000 as a photography and videography service provider to real estate professionals. Prior to 2014, their core business was comprised of HomeVisit’s fusion photography and slideshow “virtual tours” - curated slideshows of still images, video, and floor plans. After discovering Matterport at a local trade show in 2014, HomeVisit founder Bryan Vaughan recognized the huge revenue potential behind the game-changing technology.
HomeVisit capitalized on a unique opportunity to be the first in its market to offer 3D scanning as a service to real estate clients, using it as an opportunity to lead in technology innovation and own the conversation.
In order to capitalize early in this untapped market, HomeVisit bought a Matterport camera in 2014 and decided to pitch the 3D service to upsell existing accounts. As the first in their market to offer this service, they knew the struggle would be to educate HomeVisit’s existing real estate clients on the value of a new piece of technology and give them the confidence that the process would be easy, affordable and successful. HomeVisit would also need to scale with the inevitable demand for 3D services.
What they were looking for:
- Emerging technology with direct application for existing real estate customers
- Service that expands existing portfolio
- Easy integration with existing web presence
- Adaptability to new customers and verticals
- Streamlined/minimal training
Matterport matters. It has made all the difference to us in achieving our goals this year, and we couldn't have done it without the vision and support of HomeVisit
- Creig Northrop, The Northrop Team of Long & Foster Real Estate
The Solution
Offer Matterport through easy integration across digital channels
HomeVisit introduced Matterport by highlighting one of its star luxury clients - the Creig Northrop Team, Maryland’s #1 top agent team according to REAL Trends. HomeVisit partnered with the Northrop Team to capture their entire listing inventory in immersive 3D, and make it a standard part of their listing presentation. With Matterport in their pocket, they saw higher win ratios and attracted more buyers.
HomeVisit grew the account by dedicating a resource entirely to servicing the Creig Northrop Team, so that they could rapidly integrate 3D across their marketing. They now dedicate 3-4 photographers exclusively to this account. Implementation for this effort was a smooth process to due to quick training on Matterport’s simple, automated platform so that they could scale as other clients adopted 3D services and generate superior 3D spaces immediately. HomeVisit has over 10 cameras in operation in multiple markets with steady and growing adoption across all of it’s real estate brokers and agents.
HomeVisit also realized that a critical component of the equation was getting Matterport’s game changing new 3D technology in front of Buyers on the Internet. To that end, HomeVisit developed a best of breed, fully responsive property website solution featuring Matterport 3D models, fusion photography, video and floor plans.
See a Property Website with Matterport here.
The Results
- 25% year-over-year growth since adopting Matterport
- 10% revenue growth in new verticals
- Proven benefits to clients, whose sales transactions increased by 20%
To date, Homevisit has completed over 3,600 3D Matterport Spaces, and demand is up 300% over last year. Additionally, when a HomeVisit online tour includes a Matterport 3D Space, buyers step inside the 3D Space 68% of the time. This has translated to a 25% boost in annual YoY growth and has enabled them to expand into the Northeast and Florida - new markets with growing demand for 3D and other digital services.
As a member of the Matterport Service Partner Network, they have also been connected with business opportunities beyond real estate, including servicing vacation rental properties, hospitals, and other spaces. These new clients and verticals now represent 10% of HomeVisit’s total revenue.
About HomeVisit
HomeVisit was founded in 1998 and is currently headquartered in Chantilly, Virginia. HomeVisit provides visual marketing services for Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, Long & Foster Real Estate, REMAX, TTR/Sotheby’s International Real Estate, Washington Fine Properties, W.C. & A.N. Miller Realtors, among many others. HomeVisit provides best of breed integrated marketing solutions for real estate agents and brokers, including multi-media property websites, virtual tours, superior color print materials, stunning fusion photography, MOVI stabilized video and aerial photography and video production.
Matterport is the best new technology to come into real estate in the past 15 years. The technology works, it's responsive and engaging, and it provides the information people need before they buy a house. It's not just technologically cool- its works. Everyone always leads with photography, buy out pitch is that Matterport is a game-changer relative to photography. No matter how good your photos are, there's nothing like 3D.
- Bryan Vaughan, Founder, HomeVisit
https://matterport.com/en-gb/node/1100