Commercial property marketing is changing. In recent years, we’ve witnessed a remarkable shift in how businesses, developers and commercial property owners showcase and market their premises.
Traditional methods are giving way to more innovative, immersive experiences.
Matterport virtual tours sit at the forefront of this shift. They’re interactive, 360° digital representations of physical spaces. They allow potential buyers, tenants, investors, customers or visitors to explore a property as if they were physically present, all from the comfort of their own devices.
The magic behind Matterport virtual tours lies in sophisticated 3D capture technology. Specialist cameras scan every nook and cranny of a space, creating a highly detailed, three-dimensional model. The model is then processed and rendered into an interactive ‘digital twin’ that users can navigate at their own pace. Think Google Street View, but for the interior of your commercial property.
This blog explores the benefits of virtual tours and explains why they’ve become an essential tool for marketing commercial property.
Benefits of virtual tours
Incorporating virtual tours into your marketing strategy offers numerous benefits. Properties marketed with Matterport virtual tours often see a substantial increase in bookings and sales.
They offer a dramatic reduction in visitor travel time and costs. Potential clients can explore your property from anywhere in the world, at any time. This convenience factor can be a game-changer, especially for international investors or busy professionals who might not have the time or resources to visit multiple properties in person.
Virtual tours also make project planning more manageable. Giving your stakeholders detailed, accurate representations of a space helps speed up decision-making. This efficiency often results in significant project cost savings, enabling remote collaboration without needing multiple in-person visits.
Being able to showcase your business 24/7 is perhaps one of the most compelling benefits. Your property is always open for viewing, even outside of business hours. This constant availability can significantly increase your reach and exposure, potentially leading to more leads and faster sales or lettings. It’s like having an open house that never closes, allowing potential clients or tenants to explore at their own pace and convenience.
Moreover, Matterport virtual tours can provide a more comprehensive view of your property than traditional photography or video. They allow viewers to navigate your spaces freely and get a true sense of layout, flow and scale. These immersive experiences can lead to more qualified leads, as potential buyers or tenants have a clearer understanding of your business or commercial property before scheduling an in-person visit.
Virtual tours can also be a valuable tool for property management and maintenance. They provide an accurate, up-to-date record of your commercial property’s condition, which can be helpful in planning renovations, documenting changes or addressing tenant concerns.
Applications of virtual commercial property tours
Virtual tours are suitable for a wide range of commercial settings.
In the arts and culture sector, galleries and museums can offer virtual exhibitions, allowing visitors to explore installations and performances from anywhere in the world.
Hotels and conference facilities benefit greatly. Potential guests can explore rooms and facilities before booking, while event planners can virtually scout locations for conferences and meetings.
For factories and production facilities, Matterport virtual tours offer a unique opportunity to showcase your premises and operations to potential clients or investors without disrupting your workflows. It’s an impressive way to demonstrate your capabilities and processes without the logistical challenges of on-site visits.
Retail spaces and showrooms can use virtual tours to create interactive catalogues. Customers can browse products in situ, getting a better sense of scale and style than traditional online shopping experiences offer.
In office and corporate environments, Matterport virtual tours can support staff inductions and visitor orientation. They’re excellent tools for HR, PR and marketing activities.
Events companies can extend their shows and maximise exhibitor value through virtual tours. They allow visitors who couldn’t attend in person to experience the event, allowing those exhibiting to reach a much wider audience.
And for commercial landlords, agents and developers, Matterport virtual tours offer a powerful tool for showcasing commercial properties before, during and after development. You can provide potential tenants or investors with immersive experiences of planned spaces to visualise future developments. For existing properties, virtual tours allow for remote viewings, reducing the need for in-person visits and streamlining the leasing or sales process. They also serve as an excellent tool for tracking and showcasing renovation progress, helping to attract and retain tenants.
Enhance your marketing with a Matterport virtual tour
Standing out is crucial in a competitive digital economy. Virtual tours offer a unique and engaging way for potential clients to familiarise themselves with your property. They’re a powerful differentiator that can set you apart from competitors who still rely on traditional marketing methods.
With a Matterport virtual tour, you’re no longer limited by geographical constraints or time zones. You can reach a global audience and attract new customers who might not have considered your property or business otherwise, potentially opening new markets and opportunities.
Virtual tours foster deeper engagement and brand loyalty. They provide an interactive, immersive experience that creates a stronger connection with your commercial property. This engagement often leads to higher conversion rates and increased brand loyalty.
Working with a specialist virtual tour provider
Creating a high-quality Matterport virtual tour demands more than a 360° camera and some software. It requires expertise, specialist equipment and a deep understanding of how to showcase properties in their best light.
While it might be tempting to try the DIY approach, working with a Matterport expert like VisualEyes can make a significant difference to your virtual tour’s quality and effectiveness. Our team brings a wealth of experience and technical know-how that can elevate your commercial property marketing from adequate to exceptional.
We understand the nuances of capturing different types of commercial spaces, from expansive warehouses to intricate office layouts. We know how to handle challenging lighting conditions, capture the best angles and create a smooth, intuitive user experience. Moreover, we can offer valuable insights on how to maximise your virtual tour’s impact, based on our experience with similar properties and clients.
Creating a virtual tour with VisualEyes
Our process for creating a Matterport virtual tour is designed to minimise disruption to your business while maximising the quality of the final product.
It begins with an initial consultation to discuss your needs and goals. Our team of immersive content creators will then draw up a detailed proposal outlining your project’s scope, timeline and costs.
Once approved, we move quickly through the capture process. We’ll work around your peak times and security considerations to ensure privacy and discretion. Our high-resolution 3D cameras capture your premises to millimetre accuracy, allowing for a truly immersive final product.
After capture, we render the models for your review. At this stage, you can crop, blur or remove any content you want to keep private or confidential. We then customise the tour with your branding and any interactive elements you desire.
Implementation is the final step. We’ll provide you with a white-label URL, or you can integrate the tour directly into your website. The entire process is efficient, collaborative and tailored to your needs.
We also offer a range of advanced features to enhance the user experience and provide additional value for your business. Interactive hotspots allow you to embed rich media, brochures, links, and audio during the virtual tour. These provide additional context or information about specific areas or items within your property.
All our Matterport virtual tours come with VR support as standard, offering the most immersive way to experience a space without visiting. This feature can be particularly impressive for high-end properties or unique spaces. And our innovative ‘digital skinning’ technology allows you to create custom menus, add search functionality and even include 3D objects for space planning or interactive product demonstrations.
Lastly, our virtual tours are compatible with Google Analytics 4, so you can track detailed data about how users interact with your tour, helping you refine your commercial property marketing activities.
To learn how our Matterport virtual tour services can help you showcase your commercial property in the best possible light and drive your business forward in the digital age, contact VisualEyes today.
