Edina Realty Inc., the Minnesota-based brokerage that made waves in November when it announced it would pull listings from Trulia and Realtor.com, has signed an agreement with VHT Inc. to drive traffic to EdinaRealty.com using photos and videos associated with real estate listings.
Rosemont, Ill.-based "visual marketing" firm VHT claims its VHT ImageWorks platform boosts website traffic by combining image optimization, distribution, and management with video creation and search engine optimization.
According to the company’s website, VHT ImageWorks includes video for every listing with YouTube distribution, Web pages for listings, an automated brochure generator, and copyright licensing and management.
VHT CEO Alex Zoghlin said in a statement that VHT ImageWorks customers have experienced an average increase in search engine traffic of more than 40 percent.
The company says that in addition to search engine optimization, VHT ImageWorks can help brokers "capture both sides of the sale," and recruit and retain agents.
A subsidiary of HomeServices of America, Edina Realty has 60 offices in Minnesota and western Wisconsin, and its nearly 2,100 Realtors handled more than 27,000 transactions and $5.4 billion in sales volume in 2011.
