A drone footage-packed video showcasing an $18.5 million hilltop masterpiece on the central California coast is the winner of the listing agent-focused version of Inman’s #toplistingvids contest.
With 1,154 Inman readers weighing in on the three videos in Inman’s third #toplistingvids contest, the winner edged out its biggest competition, a video showcasing a $1.1 million Maui condo, by just 19 votes.
To be considered in this version of Inman’s contest, videos had to feature listing agents, either as producer or director or as on-screen or voice-over talent.
Get submissions in for next week’s #toplistingvids contest, which will feature listing videos that use drone footage in remarkable or innovative ways. Email submissions to paul@inman.com with “#toplistingvids” in the subject line or tweet a link to the video to @InmanHagey with the hashtag #toplistingvids.
Jessica Canning, an agent with the three-agent team that listed the property Canning Properties, did the voice-over for the video, and Ellen Krausse, who does marketing for the team, wrote the copy and directed the video shoot.
Canning Properties, a team with Carmel Realty Company, and the San Francisco-based video-production company it engaged for the project, Hover Effect, had great material to work with.
The architectural standout, located on a hilltop in the Monterey Bay-area luxury outpost of Carmel, California, features a 360-degree view that encompasses the Pacific Ocean, 18-foot ceilings and disappearing floor-to-ceiling glass walls.
Jessica Channing
Jessica Canning responded to the following Q&A about the winning video.
How many listing videos have you done?
This is the sixth and best property video that we’ve done so far. The Canning Properties Group creates and pays for all of our own video content but we received great support from the full Carmel Realty Company team for this contest.
(The video has received just over 600 views, according to Krausse.)
Do you do listing videos for all your firm’s listings? If not, how do you decide which gets the video?
We currently create custom marketing packages for each listing that emphasizes the relative strengths of each property. As such, we tend to use aerial videos for homes like 566 Aguajito that have particularly striking views and privacy from neighbors. We are looking to expand our video portfolios with a focus on interior shots and interactive elements with our other listings but haven’t launched them yet.
How does this video compare to the others you’ve done?
This is the first aerial video where we incorporated voice-overs. Ellen wrote and directed both the script and sequence of shots with a focus on prioritizing the biggest strengths of the home first and then supplementing still shots to complete the overall picture of the home.
Any feedback from the sellers or prospective buyers on it?
With 16-foot ceilings and 360-degree views, it can be difficult to appreciate the scope of the property through still photos. By utilizing drones to literally move through the house, we were finally able to capture the essence of the indoor-outdoor living of the home, as well as its size.
The seller has been very excited to see a novel approach to marketing this unique property and the feedback from prospective buyers has been particularly strong within our online initiatives.
How’d you come up with the idea of the shoot?
Given the powerful contemporary design, we are targeting a younger, tech-driven market, so we had to adapt our strategy accordingly. Since the home is at the very top of the hill, we asked the photographer to use more sweeping angles so viewers feel like they are soaring through the entire estate. We also wanted to make it feel almost like a video game where you’re seamlessly engaging with the home inside and out.
Any fun stories from the shoot?
The house is located on a hilltop, so we all had to be careful about the wind as the drone moved throughout the property. There was one moment that scared me as the wind picked up quickly right when the drone was heading over the pool. Not used to this kind of thing, I panicked and looked over at the operators to see if everything was ok. Given that they have previously done drone work for “Shark Week,” they didn’t even bat an eye — this was a walk in the park for them. .
Who filmed/produced it? How long did it take?
We used Hover Effect out of San Francisco, and it took about four hours for the original shoot and about eight hours of editing.
Why no actors? Did you consider using some?
We did consider using actors to show the scale of the buildings and introduce the layout, but we decided to take a more serene and artistic approach to experiencing the property. The designer took so much attention to detail throughout every inch of the property, that we wanted to keep the focus on the building and surrounding environment.
What are your tips to doing a great listing video?
Understand who your target market is for the property and customize the script and approach accordingly. These can take a very long time to produce, so the more work you put in on organizing before you meet with the videographers, the better the overall product and market impact.
Editor’s note: In our original article, we reported an anecdote about the drone shoot; the anecdote stated that it was a windy day and the drone operator was experiencing difficulty with the wind and the drone. The drone operator contends that this anecdote is inaccurate, and the agent has revised her statement, so we have updated the story.
