Having successful STR Photoshoots are a must and often something that I bring up over and over again during my Listing Audits. Last week, I had a photoshoot in my Pencil House – not my first shoot as a host, and definitely won’t be my last. I try to get fresh photos each year or so or if I have done a major redecoration. After more than 10 years in hosting I have learnt a lot, and am continuing to improve on the process- basically I have it down to a fine art! You can check my instagram for some photos and reels from the shoot.
Here are my top 5 tips for making a STR photoshoots successful!
1. Hire a photographer who understands Short Term Rental. Real Estate photographers are great at selling houses but they also need to understand how to sell a Short Term Rental to get bookings with great guests. My photographer Fabien also works as a freelancer for Airbnb in Japan. He photographed my first place a decade ago. I have used a few other photographers from time to time but Fabien is still the best.
2. Take mostly landscape photos for your listing – especially your website or VRBO. Get portrait orientations for your social media. But these days Airbnb can also handle portrait photos. Given how most people are using their phones, it is good to have a mix. Also, get seasonal photos so you can change up your photos regularly based on your marketing schedule. I wrote a blog post a while back on how to plan out your marketing. Check it out.
3. Hide all cables, declutter everything including dish detergents, tissue boxes, books. These are all things that are needed for guests when they stay but just clutter up a photoshoot. Check out my Instgram where I showed the “behind the scenes” live video. You can see how I move things into a staging area that are not needed for the actual shoot. But given that my Pencil House is 2.5 m wide, it was a bit like tetris to get it all organised.
4. Stage a few photos for “lifestyle”. You are not selling a house but how people are going to interact with your space. Set up the table for a full meal, create a moment with a laptop, coffee cup and a workspace. Drape a throw rug over the sofa. You want people to see themselves in your space.
5. Use natural light as much as possible so have the shoot during the day. But get a “golden hour” photo for outside shots. Turn on all the lights inside and the house will “GLOW”. We couldn’t get this photo last week but Fabien will pop back one day at sunset to grab the glow photo.
A great idea is to also check out lots of different listings – see what style of images resonate with you and is likely to resonate with your ideal guest. Save out some interesting ones from the OTAs (Eg Airbnb or VRBO) as well as on social media so you can create yourself a vision board for your listing photoshoot. Remember that each listing is unique and each host is unique. So celebrate what sets you apart from the competition and be proactive about your marketing towards your ideal guest. You want guests to choose you for the right reasons and not only on pricing. Otherwise, you are in a race to the bottom which isn’t sustainable.
Interested in my photoshoot preparation check list, leave a comment and a way to share and I will send it through to you!! Or email consulting@tracey-northcott.com with subject “I want your photoshoot prep check list”
By the way, tickets for Luxury STR Summit still available- To find out more AND purchase your ticket click here. The summit kicks off on the 12th of July!
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