Virtual home staging has come a long way. Although you can still tell that it is a digitally rendered image, the technology has improved significantly. A virtually styled room looks more realistic than ever before.
The key problem remains that when potential buyers view the property in person, it looks nothing like it does online. If your buyers have great visualization ability, then this may not be a problem.
The second issue is scale. It’s easy to pick from a menu of stylish digital furniture pieces but understanding the scale of each piece relative to the overall size of the room is critical. Without this understanding, it can cause potential buyers to question their ability to actually fit real furniture into the space when they view it in person.
One key objective of home staging is to get buyers to fall in love with the space the minute they walk through the door. The second is to make it easier for potential buyers to visualize themselves living in the space with their furniture, especially in small or irregular-shaped rooms. If virtual home staging causes more questions and confusion, has it done its job?
If you plan to incorporate virtual staging as part of your marketing tactic, be sure that your target buyers are among the 10 per cent of the population who have great visualization ability. You may also want to consider the type of virtual furniture selected is appropriately scaled for the actual space. Don’t just go for style.
Virtual home staging has its benefits: it is cheap and it is easy. But the question remains – is it right for your clients and their potential buyers?
What’s your opinion on virtual staging? Please comment below.
Award-winning Certified UltimateStager, redesigner and owner Nina Doiron is the principal at iSO Design. She provides an objective and experienced eye to attract more buyers and help sell for top dollar. She will also help you declutter and get organized. She says she will “inspire redesign ideas so that you’ll fall in love with your home again.” Call 416-993-0131.
