Majority of clients have welcomed virtual viewings with Engel & Völkers Mallorca

Last year, the Engel & Völkers shops on Mallorca relied heavily on the use of video tours and virtual viewings, and at the end of the year they brokered around 20 properties as a result of these technologies. 

In 2020 Engel & Völkers on the island with 18 property shops witnessed some surprising developments using social media channels and in “virtual” selling that previously was not thought possible. Due to the travel restrictions, clients mainly responded positively to digital technology with over 27,000 Matterport virtual viewings and 300 video tours where agents interacted with clients via a live video session via Google Hangouts, Whats App or Zoom.

Some sales were made even before the client stepped onto the island, for example, an apartment on the market for 1.9 million euros in the Mallorca southwest area, was sold exclusively via a virtual viewing without the client even stepping into the property. 

This is another property which was sold via a live video viewing: 

The majority of clients have welcomed virtual viewings whilst travel restrictions have been in place. The agents have offered the video tour as an alternative and it has served as a good opportunity to maintain the personal agent/client relationship and engage the client if they are seriously interested in a property. But even after the end of lockdown, clients continued to enjoy the virtual tour options which are now part of the normal marketing offer.

How does it work? 

There are several ways to do virtual viewings: either live via mobile call, as a video for download or as a 3D tour with Matterport. 

“The introduction of Matterport presentations has been successful in terms of supporting our marketing and sales efforts under extreme conditions and in some cases have resulted in sales,” says Hans Lenz, Managing Director, Engel & Völkers Mallorca Southwest. 

Another trend emerged: Clients now prefer to talk on video calls or WhatsApp calls to have that “personal” contact instead of just a standard phone call. “Human interaction is the key element of this exchange. We believe that the technology is here to stay and will increase the client experience as well as the efficiency enormously,” says Hans Lenz. Generally the video tours work more effectively with those clients who know the area concerned. In terms of accepting the concept of video/virtual tours, the German speaking and Scandinavian clients tend to be more open to video tours. 

Eddy Barrera, Managing Director of Engel & Völkers Mallorca West, says: “We had one client who was interested in a country property in the picturesque village of Fornalutx and as they couldn’t fly to the island, we filmed the access and location of the property to give him a better understanding of the area. Another client bought a property in Deià on the strength of a virtual video tour when his flight was cancelled. He knew the village well from previous visits so he had a good idea of what he was looking for.” 

Engel & Völkers Mallorca Southwest is currently offering special virtual live tours for the Amber Village project. They were created in cooperation with the developer. A 3D model or video of a new building project is combined with a consultant from the developer in a TV studio with green screen. The consultant connects with the potential clients via video conference. The Engel & Völkers agent joins in to experience the tour together with his client. With this sales tool, there have been closing rates of up to 40 % in comparable new construction projects so far.