{"id":3175,"date":"2020-03-31T19:01:23","date_gmt":"2020-04-01T02:01:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/flexmls.com\/?p=3175"},"modified":"2020-04-06T12:28:52","modified_gmt":"2020-04-06T19:28:52","slug":"introducing-virtual-open-houses-tours-of-homes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/flexmls.com\/flexmls-academy\/product-news\/introducing-virtual-open-houses-tours-of-homes\/","title":{"rendered":"Introducing Virtual Open Houses & Tours of Homes"},"content":{"rendered":"
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During this period of rapid change and uncertainty, we\u2019re here to help you serve your customers while also keeping yourself, your family and community healthy and safe. The necessary restrictions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic make customary, in-person, interactions like Open Houses and Home Tours difficult if not impossible (or even illegal in some markets). Adapting to these restrictions while continuing to make the market work, many MLSs are cancelling in-person open houses and exploring all possibilities to hold \u201cvirtual\u201d open houses online. To facilitate, we\u2019ve added the ability for you to schedule virtual open houses and tours of homes in Flexmls Web (as allowed by your MLS).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Who Does This Benefit?<\/b><\/span>
\nAgents who want to show a home virtually instead of in-person will benefit from this feature. Use it to host an open house for prospective buyers or to schedule a virtual tour of homes for a group of agents in your market. You can use <\/span>an\u00a0online communication service or event tool, such as Facebook, Zoom, or Microsoft Teams, to schedule a live online walkthrough of the home. Homebuyers or agents can join your virtual open house\/tour of homes and view video via the camera on your phone, or via a shared presentation. Anyone who joins will be able to ask you questions in real time.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For 5 quick tips on how to set up your listings for virtual success, <\/span>click here to read a post from Inman<\/span><\/a>. You can also view <\/span>NAR\u2019S latest guidance on conducting open houses here<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

What Are My Options?<\/b><\/span>
\nYou have multiple options for adding digital media (other than photos) to your listings. With the introduction of virtual open houses\/tours, we wanted to give you a refresher on how to use each option in Flexmls.<\/span><\/p>\n

Open House\/Tour of Homes:<\/b><\/span>
\nA<\/span> live, scheduled event<\/span> that is either virtual or in-person.<\/span>
\n*Available in the Scheduled Marketing Activities section of the Change Listing Page.<\/span><\/p>\n

Virtual Tour:<\/b>
\nA slide show or other interactive media that is <\/span>pre-recorded or created and <\/span>not<\/b> scheduled.<\/span>
\n*Available in the Media section of the Change Listing Page.<\/span>
\n<\/b><\/p>\n

Video:<\/b>
\n<\/span>A walkthrough or presentation that is <\/span>pre-recorded or created and <\/span>not<\/b> scheduled.<\/span>
\n*Available in the Media section of the Change Listing Page.<\/span>
\n<\/b><\/p>\n

What Has Changed?<\/b><\/span>
\nFlexmls Web<\/strong><\/span>
\nTo accommodate virtual open houses and tours of homes, new options are available on the New Open House and New Tour of Homes pages. You\u2019ll be able to select <\/span>Virtual<\/span><\/i> or <\/span>In Person<\/span><\/i>, depending on the settings of your MLS. If you select <\/span>Virtual<\/span><\/i>, you can add a link to an online event, along with a description for the link.<\/span><\/p>\n

The following live web conferencing services are allowed:<\/strong><\/p>\n