With so much that can be done with a Better Virtual Tour, what should you know?
There’s quite a bit that can be included with your tour as well as how everything works. Here’s a comprehensive list of frequently asked questions that should give you most of the information you need. If you have additional questions, would like to dicuss how to get your virtual tour, or if you’d like to book an appointment, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me through any means at the bottom of the page.
WHY SHOULD I GET A BETTER VIRTUAL TOUR FOR MY WEBSITE?
These virtual tours are inherently fun and interesting to interact with. People who engage with these tours naturally spend more time on your website. Because of longer times spent on your website, Google can see you as an authority and boost your search ranking.
Your clients also receive a much better understanding of how your space is laid out. This is not something that regular photographs do well. Visitors can “walk” through and look all around, providing a far more complete view.
Interested clients have more information and are closer to doing business with you. Conversely, some clients may immediately see that your space is not for them. That’s not a bad thing. They won’t be a waste of your time, booking a meeting with your that will go nowhere.
See some of the different businesses that are already using a Better Virtual Tour to show off their spaces.
I’M NOT TECHY. I MAY NEED HELP GETTING MY VIRTUAL TOUR ONTO MY WEBSITE.
I supply you with the files once you’ve paid for your virtual tour and they’re yours to keep. If you need help getting the tour onto your website, I’m happy to help at no additional charge.
For websites that are hosted by a company that cannot host the tour on their servers, I can add the code to your site which allows the tour to show up on one of your pages. Web hosts like Wix and Squarespace offer you the ability to grant others temporary access to your site. Once the virtual tour has been added, you can simply turn off my temporary access.
If you’re hosting the files on your server, I’ll need FTP access to upload the files as well as access to your website back-end to add the tour. Again, temporary credentials can be set up for my quick work. Feel free to let me know if you have any questions about any of this.
HOW MUCH DOES A VIRTUAL TOUR COST?
A Better Virtual Tour starts at $250 and includes one panoramic photo (pano). Additional panormic photos (panos) throughout your location are $20 each. The total cost will depend on how many panos are used and is based on the size of your space. I only charge for the actual number of panoramic photos used in the tour and not how many I take. Keep in mind that your tour is also uploaded to Google Street View at no additional charge.
Check out the Pricing page for details and additional enhancements available for a Better Virtual Tour.
ARE THERE ANY RECURRING COSTS OR FEES?
There are no recurring costs unless I host your tour for you. Two instances for that:
1. You have no website to host your tour,
or…
2. You’re using a web host like SquareSpace, Wix, Google Sites, or other website builders that can’t host your virtual tour on their server.
In either case, I charge a pittance of $60 per year to host your tour. I provide you with the necessary link or code so you can share your tour on social media or add the tour to your website. I can help you get the tour onto your site if you need.
WHAT IF I DON’T HAVE A WEBSITE?
Not having a website is no problem. For a measly $60 a year ($5 a month) I can host the virtual tour for you. I then provide you with a link that you can share in an email, text messge, social media, or anywhere you can post a link.
In addition, you can buy a domain name (something like SeeMyStoreName.com) and link it direcly to your virtual tour. I can help you with this option as well. A dot-com domain name costs about $15 to $25 a year from most domain registrars like GoDaddy, Namecheap, Hover, etc.
If you’d like a website, I’d be happy to build one for you. It can be complex or simple, depending on your needs. One of my clients didn’t have a website and asked if I could build something simple so she can show off her tour. She even bought a domain name to point everyone to it. Check out their site at SeeChesterCountryFurnishings.com
HOW CAN I ADD MY VIRTUAL TOUR TO MY WEBSITE?
Imbedding the tour onto one of your pages is ideal. That will allow it to show up on a page, like any other photo, ready to be seen and interacted with.
You can also add a button, image, or text link to your navigation or somehwere on one of your pages. This can be set to open the tour into a new, full-screen tab or window.
If you’re tech-challenged and need assistance getting the tour onto your website, I’m here to help. You have better things to do than learn how to be a website developer.
HOW WILL THE VIRTUAL TOUR FILES BE DELIVERED TO ME?
There are two ways to get your tour files to you. One way is to compress them into a Zip archive and put them on my Dropbox account for you to download. The second way is to provide them to you on a USB thumb drive for an additional $7.
CAN I ADD MUSIC TO MY TOUR?
Royalty-free music can be added to your entire tour or sepcific areas of your tour for an additional cost of $25 per song. Copyrighted and/or unlicensed music will not be added.
CAN I INCLUDE PHOTOS OR VIDEOS IN THE TOUR?
Pop-up photos, photo albums, and videos can be added at $5 each. Ideas for these include images or videos from events, PDFs of documents, or even menus seen on tables or mounted on walls.
WHAT IF I FIND A PROBLEM WITH A PHOTO YOU’VE TAKEN?
If the problem is something with how I took the photo, I will touch up or reshoot the photo at no charge to you. However, if there is something in the photo that shouldn’t have been there, like a cleaning item that was not put away, I do charge $15 per photo for retouching. Keep in mind that this item may be seen in many photos, requiring retouching of several photos. The take-away here: Clean, prepare, and look everywhere for anything that shouldn’t be there.
CAN I INCLUDE NARRATION OR VOICE-OVER TO MY TOUR?
Absolutely. You can record the narration or VO yourself or I can bring over my audio recording equipment and help guide you through your speech. This is an additional $75. If you’re mic shy and you’d prefer that I record the voice-over, I’m happy to do it for $50. A single narration should not be longer than about 60 seconds.
HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO SHOOT A VIRTUAL TOUR?
Photographing your virtual tour depends on the size of your space. A small space with just a couple of panos may take as little as 30 minutes. Larger spaces with multiple rooms can take upwards of two to three hours. Very large businesses like an major event facility may take several hours. I can then have a working tour built and ready to be viewed in a day or two, depending on the size.
Still have questions?
If you have further questions, would like to book a virtual tour, or discuss what can be done for your business or space, let’s talk! Give me a call at (908) 507-5391, email me at ABVT@ChrisSebes.com, or use the form below.
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