They sell villas for several million euros through social networks
A Paris apartment was sold for 22 million euros through a virtual tour organized by the Kretz family, which specializes in luxury real estate, whose adventures we follow in the series. Agency, currently airing on TMC. The US-based buyer couldn’t move and visited the property via live Instagram. As impossible as it may seem, the buyer made the decision without even making a physical visit to the apartment. And this is not an isolated case, because a property located in Chamonix was sold for 8 million euros through the same communication channel, and a house in Montfort-l’Amaury in Yvelines changed hands for more than 3 million euros after Instagram Live.
“We present the good ones live. So we can move around, return to the kitchen three times if necessary, exit the building and show the neighborhood“, – explains Valentin Kretz, one of the brothers of the famous family. He insists on the authenticity offered by the social network: “Live Instagram has no fake, no filter, no photoshop, so no lie“, he assures. Would Instagram and other social networks therefore become the new showcase for luxury real estate chains? The answer is clearly yes, says Valentin, who notes that 20% of his sales are thanks to Instagram.
Effectively “social networks are important to find where the buyer is. We have access to all our customers anywhere in the world and at any time“, confirms Daniel Féau, general manager of the luxury chain, Nicolas Pettex-Muffat. He notes that the chains can give international customers the idea to start looking for property in Paris, for example, after seeing photos or videos with breathtaking views of the Eiffel Tower. Nicolas Pettex- Instagram is what works best on the buy side, Muffat says. He thinks the most-recommended site on the sell side will be professional network LinkedIn.”Before putting your apartment up for sale, unless the real estate agent was recommended by a friend, we look for as much information as possible on the agency’s website and do a final check for verification.Final on LinkedInNicolas Pettex-Muffat deciphers. As for TikTok, a mobile video sharing app, it allows you to broadcast tips or even speedy visits, thus capturing the younger generations who can show the property to their parents.
Instagram leads the way
But among agencies specializing in luxury real estate, it is Instagram that wins the gold medal. “Posts are seen by 1.5 million people, followers and not just followers, because posts are shared by other accounts, this is a powerful tool», developing Alexandre Kraft, president of Sotheby’s Realty France. Sotheby’s has an official account for the “France” section of Instagram, as well as an international account, and Alexander Kraft also has a personal account with 306,000 followers and an account for the fashion brand, which allows reposting from his account. in the company’s personal account and targeting a wider customer base.
Young people who rarely walk through the doors of a physical agency are thus lured by Instagram posts, but “people of a certain age who were not born with the programs also win. The visuals are quite easy to follow, so it appeals to all age groups», notes Antoine Garcin, director of the Emile Garcin agency in Cannes. Social networks, especially Instagram, make this possible “bring people back to real estate as opposed to a pure advertising portal. This is a relay of our site», encourages Valentin Krets.
The Kretz family takes the opportunity to announce new properties for sale, recent transactions, or national and international agency openings. Likewise, family assets and stories not seen in the L’Agence series are posted on Instagram. Still, the family notes that the views on its staged videos are three to four times higher than in non-animated formats. On average, a Kretz family video gets 50,000 views without a real estate agent, and 150,000 or even 200,000 views for human-edited videos. So Kretz define themselves as a real estate communications agency with nearly 130,000 followers on Instagram alone. For Alexander Kraft, the human element is not the main thing. The most important thing is the authenticity of the property. “If we see the models, photos taken with drones… we will see that the article is advertising, not sincerehe shouts.
Above all, charm
Top performing posts”not ultra-high-end properties that cost millions of euros and are huge, but sometimes smaller ones that make you dream, tables set for dinner outside, like a country house in Provence. Or focus on a sofa facing a Parisian apartment fireplace or library rather than the perspective of a large living room. What matters is the attraction of goodnessAlexander Kraft says.
But aren’t owners wary of displaying their properties on the web for all to see? “This is an open door, not intrusion or voyeurism. We manage private properties, so we don’t show everything, it’s a matter of ethics regarding the privacy of the owners“, – assures Antoine Garcin. Buyers and sellers, like real estate agents, have understood the scope of social networks. “We have a 100% online strategy. We allocate 20% of our expenses to marketing. We put all the money we don’t rent out to financial agencies into networksValentin Kretz says.
