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360° virtual tours are growing in popularity, bringing businesses firmly into the 21st century. While they are popular with the hospitality sector in particular, there are many advantages in every sector for having a virtual dollhouse or floor plan view that can be viewed online. Read on below to discover the seven reasons why your business needs a virtual tour

1. Better Online Visibility

If you’ve got a Google My Business listing, you are going to appear on the map pack when people search for services in your sector. To increase the chance of ranking above your competitors, Google displays those that have virtual tours of the business for users to explore.

Users will spend more time on Google listings that have 360 images on them, allowing you to retain a higher placing in the map pack.

It can be suggested as part of a Local marketing strategy, something all businesses should understand ensuring they rank in their local area. Investing in a good local strategy is good, whether you do that in-house or working with an agency. By adding a virtual tour, you’ll be putting yourself in a better position.

With your GMB listing positioned well, you will get more clicks from Book Now, Contact Us or Call buttons that you feature on it. As users can use the virtual tour to understand more about our business, they are more likely to engage with you.

A virtual tour is also great for sharing on various social media channels, once again giving a set of users the opportunity to find out more about your business by being your virtual guest.

2. Display Your Company’s Personality

While your website and advertising can show the side of your business you want users to see, you can give them a peek behind the scenes to really show off your personality with a 360 degree virtual tour.

For example, if you run a bar, a virtual tour will give users an instant impression of your establishment and make a quick judgment about coming to visit, spend time and money on drinks and food.

If you’ve got a salon, a virtual tour can give your users a flavour of your business, a taste of your brand identity, and an impression of what personalities are going to be working there. It will help attract more customers as you come across rather genuine.

3. Increase Brand Transparency and Trust

Adding a virtual tour to your business not only displays your personality, but it will also inform your potential customers about your products and services. They can wander virtually through your tour, giving an honest and transparent impression about your place.

This model has been successful for event spaces such as galleries and theatres that take advantage of the “dolls house” view to let customers get a true feel for the place.

4. Target a Modern Audience

Millennials and Generation Z are the tech savvy people who make up most of today’s internet users. Nowadays learning about products, services and companies happens through social media, search engines and more. The shorter and snappier way you can engage that audience is better for your business. A virtual tour can help with that goal.

Users can visualise and understand your business quickly through the aid of a virtual tour. Sharing this online and on target platforms will improve your digital marketing strategy and increase your potential leads.

5. Let People From Further Afield Experience Your Company

A part of having your virtual tour on Google, when linked with Street View, is the ability to give prospects from further afield the chance to your business. People with mobility issues who struggle to physically travel to places will also benefit from an online virtual tour, accessibility an important part of any business online.

Allowing those non-local prospects to have a tour of your business from afar helps refine their search and feel more confident about visiting your venue in person.

6. Customers Can Make More Informed Decisions

Before making purchasing decisions, people will conduct some research to find the best product or service for them. A virtual tour is a vital research tool for users, allowing them to make more informed decisions about your company.

A virtual tour allows users to get a feel for the atmosphere of a bar or restaurant quickly or if a wedding venue is the right size and layout for the big day.

If you’re an estate agent, you could provide your users with a virtual tour allowing them to view a property online, without having to step into a property they suddenly take a dislike to. Anyone who then takes the step to view the property in person has already decided they want to see more, increasing the buying intent.

7. Attracting More Customers

Putting all this together, a virtual tour will simply attract more customers. Using a virtual tour has the chance to attract stronger leads to your business, local or otherwise. By offering no barriers to all your potential customers, you can build a stronger connection right away.

To attract more customers to your business, Birmingham based ScanTech Digital can offer virtual tour services for you. We’ll work with you using our 4K resolution photogrammetry and 3D laser scanning, to give users the best first impression of your business. Get in touch with the team today for more information.