Zillow Media Credits for Rental Management Companies21310
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 WGAN BasicMember Denver |
pixelray private msg quote post Address this user | |
| I just hit on this topic in another WGAN Forum discussion but I thought I should start a new forum about this to see if any of you have dealt with this. But last week, my long time rental management company that I have shot for for years reached out to me asking me about an email they received from Zillow. This email stated that they had media credits waiting to be used and some were expiring soon for basically all of their apartment complexes. Roughly each unit had a $350 media credit that they could use for photos, videos, Zillow, 3D tours and floor plans and several other media options. And my client wanted to know if he could get me on the schedule to get these done. Well my immediate question was how does this work? I had never seen this before. I was curious of how I get paid... If my client has credits, are they expecting me to honor the credits? I just didn't know how it worked so I told them I needed to contact Zillow to get a little bit more information on this. And yet again, I might add, Zillow has rolled out yet something else very quickly and nobody seems to know anything about it. They seem to be very good at rolling out new programs without anybody knowing about it. So anyway, I contacted Zillow and the guy I spoke with seemed very confused in the beginning when I mentioned Zillow media credits. It was crickets. He asked me to give him a minute to look some things up. I guess they roll out things so fast that even their own employees don't even know about them! But anyway, he came back and ultimately told me that in order for these clients to utilize these media credits that they have to use one of zillow's employed photographers. To which I was very shocked. I even told him that was a terrible thing to do to photographers... The same photographers that help them get Zillow 3D up and running in all of these markets. The same photographers they came to years ago asking for our help with doing that, and I'm sure everybody jumped on board with Zillow 3D tours for the most part. I mean it's an easy quicker way to do a 3D tour... Even though the tour is not that great, but we all know that it gives the agent a boost in the search results by having one of these tours and the floor plans. They get to have their listing show up higher in the search results by having them. So it's really been a no-brainer. But I told him that if they are truly doing this, and they have to use a Zillow employed photographer, that basically they have just devised a program to steal clients from us by dangling these credits in front of their faces, hoping they all utilize them. Meaning that the Zillow employed photographer will now get this work. I am waiting on another call back from somebody else at Zillow to confirm this is actually correct. But I wanted to reach out to any of you guys to see if any of you have dealt with this issue. I can tell you if this is true, I will no longer be recommending Zillow 3D tours anymore. And I have done that for years. I won't do it anymore. I will not support a company that devises programs like this to steal clients from photographers. I just won't do it. |
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 WGAN FanCLUB Member Coeur d'Alene, Idaho |
lilnitsch private msg quote post Address this user | |
| One of my rental companies had these credits last summer they hired & paid me as usual and were either issued credits or reimbursed from Zillow directly. I was Zillow certified (not sure if that is even still a thing) but, am not in contract to shoot for Zillow ~ I just directly shoot for clients. |
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WGAN Fan CLUB Member Coeur d'Alene, Idaho |
lilnitsch private msg quote post Address this user | |
| CoStar does something similar however, I believe they ONLY use their in-house shooters and typically will just shoot the model which usually is a hit and run Matterport tour that doesn't navigate very well. | ||
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WGAN Basic Member Denver |
pixelray private msg quote post Address this user | |
| Interesting. That's how I was hoping it would work. I was hoping I would be able to just do my normal work for them and Bill them as normal and then they receive some type of payment from Zillow... But the guy at Zillow told me that is absolutely not how it works. So hopefully I will get some clarification soon when and if I hear back from the person that actually sent my client the email letting them know they had the credits. There is an actual process for them to go through and It ultimately leads them to a page where they can choose from different photographers. I am not on that list. I thought that list would have been driven from people that paid for Aryeo Pro but again, the guy at Zillow said that wasn't the case either. He told me all of those people on the list were employed by Zillow. I'm finding it a little hard to believe personally. So I am hoping he was wrong. |
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WGAN Fan CLUB Member Coeur d'Alene, Idaho |
lilnitsch private msg quote post Address this user | |
| I got paid as usual directly through my Rental Co (no interaction with Zillow) | ||
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WGAN Fan CLUB Member Coeur d'Alene, Idaho |
lilnitsch private msg quote post Address this user | |
| @pixelray I am on the list of photographers on Zillow and have had a handful of leads however, none of them have panned out ~ typically leads are a FSBO or VRBO I get them pricing and crickets. |
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 WGAN ForumFounder and Advisor Atlanta, Georgia |
DanSmigrod private msg quote post Address this user | |
| @pixelray Actual document/email from Zillow -- via your client -- that you can reprint here? @Dataventurer Any info? Thanks, Dan |
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WGAN Basic Member Denver |
pixelray private msg quote post Address this user | |
| This is it: Congratulations on your property going live on the Zillow network! As part of your Zillow advertising package, you will receive a media credit that can be redeemed with our professional photography partner, Zillow Media Experts, for the property listed below. Why This Matters Integrating Zillow 3D Home virtual tours and interactive floor plans can help boost your listing’s visibility and engagement. These 3D Home tours may provide prospective renters with a clearer understanding of the layout and flow, leading to more informed inquiries. Voucher Details - This is where it lists out all of my clients properties and it shows the media credit they have for each property. I won't list those out for privacy reasons... Steps to Book Your Zillow Media Photoshoot Use the Zillow Media Experts Photographer Order Form to start the process. Select the “Essentials+” bundle for at least 1 Unit, and then choose any add-on services to utilize your credit. Schedule a time and fill in the required details. Create a Zillow Media Experts account (this is separate from your Zillow login). On the check out page, enter the Promo Code from the table above to receive your discount. Please note: You will be responsible for any expenses exceeding your credit amount. Ensure your rental is ready for the photoshoot by following the Preparation Checklist Additional Notes For guidance on the booking process, please refer to this step-by-step guide. Onsite changes are not allowed. All photography must be completed in a single visit. This credit can only be used for the property listed above. The promo code is one-time use only; any remaining balance will be forfeited. Cancel or reschedule without penalties up to 24 hours before your appointment. Late cancellations are subject to a $50 fee. Zillow Media is delivered via email the next day by 5 PM CST, Mon-Sat. Media is not delivered on Sundays. Any shoots on Saturday will arrive on Monday. Zillow Tours are published on your Zillow listing within 7 business days, however, you will be responsible for uploading the photos. This is an automated email and cannot accept replies. For any questions or concerns, please contact: Scheduling issues or order modifications: support@zillow-workspace.com Other inquiries: 3dtoursupport@zillowgroup.com We appreciate your business. Thank you for choosing our services! ------ So that is the email my client received. This prompted me to look up Zillow media experts... This is absolutely a hired position by Zillow. They pay these photographers anywhere from 20 to 30 bucks an hour. My guess is even with these credits they're offering them, they're still paying a decent amount for all of the media they will end up purchasing. And they pay the photographers absolute crap. |
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WGAN Basic Member Denver |
pixelray private msg quote post Address this user | |
| I'm going to tell you what I think is happening here. While Zillow media credits may only exist right now for rental management companies that have multiple properties, what's to stop Zillow from going after everyone with enticing them with media credits to use their $20 per hour photographers on all jobs? That's where I think this is leading. | ||
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