Written by Ryan Byler – Vice President, Property Management
I’ll never forget my first home purchase. My wife and I were young, inexperienced and just getting ready to start our family. We searched endlessly online until this small but beautiful ranch caught our attention. There were lovely photos, and it was expertly staged. But more than that, as we scrolled through listings on our iPad in bed every night, we kept coming back to this one home and the way that it made us feel. On paper, it was slightly more expensive than we wanted, and the blue bathtub was unattractive, but otherwise, it just felt right in our collective gut. I still love that first home despite having moved many years ago.
So why, in commercial real estate, do we lag so far behind our residential counterparts in recreating that same feeling for a future tenant or business? I didn’t need a realtor to look at that house, so why should a prospective tenant need a broker to find their next location? The answer is that in this glorious technological renaissance that we find ourselves in, they don’t. And landlords need to create that same feeling for any tenant looking for space. After all, for many local tenants, an investment in a retail space is a larger commitment than a home purchase.
At ShopCore, we settled on a comprehensive 360-degree vision for all of our vacant spaces. In addition to web-accessible virtual tours (throw on your AppleVision Pro if you’re really tech-savvy), we can even render these spaces into size-appropriate concepts like medical offices, beauty salons and even specialty retail. The space needs to pop! We want everyone who finds a link to the 360-degree tour on ShopCore.com to say, “Wow, I can see myself there.”
Even better, these 360s provide prospective tenants with everything they need, like detailed CAD drawings, window measurements, interior dimensions, and details on existing mechanicals like HVAC systems and kitchen equipment. Furthermore, we leverage this with our broker partners so they can be better prepared with superior material than the next landlord. So, let’s be real. Which has a greater impact: a site plan with square footage or a virtual tour that can be accessed anytime, anywhere?
At ShopCore, we strive to be on the cutting edge of technology that makes sense. And our comprehensive 360 program allows us to better show and lease all of our spaces by keeping them top of mind and creating that intrinsic, gut feeling of “That is where my next location is going to be. I can literally see it!”