They say that every crisis is an opportunity. In the case of the recent pandemic, companies specializing in the management of holiday rentals have expanded their use of new technologies to adhere to social distancing protocols and guarantee maximum safety for their owners and guests. At Lodging Management, we know that the property visit is a hugely important part of real estate promotion: the crucial moment in which you get the feel of the space, see the furniture, appliances, and decoration, and ultimately decide whether you want to stay there. For many months, travel restrictions blocked this experience and put the tourism apartment sector in a holding pattern. But as we’ve seen in other industries, ultimately the sector embraced the opportunity for change and has accelerated its technological immersion to a point where it has now become an irreversible process.
3D virtual tours are here to stay, and offer such a realistic perspective on a space that we can reliably feel we’ve visited every corner. At Lodging Management, we use the Matterport platform to create digital showcases of our rental apartments and share them through our website. Those interested in spending a holiday season in Barcelona or moving to Barcelona for professional or academic reasons can calmly explore the property that interests them from the comfort of their computer or mobile phone. In addition, owners who rely on Lodging for their rental management know their property is continuing to receive virtual visits and expanding their market of potential clients on the Internet.
With the objective of creating a digital doppelganger, Matterport’s development of its system goes beyond creating a render. Its artificial intelligence techniques allow for the creation of 3D models of extraordinary precision that offer an immersive and interactive experience for the user. These are not panoramic photos; this is a software that allows us to capture and connect physical spaces and transpose them into the digital sphere.
Apartment in Barcelona’s Gothic Quarter
Potential customers who virtually visit the tourism apartments in Barcelona managed by Lodging feel like they are inside the space, exploring every nook and cranny as closely as they like. This property located in the Gothic Quarter is a good example of the product that can be achieved with Matterport. Its 82 m2, distributed on two levels, are opened fully to scrutiny: two bedrooms, a fully equipped kitchen, a living room, the staircase, and all the furniture come to life within the 3D model. The visitor can take measurements, walk through rooms, view the floorplan from above, stand in different corners to get different perspectives, or watch the entire automated presentation, pausing it whenever they like. And finally, a file with more details of the apartment leads the user to our website, where he or she can get additional information and complete the picture of what to expect as a tenant.
For the owners, this has offered a magnificent opportunity to continue promoting their apartment in Barcelona for full seasonal rental; and for a company like Lodging, specialized in the management of holiday rentals, it’s a wonderful technological tool. Like our electronic locks that provide total security to guests, this new tech allows for a reliable property visit, no matter the time of year or your location in the world.
