RealtyShot Essential Package: Who It's For and When to Book It

Some listings don't need a production. They need their essentials done properly. That's the job of the Essential package.

What's in Essential today

At the time of writing, Essential includes:

• HDR Photos: premium high dynamic range photography, with balanced interiors and exteriors and window views that hold their detail
• Floor Plan (LiDar): a detailed 2D floor plan with measurements, captured with LiDAR scanning

Package contents are managed in our booking system and can change, so the card below reads them live.

Why photos and a floor plan are the right pair

Photos answer do I like it? The floor plan answers will it work for us? Most buyers look at both before they book a showing, and a listing with only one leaves half the question open.

That matters in Metro Vancouver, where buyers compare square footage and layouts closely. A floor plan shows how the space is divided: whether the kitchen is open to the living room, how big the second bedroom really is, how much of the footprint goes to hallways. Because the plan is captured with LiDAR scanning on site, it reflects the home as it is today rather than an old builder drawing. The photos then bring that plan to life. Essential covers both, so you're not paying for media the listing won't use.

Who Essential suits

• Condos and apartments in buildings like the towers around Metrotown or Richmond City Centre, where finishes and layout are what buyers compare. Our note on floor plans for Richmond condo listings explains why the plan carries so much weight there.
• Starter townhomes with a simple layout
• Single-level homes where photos and a plan already tell the whole story
• Tenanted or quick-turn listings where access is limited and you need clean coverage in one visit
• Price-sensitive listings where every line item has to earn its place

Realtor reviewing a floor plan with listing photos on a tablet

Getting the most from Essential

Because the package is lean, preparation does more of the work:

1. Prepare every room. With no video or tour to carry the story, each photo has to count. Clear counters, open blinds, turn on every light and put away small items.
2. Tell us about the rooms that matter. If the den is the reason a young family will choose this unit, say so when you book.
3. Put the floor plan near the front of the gallery. Buyers who see it early read the photos with the layout in mind.
4. Describe the layout the way the plan shows it. When your listing copy, the plan and the photos agree, buyers trust all three.
5. Reuse the photos beyond the MLS. A few strong HDR images make good social posts, email headers and just-listed cards.

What Essential doesn't include

Knowing the limits helps you set expectations with sellers:

• No Floor View Tour. Buyers see the photos and the plan separately and do the matching themselves. For a simple layout that's rarely a problem. For a multi-level home it often is.
• No property webpage. You'll share the photos and floor plan through the MLS and your own channels.
• No video. If you want motion for social media, look at a package that includes it or add a video service when you book.

Talking to sellers about Essential

Some sellers assume more media is always better. For a well-kept condo or a simple townhome, clear photos and an accurate floor plan are the two things buyers actually use to decide whether to book a showing. Explain that Essential puts the budget where buyers look first, and that add-ons are there if the home turns out to need more.

When to step up

Essential is deliberately lean. Move up when the home needs more to explain itself:

• Multi-level homes or homes with suites: buyers struggle to match photos to rooms. Standard adds a Floor View Tour, which places each photo on the floor plan where it was taken, plus a property webpage.
• Listings you'll promote hard on social media: Boost adds a SpeedSell video and a Property Report to the Standard lineup.
• Homes where flow and atmosphere sell: Elite adds a filmed video tour and brochure design.

Still weighing it up? Our listing media decision guide walks through the choice step by step.

Add-ons that pair well with Essential

Essential is a good base for adding exactly what a listing needs, and nothing it doesn't:

• Twilight Photos for a detached home's cover image (see why twilight works for Surrey listings)
• Drone Aerials when the lot or location sells (use our five-question drone test)
• Virtual Staging for vacant units. Label staged photos; see virtual staging done right.
• Virtual Tour (FloorView) if you want the Floor View Tour without the rest of Standard
• Property Report when buyers will want room dimensions in writing
• Rush Delivery when the listing date is tight

Current options are listed on our Services page.

Essential isn't a compromise. For many listings it's exactly the right amount of media: the two assets every buyer uses, done well.