Marketing properties in this climate

[skycam man]

Hi all,
New here and hoping some of you 'in the know' people can help me with some of your opinions.

I am about to launch an elevated photography business in the UK very soon.
For those who havent heard of the service, basically I used a 10.1 mega pixel camera on top of a 70 foot, pneumatic mast which is deployed from a vehicle.
I can then take photos from a whole new perspective and these photos are stunning when compared to traditional photographs. They can show such things as gardens and outbuildings and even surrounding areas, commercial building photos can show car parking, loading areas and road infrastructure, all in one shot.
Iwant to know whether commercial or residential agents would want such a service and how much they would be prepared to pay for it. I understand that we are having a downturn at the moment but I see this as an opportunity to sell a service, with no regional competition, because it is different to what agencies traditionally use and Im guessing anything that increases viewings has to be a good thing? Also is advertising space an issue for agents, in local property papers?
Do you think that agencies would pay for such a thing as added value for the client or would they pass the cost on as an add on, taking a cut?

I d like to stress that Being a photographer I would include interior shots in the service too.

Your thoughts...and thank you for taking the time to read.

[googler]

Are you going to cover the WHOLE of the UK? If not, what's your home region going to be?

[googler]

A quick google search brought out 2 or 3 firms offering this service, one of which has a starting price of £99 + VAT.

One in Berwickshire, one in Cornwall. Phone them up, maybe and see how much they charge, and whether you'd be competing in their home area, or if you'd be somewhere else?

[BarryM]

You're competing with google map etc but sounds like it may be more detailed for larger country property.

[googler]

Nah, it's a totally different tool from google maps....

[skycam man]

Yeh its much more up close and personal. 2 dimensional photography really.
Im in Sussex and theres no real competition unless you count a guy with a mini blimp who sends a camera up and takes hundreds of shots remotely in the hope one of them does the job! But even he goes way too high.
So any views guys n gals?

[BarryM]

Sounds like you should be targetting estate agents /homeowners over at least 500k in the country IMO. Outside London it's more common for vendors to contribute to marketing costs so pitching to estate agents so they can offer it to their clients might be a start, together with a direct approach to properties on the market.

Maybe try the various web hosting companies too that offer floorplans, photography etc to estate agent clients who outsource their production.

I can't see the same benefits in Central London - except for very substantial property with large gardens/backing on to communal gardens - and there may be a whole host of privacy issues if you started doing it over say, Palace Gardens.

[Melsa]

One of the things we tell our sellers is that they need to get a different perspective on their photos. Do something different to the normal front door/gate/driveway shots, make your property photo stand out from all the masses around you in the papers. This sound like a good idea to me.

[pgraves]

People are going to love anything that enables them to differentiate their properties in this climate especially, I'm sure this will go well if your marketing is up to scratch.

Good luck!

[googler]

Yeah, but they'll hate to pay for it......