Floor plans used to be a bonus item on an apartment community website and listing, an inclusion that added a well-rounded touch.

Not anymore. Now, they are a necessity.

With online traffic becoming hyper-focused on the visual, prospective renters are clamoring for more than mere photos and a video tour. Look at the listings or website of any apartment community on the cutting edge and you’ll see 3D floor plans included.

Undoubtedly, there are non-negotiable necessities on an apartment listing —amenities, location details, price, etc. — but floor plans have become among the most searched items among prospective residents.

A recent RentPath study indicates that the most common second step of a prospective resident is to look at floor plans and panoramic views of the apartment, after first making sure the listing is authentic and not misrepresented. Viewing floor plans allows the resident to authentically imagine living in that space, which is a big reason we invested in converting all of its 2D floor plans to 3D.

More importantly, floor plans help convert prospective renters to leads at a higher rate. Our internal data suggests the inclusion of floor plans can spike leads by an additional 15 percent, but that isn’t the only bonus. They can serve as a legitimate marketing tool beyond merely including them on listings. Many communities are posting their floor plans on Pinterest, which has frequently resulted in a number of clicks. These clicks guide the user to the community’s website in something of a soft sell.

Pinterest users typically are there for browsing reasons, but if they come across your floor plan, it has the potential to spark interest for those in the market for an apartment. 

Madeline Coite, content manager for WC Smith, noted at the Apartment Internet Marketing Conference in May that 43 of the top 50 pins for WC Smith were of floor plans. In Q1 of this year, 111 people clicked through Pinterest to WC Smith’s corporate site, and 2.7 percent of those converted by either filling out a contract or calling. 

While that alone is not enough to consider Pinterest as a viable lead source, it does underscore the importance and the potential powerful nature of floor plans.

While 3D floor plans might seem to get lost in the shuffle with brighter, even more visual options such as virtual tours, deft-thinking apartment communities know better than to leave them off their sites and listings. Their omission could be the determining factor in a prospective resident’s decision-making process.