An Expert’s Take on Virtual Tour ROI

Let’s talk about Return on Investment. Today, businesses are constantly looking for innovative ways to engage potential customers, streamline decision-making, and drive conversions. Virtual tours have become a tool that has gained significant traction. They provide an immersive experience that allows users to explore spaces from anywhere in the world, at any time.

But beyond the “Cool Factor”, do virtual tours deliver a real return on investment?

To answer this question, we sat down with Antonín Lipták, an expert in virtual tour creation, to discuss how businesses can maximize the value of virtual tours and why they should be seen as more than just a visual gimmick.

SeekBeak: Share a bit of background about yourself and how you got into the world of virtual tours.

Antonín: I have been creating virtual tours for more than four years. From the start, I was excited about this technology because of the immersive and interactive approach virtual tours offers to users.

SeekBeak: You wrote an article about the value of virtual tours for businesses. What inspired you to write this?

Antonín: The article was titled “Honest Opinion: Is it Worth Investing in a Virtual Tour?” which serves as an honest guide for clients to determine if a virtual tour is a good investment for their company or not. People don’t immediately understand the business value of virtual tours. They see it as a cool feature, but they don’t always see the strategic benefits from a business perspective. That’s something I wanted to change.

SeekBeak: This is a common challenge. Many businesses invest in virtual tours without a clear strategy, expecting them to be an instant solution. Let’s talk about some industries that benefit the most from virtual tours.

Antonín: Numerous industries benefit. The obvious ones are real estate, tourism, and education. But this technology can provide value to any industry and any business on the planet. Broadly speaking, a virtual tour is a marketing and sales tool that can provide additional information to users in an interactive and immersive form. But, it’s effectiveness depends on how it is implemented to solve real business problems for the company or customer.

At the end of the day, a virtual tour needs to address a specific business challenge or generate revenue. One common misconception is that virtual tours are just a fancy add-on. In reality, they can be a powerful business problem-solving tool.

SeekBeak: Beyond those industries, businesses in manufacturing, healthcare, and event planning are starting to see benefits. We’re also seeing that virtual tours can help streamline operations, improve training and enhance customer experience. 

In your article, you mentioned six key aspects to consider before investing in a virtual tour: 

• Target audience

• Offering

• Marketing and Sales goals

• Budget and ROI

• Alternatives

• Competition

Which of these do you think is the most overlooked by businesses?

Antonín: All six aspects mentioned are important and interconnected. But if I had to choose one, the most overlooked aspect is failing to connect the virtual tour to business metrics and goals, especially marketing and sales goals. I see many companies using virtual tours but not measuring their impact. They simply upload a virtual tour to Google Street View or their website and assume the job is done.

To truly benefit from it, businesses need to market the 360 content actively and integrate it into their marketing mix. Business often don’t track relevant metrics and KPI’s, so they aren’t sure what’s working and what’s not.

SeekBeak: Measuring engagement, dwell time, and conversion rates from virtual tours can provide clear indicators of success. Businesses should leverage analytics to refine their strategies over time. SeekBeak has multiple ways to measure effectiveness, including our comprehensive reporting suite.

Check out our Reporting Overview Video to learn more:

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SeekBeak: So Antonin, how can businesses determine if their target audience would actually use and engage with virtual tours.

Antonín: It’s easier than you think. Just ask yourself these three questions:

1. Who are my customers, and what applications do they use? (Web, email, mobile, etc.)

2. Do we receive a lot of questions about our offering? Could a virtual tour answer these questions once and for all?

3. Can virtual tours help solve any problems that our customers face?

SeekBeak: Are there any industries where virtual tours are commonly underutilized but could benefit greatly from them?

Antonín: Virtual tours shouldn’t be seen as a “one-size-fits-all” solution. Every industry has different pain points. Instead of focusing on which industries don’t use virtual tours, it’s more about how virtual tours can help solve specific problems that businesses face.

SeekBeak: You mentioned that virtual tours aren’t just “cool shiny things”. Can you share an example of a business that implemented a virtual tour with a clear purpose and saw real results?

Antonín: We worked with a luxury restaurant located in one of the highest skyscrapers in Praque. They wanted to attract a broader audience beyond wealthy individuals. The problem was that the restaurant was on the 27th floor, so many people didn’t even know it existed, and those who did weren’t sure how to get there. The issue was psychological. People didn’t know what to expect. They may have seen pictures of food and the view, but they didn’t have a full understanding of the space and atmosphere.

So we created a virtual tour emphasizing how to navigate to the restaurant and what to expert upon arrival. We then integrated it into their marketing strategy through social media and email campaigns. 

The result?

Within the first month, they saw a 7% increase in reservations compared to the previous month. From a business standpoint, they recovered their investment in just two months.

Check out Antonín’s Case Study: Restaurant Aureole

SeekBeak: Let’s talk budget. It’s often a big concern. How should a business calculate the ROI of a virtual tour?

Antonín: The ROI depends on the problem the virtual tour aims to solve. For example, if the goal is to increase direct bookings for a hotel, analytic tools can track how effective the virtual tour is in converting visitors into bookings. Because virtual tours are online tools, ROI calculations can be straightforward.

SeekBeak: What are some common mistakes businesses make when implementing virtual tours, and how can they avoid them?

Antonín: The biggest mistake is not promoting the virtual tour itself. People need to know about it to use it. Implementation is only the start, it’s not the finish line.

SeekBeak: How can virtual tours provide a competitive advantage even if no direct competitors are using them.

Antonín: If competitors aren’t using virtual tours, that’s an even bigger advantage. Your business can be the first, making your product or service stand out through the immersive experience. If you identify a customer problem that a virtual tour can solve, your business will naturally differentiate itself, increasing engagement and sales.

To learn more about Antonín, follow him on LInkedIn and visit his blog where he shares his knowledge about 360 photography, marketing and virtual tours.

The Takeaway: Virtual Tours as a Strategic Asset

This conversation with Antonín highlights that virtual tours are more than just eye candy. They’re a business tool that, when strategically implemented, can drive real results. Whether it’s increasing bookings, improving customer engagement, or streamlining sales processes, the key is to connect your virtual tour to clear business objectives and track its impact.

Here’s a list of business objectives where virtual tours can be used:

Marketing & Sales

1. Increase Conversions - Use virtual tours to showcase products, properties, or spaces in a way that drives bookings or purchases.

2. Enhanced Brand Awareness - Create shareable, immersive experiences that make your brand stand out.

3. Improve Customer Trust - Provide transparency and a realistic preview of your business to reduce uncertainty or objections.

4. Shorten the Sales Cycle - Allow prospects to explore and understand offerings without requiring an in-person visit… or to make a decision before even speaking to a sales person.

5. Generate Qualified Leads - Embed lead capture forms directly into virtual tours for better engagement.

6. Boost Engagement Metrics - Increase website dwell time, interaction rates, and social shares.

Customer Experience & Support

1. Enhanced Customer Decision-Making - Help customers visualize spaces, seating arrangements, or layouts before they visit.

2. Reduce Customer Inquiries - Answer FAQs visually, such as where to park, how to navigate a venue, or venue amenities.

3. Increase Accessibility - Provide virtual access to locations for individuals who can’t visit in person.

4. Improve Onboarding & Training - Use virtual tours to familiarize new customers or new employees with your services, facilities or equipment.

At SeekBeak, we help businesses go beyond the “cool factor” by providing analytics, insights, and interactive features that make virtual tours a measurable part of your strategy.

Start Making Your Virtual Tour Work for You Today