It’s important to remember that when creating virtual tours in the MLS they cannot contain any branding. This it intended to make it easier for other MLS members to share content about your listing with their clients, without it having an advertisement for a competitor included in that listing.
There are a variety of sources for virtual tours and most virtual tour providers understand the need to provide tours in both a branded format as well as an unbranded format for use to upload to the MLS.
You can create your own virtual tours, but you have to keep this branding requirement in mind. This applies not only to any audio, video or imagery that may be included in the tour, but also to the platform that is being used to present the video. This is often where video sites such as YouTube can create problems.
Not only should the video itself be free from branding, but if that video is uploaded to be hosted and linked to an agent or office YouTube account that contains contact information or branding that would also be unacceptable.
If you’re using YouTube to host that video and the video is accessible to the public from that YouTube account, as a public advertisement that video must also be compliant with LREC advertising rules – which include attributions that would make it unacceptable to meeting the MLS’s branding requirements. So how do we thread the needle?
- Create an “unbranded” YouTube account. This account shouldn’t contain any branding or contact information for the listing agent or office.
- When posting your videos to this account, be sure to indicate in the privacy settings for that video that it should be UNLISTED. This ensures that the video can be played through a link, but it doesn’t cause the video to appear publicly on YouTube – keeping it complaint with LREC public advertising regulations.
- Enter the URL for this unlisted, unbranded YouTube video in the Virtual Tour Link.
This is the best way to remain compliant with both LREC and MLS in using YouTube to host your videos. The video will only be accessible in an unbranded format, from those who have access to the link – which is entered in the MLS.
