Local commercial and residential real estate brokerages are stepping up their multimedia marketing efforts with the use of video to showcase properties in Greater Des Moines.

At least two companies, R&R Realty Group and Coldwell Banker Mid-America Group Realtors, have recently begun using videos to highlight properties for lease and for sale.

“We are in such a technology-savvy world that there are just a lot of people that get charged up,” said Tom Gayman, an R&R Realty Group senior vice president, who in February spearheaded an interactive video project that allows prospective tenants to check out available spaces online.

“Sometimes we deal with companies where the real estate people are out of state,” said Paul Rupprecht, president of R&R’s Realty Marketing Group subsidiaries, adding that the creation of a video library – showcasing various company-owned properties and tenant testimonials – is one of the ways R&R is encouraging its brokers to differentiate themselves from the competition.

“Utilizing video is a perfect way to make you stand out,” he said. “I think it has a bigger impact.”

The videos are generally pushed out to a targeted list of contacts. But an internal team effort to enhance the initiative by posting them directly to the company’s Web site is in the works.

On the residential side, Coldwell Banker Mid-America Group Realtors announced this week its participation in Coldwell Banker On Location, a Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC-branded YouTube channel that offers consumers a way to search and interact with real estate information and listings via the Web.

According to a release, the company plans to develop in-depth videos “to bring real estate more vividly to life” with a strong emphasis on Greater Des Moines.

“Our agents are excited that they can use this unique video platform to share knowledge and more efficiently showcase their homes online, saving time and energy for consumers,” said Carolyn Helmlinger, president of Coldwell Banker Mid-America Group Realtors.

“The response we have seen since the launch of On Location has been tremendous,” said Michael Fischer, Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC’s senior vice president of marketing.

The channel currently features more than 1,700 videos.