Video Walkthrough: Making real estate video accessible

I led the design of Zillow’s Video Walkthrough experience, making it easier for agents to create polished property tours.

The challenge was to make video feel effortless without feeling amateur. Through research with agents and photographers, I identified barriers to adoption and designed a guided experience that handled the complexity for the user.

The result was a lightweight creation experience that kept agents focused on the property while the system handled the production details.

Project overview

My role

• Led product design from concept through launch.

• Defined the interaction model and experience strategy.

• Conducted research with agents and photographers to identify barriers to adoption.

• Partnered with product and engineering to bring the experience to market.

Outcomes

• Created a simple, approachable way for agents to produce property videos.

• Reduced the complexity and anxiety associated with video creation.

• Established a scalable experience that could standardize video quality across Zillow listings.

• Launched ahead of the peak home-selling season with strong early adoption and positive user feedback.

The opportunity: fractured standards

Real estate video lacked a clear standard. Listing videos ranged from simple slideshows of still images to professionally produced tours, creating an inconsistent experience for buyers.

For agents, creating video could feel intimidating. Many lacked the equipment, editing skills, or confidence to produce something they felt represented their listings well.

Zillow had an opportunity to use its scale to make high-quality video more accessible while establishing a new standard for how homes could be presented online.

The process: radically simplifying

Research with agents and photographers revealed that the biggest barrier wasn't simply learning the tools. It was the pressure to create something that looked professional.

Our early concepts looked more like traditional video-editing software, putting too many decisions in front of the user. We stepped back and asked: What if the system handled the production, rather than asking agents to become video editors?

That led to a deliberately constrained experience:

• 2-minute limit: Focused agents on the most important features of the property.

• No audio: Removed the pressure of narration, music, and unwanted background noise.

• Minimal UI: Reduced controls and decisions to keep the focus on capturing the home.

• Automatic transitions: Crossfades between clips created a polished result without requiring editing.

Result & impact

The experience launched ahead of the peak home-selling season with strong early adoption and positive qualitative feedback.

Field testing revealed no major usability issues, and agents expressed a clear desire to continue using the tool. The launch also surfaced opportunities to improve discoverability and the perceived quality of the final videos, providing a foundation for future iterations.

The product was later sunset as Zillow shifted toward its 3D Home experience.