Video marketing for Dubai listings and off-plan launches: what to film, permits and formats

Four kinds of video do most of the work for a Dubai brokerage: a walkthrough of one listing, a tour of the community, an explainer for an off-plan launch and a short introduction from the agent. A video advert is a property advert, so it needs a DLD advertising permit through Trakheesi with the permit number shown, and DLD expects the Madmoun QR code on audiovisual ads. Shoot vertical (9:16) for Reels, Shorts, TikTok and WhatsApp Status, keep a wide (16:9) cut for YouTube and your website, and give each channel a route back to you so every enquiry keeps its source.

The videos that sell

• Listing walkthrough. One property, in the order a buyer would walk it: arrival, living space, kitchen, bedrooms, bathrooms and the view. Put the price, size and bedrooms on screen.
• Community tour. What living there is like: the walk to the metro, schools, shops, parks and the drive to work. One good area video can support every listing you have in that community.
• Off-plan launch. The developer, the location, the unit types, the payment plan and the handover date, built from the developer's approved material. It has rules of its own, covered below.
• Agent introduction. Thirty to sixty seconds on who you are, the areas you know and how to reach you. Pin it to your profile and send it to new leads before the first call.

Clear footage of the real unit matters more than polish. A steady phone, daylight and a sensible route through the home give a buyer what they came for: a feel for the space before they book a viewing.

Permits and the QR code on video adverts

DLD's Real Estate Brokerage Practice Guide (2nd edition, November 2024) says a brokerage must obtain a permit through Trakheesi for any real estate advertisement or marketing material, and that the permit number must be displayed on the ad. Electronic ads, promotional campaigns, open days and project launch ceremonies are all on its list of permit types.

On DLD's ad permit service page, a broker applying for an online ad attaches a copy of the marketing contract with the property owner, which for a resale listing is Contract A. The stated service time is one working day, and the fee depends on the permit type, so check it on the page before you plan a campaign.

Since 24 April 2023 each permit also comes with a Madmoun QR code. DLD's announcement says real estate companies are expected to show it on print and audiovisual ads, so that a buyer can scan it and see the approved details of the ad, including whether the property has already been sold or rented. In a video, that means the permit number and the QR code on screen, large enough and long enough to scan, and the permit number in the caption as well.

DLD enforces these rules. In October 2020 it fined ten companies and warned thirty more over ads without permits, manipulated permit numbers and expired permits, and it named fake and unlicensed ads on social media as a concern. Before you share another agency's video, check its permit with DLD's validation service on the website or in the Dubai REST app. Our Trakheesi listing permit checklist goes through the steps one by one.

Formats and lengths for each channel

Plan two versions of each video, a vertical one for phones and a wide one for screens, and film both orientations on the same visit. The lengths below are starting points, not rules:

Whatever the channel, add captions or on-screen text so the video works with the sound off, show the permit number and QR code, and end with one clear next step: a WhatsApp number, a link or a form.

A phone shot list

For a standard apartment you can film everything in one visit. Hold each shot for five to ten seconds, keep the phone steady at chest height, and film in daylight with the lights on:

1. The building entrance and lobby, then the corridor to the door.
2. A slow walk from the front door into the main living space.
3. The living room from the corner that shows the most space.
4. The kitchen, with the appliances in view.
5. Each bedroom, then its wardrobe and bathroom.
6. The other bathrooms, filmed from the doorway so you stay out of the reflection.
7. The balcony and the view, at the time of day it looks best.
8. The building's pool, gym, parking and play areas.
9. The street: the walk to the nearest metro station, shop or park.
10. Ten seconds of you to camera: the price, one reason to view and how to reach you.

Before you film an occupied home, get the owner's and the tenant's agreement, and keep personal photos, documents and faces out of the frame.

What you may show for off-plan

Off-plan video starts with the same three checks as any off-plan marketing. DLD's practice guide asks brokers to make sure a project is licensed and registered with RERA and has an escrow account, and that the brokerage has a marketing contract with the developer. DLD's FAQ adds that a project can be launched or announced once its registration is complete and its accreditation certificate is issued, and that a permit from RERA is mandatory to advertise real estate projects.

Events have rules too. A project launch event is a permit type of its own on DLD's ad permit page, and at property exhibitions, off-plan projects in Dubai that are not registered with DLD's escrow account department cannot be shown. In the video itself:

• use the developer's approved renders and footage, and say on screen that they are renders;
• quote the payment plan and the starting price from the developer's current price list, with its date;
• give the handover date as the developer states it, not as a promise;
• leave out returns or rents the developer has not put in writing;
• show the permit number and the QR code, as on any other ad.

When the video brings in interest, the next steps are the EOI, allocation and booking, set out in our guide to the off-plan sales process. The off-plan sales CRM page shows how a team tracks them.

Turning listing photos into a video in minutes

Not every listing needs a shoot. In Propfusion, “Create video tour” in a listing's menu turns up to 15 of the listing's photos into an MP4 of up to 60 seconds. You choose Reels (9:16), Wide (16:9), Square (1:1) or Portrait (4:5), a Fade, Slide, Zoom or Cut transition, and how long each photo stays on screen, with an estimate of the length as you go. Add a title-and-price card and an agent card, then download the MP4 or use it as the listing's video, and post it from your own accounts: Propfusion does not post for you.

Video tours are made from listings. For an off-plan project, send the project's brochure or a branded sales offer instead. In the Propfusion app, the share button on a listing also makes a WhatsApp Status story card with the main photo, price, bedrooms, bathrooms and location, and a ready caption that includes the listing link. The listing sharing page has the details, and marketing tools covers brochures, campaigns and branding.

Measuring enquiries by source

A video is worth making again when you can see what it brought in. Give each channel its own route back:

• a Facebook or Instagram lead form for paid video ads, connected to the CRM so each lead arrives with its form and source (see Meta lead ads);
• a click-to-WhatsApp ad, where WhatsApp analytics show which ads start chats;
• a website form that passes the campaign as its sub-source, so each lead shows which campaign or page brought it (see website forms).

Every lead in Propfusion keeps its source, and the leads list filters by source, so after a month you can compare what each campaign and channel brought in. Our page on lead management shows how those leads arrive and reach the right agent.