Is a Photograph of Real Estate you are Selling/Renting Worth 1000 Words?

An adage claims that a picture is worth 1000 words.

Is this right when it comes to Real Estate Marketing? In your marketing campaign, can you replace a picture with 1000 words and expect to get as many inqueries about your product?

Q: Why are great photographs so effective in getting people to call in and ask about your property?
A: Great property pictures elicit the "I want that" or "I want to live here" impulse.

Let's take Craigslist ads as an example. Ads without photos are useless, they get almost no calls. People want to see the place before they pick up the phone and dial the number. This is why placing an ad in Craigslist without a photo is a waste of time. Ads with photos get 10 times more calls than ads without photos. (and I think it may be even more than 10 times) In fact, there are several businesses whose sole purpose is to offer craigslist users a way to differentiate and stand out from posts with inferior photos.

These same ads with monotonous or exciting descriptions of properties that drag out for paragraphs on end, impede the desire for instant gratification of the on-the-go attitudes of Angelinos who don't have time to scroll down to the photos below the description (let alone to read the description) we want our photos at the very top of the ad!

Q: What's the lesson?
A: Show! Don't tell. (And do a great job with that showing part)