The biggest change I have seen in the nearly 30 years that I have held a Georgia real estate license is the introduction of the Internet. The ability of this medium to share and transmit information is so profound as to shake the real estate industry to its very core.

When I first became an agent, all real estate "for sale" information was contained in secret "listing books." It was clearly printed across the back cover that these books were "not for public distribution."

Agents were the gatekeepers of the secret information, and if you wanted to buy a house, you pretty much had to work with a real estate agent. If all worked well, the agent would listen to your needs and wants, then select a variety of available homes from the secret list, then allow you to view those homes on Sunday afternoon.

Today, things have changed.

While there is apparently still a struggle going on in the industry between the gatekeeper mentality and the "open info" theory, the existence of sites such as Realtor.com and Georgia Multiple Listing Service prove that listing information is no longer considered "proprietary."

Buyers are demanding access to listings so they can peruse them in privacy, and they typically do so for some time before contacting any agent.

And it turns out there is one feature of any for sale listing that buyers really like. It's all about the pictures. Pictures of the inside, pictures of the outside and pictures of all the rooms. The more pictures, the better.

A recent study by Web site software provider Point2 Technologies indicates that photos have a higher impact on driving real estate transactions than perhaps anyone realized. The results strongly suggest that adding more photos generates better response to real estate listings.

The study examined three areas of consumer interest: views of the listing, specific interest generated by the listing and number of unique leads obtained by listing agents as a result of the Web site listing.

As one might expect, if the listing featured no photo, it generated little consumer interest and little activity. I am always amazed when I see listings in the Atlanta MLS services that say "no photo," but there are plenty of them. Listings that featured a single photo did "significantly better."

But here's the kicker: When they compared listings with one photo to those with 21 or more photos, they found that consumers were three times as likely to delve deeper into the listing with the most pictures for a detailed view, and as a result, generated twice the amount of interest and twice the number of leads.

Statistics from the National Association of Realtors show that a large percentage of home shoppers begin their search for a new home online, and that they conduct research on neighborhoods and individual homes that are for sale.

In addition, the study revealed that there was a direct and measurable relationship between the number of photos available and the consumer's positive reaction to that listing, both in views and actual leads that were generated as a result.

The software at Georgia MLS appears to limit listing agents to a maximum of 16 photos, but the vast majority of listings have far fewer. And it looks like Realtor.com will allow agents to post up to 25 photos.

Even a "for sale by owner" can get in on the act if they want. Web sites like Zillow will allow owners to post their homes for sale at no charge, and allow multiple photos to be posted for free.

Some sellers set up a new Web site using the street address, such as 123oakstreet.com. Visitors can be automatically redirected to a free photo gallery site such as Google's picasa Web albums. Sites like these offer "slide show" capability and also offer the viewer a one-click method of sharing the photos.

The message is clear. Prospective buyers in this market want to see images of your home before they visit it. The more photos, the greater the interest.

When it comes to selling homes, the Web does one thing remarkably well. It delivers pictures to prospects quickly and easily. For maximum marketing, make sure you're taking advantage of that medium.

Find previous articles by John Adams and more home buying advice on the ajchomefinder mortgage center.