Real Estate Web Design and Marketing Blog

As some of you may know, Real Estate Webmasters is hosting a Greatest Real Estate Agent in the World contest. It’s a contest to see what agent can dominate the search engines for that keyword. I was aware of the contest but hadn’t really been following it that much until about a week ago. I received a Google Alert that said Kevin Tomlinson and Brad Carroll were the greatest real estate agents in the world. What? It turns out that Blogging Queen ARDELL wrote a post on Rain City Guide declaring us as winners (thanks again!) The point of her post was twofold. One - to test to see how fresh content differs in search engine placement from older authority content; and two, to see show that a team approach is the best way to achieve good SEO.

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Update: I have been contacted by Active Rain asking me to remove my customized AR blog. They discovered a potential flaw where some ActiveRain pages (that show posts from multiple users) could be altered. I have already contacted them with a fix for this. I will be speaking with them today and will keep you updated.

You have probably heard the buzz about the ability to totally customize your Active Rain blog. Visit my recent Active Rain post if you haven’t yet seen an example. It turns out; Active Rain gives you amazing flexibility in the look and feel of your blog. You don’t have to have to be a part of any special beta program. You can do this with any Active Rain blog.

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This much we know, e-commerce spending is growing at an incredible rate and is expected to top $7 trillion this year… yes - I said trillion with a “T”. Recent studies indicate there are numerous reasons why e-commerce sites are so successful. Shoppers list these reasons for using the Internet to shop:

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I have to admit, I am often temped to include signup forms on our client’s MLS and map search pages. After all, my job is to create real estate websites that fills my client’s inbox with lots of leads. But I always advise against doing so. Why? Well that’s exactly what this blog post is all about.

It’s not an equal playing field

Most real estate agents who require visitors to sign up to search the MLS think there is a balance of power. The agent has something the visitor wants (MLS access to thousands of homes), and the website visitor has something the real estate agent wants (their contact information). But here is the reality. It’s not equal. The site visitor is holding all the cards. The visitor doesn’t need you or your website. After all, if they do make it to your website and see that you require them to sign up to search for homes, they could give bogus information or easily hit that looming back button and move on to any of the other million or so results that Google has retrieved. And that’s not even mentioning the fact that they could search Realtor.com, Google Real Estate, Trulia, and so on.

Go After The Savvy Ones

The California Association of Realtors recently conducted a study comparing Traditional Buyers vs. Internet Savvy Buyers. The results were quite amazing. It turns out that Internet Savvy made much better clients than Traditional Buyers. They require you to show them less houses, they buy quicker, and they require less work on your part. So how does this relate to the forced registration vs. free search debate? Internet Savvy Buyers will typically find another resource if they see a website where they have to sign up to search for homes. But traditional buyers with less experience on the internet will simply follow the instructions. This means that you are actually pushing away the “easy” clients and catering to the clients that are going to make your life more difficult.

Extra Hoops for a Real Lead

Strangely enough, forcing visitors to sign up on your real estate website actually makes it less likely to receive quality leads. Why? When it comes to home searches, one of the best leads is a request for a showing. But by forcing visitors to first sign up, you are putting one more road block between them and that precious “Request a Showing” form.

Be a Leader and Not a Follower

There are a few real estate agents that require their visitors to register before searching the MLS. They seem to operate in clusters. While it may be easy to follow the crowd, the reality is that you have an excellent opportunity to differentiate yourself from your competition. While everyone else is making people mouse in handcuffs, you can shout it from the rooftops that you allow people to freely search without requiring people to register.

Search Engine Optimization

Oh yeah. Requiring visitors to sign up effects your search engine optimization also. This is because Google can’t “sign up” to search the MLS. This means that all those pages that Google would otherwise know about goes into a black hole. Ouch!

The List Goes On

There are more reasons such as having to deal with all the mickeymouse@noway.com leads clogging your inbox and database, pushing away repeat visitors and the appearance as a gatekeeper but you get the idea.

But I need More Leads!

So what’s the answer if you are not getting enough leads? The first step is to not make things worse by putting more stipulations on your site visitor. The savvy ones are too smart for that. Instead, take the opposite approach with your real estate web design. Give even more information away! Make it easier and faster for a visitor to get the information they need. Become the true resource for information in your area. It’s only then that all those savvy visitors will start flooding your inbox with their information.

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Many real estate agents know that one way to increase their rankings for their real estate website is to gain additional links that point back to their website. With this in mind, many SEO and Real Estate Web Design Companies are quick to add link building to their list of design and development services. But the reality is that simply building links isn’t the answer. The real value comes by building Online Endorsements. So what’s the difference? Link Building is simply trying to “game the system.” It focuses on the SEO value instead of the “People Value.” Let me give you a few examples…

The Wrong Way To Do It

You want to gain another link to your real estate website so you decide to develop a Squidoo Page. Most people will be tempted to just do a “hurry up” job by copying and pasting some information about themselves from their website and then linking back to their home page. Or maybe they even go as far as customizing the content by swapping out a few words here and there.

Let’s look at this from both a “People Value” perspective and a “Search Engine Value” perspective. First, from a Search Engine Value: Our good friend GoogleBot looks find the Squidoo page. Even though the content has been changed he uses his complex algorithms to analyze the content right down to sentence structure (yes, they filed a patent about this years ago) and immediately recognizes that the content is just a rehash of your about us page from your website. On top of that, Googlebot sees that the content doesn’t provide any valuable information such as new real estate facts, a how to, or anything else worthy of appearing at the top of the search engines. Googlebot just sees this as another advertisement page with duplicate content and moves on. Ouch! So what about the “People Value” perspective? When a web visitor arrives at the page, they too see just a bland self-promotion page. No real information that aids in their real estate experience. Frustrated, they just move on. It’s a good thing it didn’t take you long to develop this Squidoo page. Because the page you created gave no value to search engines or visitors. Now let’s look at an example of true resource for both Website Visitors and Search Engines.

The Right Way To Do It

I am very familiar with this example as it’s an example that I personally implemented. As a real estate web designer, I always try to keep up with the latest news about the Real Estate Industry as well as the Web Design and Development Industry. So my eyes lit up when I read Jay Izso’s ePowerNews article about how Internet Savvy Buyers use Real Estate Websites in their home buying decision. I knew this was a great topic that I could expand on. So I jumped on Squidoo and created a page about Real Estate Website Statistics. I pulled all the data, designed a few custom graphs to make it visually appealing to visitors, and made sure my titles were SEO friendly. At the end of the page, I tied in the information to my company and linked to the Dakno Marketing home page. I was sure to include the anchor text Real Estate Web Design, as that was the keyword I was optimizing for. When my old friend GoogleBot arrived at the new Squidoo page, he saw lots of original content about a subject matter that he knew little about. He soaked up every word, happy that there was a true resource for the information. Before I knew it, Googlebot had me ranked at the top of Google and started sending visitors to the Squidoo page. The visitors were glad to see useful content (not just a self promotion) complete with custom designed graphs. They knew that if I gave them all this great information about Real Estate Statistics on this page, that I would probably have even more useful information about Real Estate Marketing on my website. So the majority of the visitors followed my link over to my website. A few even called wanting web design services. It was a win, win, win situation for me, Search Engines and visitors.

So remember, it’s not about building links. Link building adds no value to Search Engines or Visitors. The real value comes out of building Resource Rich, Online Endorsements. Don’t settle for second best. Visitors and Search Engines won’t!

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Real estate agents are always taught to offer value to their prospects and clients. When it comes to a real estate website, that value is usually conveyed via MLS search tools, free buyer or seller reports, exclusive market data, compelling offers, etc. Here is the reality - you must show value FIRST. Only then can you ask for a site visitor’s information. That is because the Internet Empowered Consumer (IEC) has to first see the value (in your time saving property organizer, exclusive online content, etc.) before they will give up their personal information. Yet so many real estate agents force the user to provide personal information before the visitor obtains the valuable information or access to special tools. This “cart before the horse” concept simply goes against the grain of a successful website.

Are you holding your site visitor hostage?

Most website visitors operate with this understanding. The World Wide Web is seen as a tremendous free-access information portal offering site visitors many choices where to secure valuable information. The IEC is leery to give away personal information or sign ‘user agreements’ to a salesperson they have never met - And rightly so. After all, they can simply leave the website and find someone else who is willing to offer the information on another website without obligation or fear of harassment. So - are you forcing your visitors to sign-in to access a search tool, holding them hostage in exchange for their contact information?

 Practical examples:

1. MLS Search
   At Dakno Marketing, we recommend you show value first by giving the site visitor easy, “no-strings-attached” access to the MLS search. You should clearly communicate how much more they can get out of searching if they signup to save listings, create favorite property searches and receive the latest “feed” of new listings the moment they hit the market via “instant” email updates.
   
2. Calls to action
   If it’s a request for a free report, offer the site visitor a “taste” of the information to show them how they will “benefit” by gaining access to the full report. This way they can tell that the information isn’t the same old fluff offered freely everywhere. Allow them to read the first page but then request the full report.
   
3. Form pages
   Always clearly explain on your form page what the user is going to receive and what the “BENEFIT” is going to be by gaining access to the tool or resource.
   

Do you set proper expectations?

Much like we must educate our clients to the benefits of a specific marketing strategy like “Search Engine Optimization“, you must educate the internet consumer to the value and subsequent benefits to a specific tool or resource. Some site visitors may first need to be educated as to “WHY” they need the valuable information. Plus, site visitors should be given the “WHEN” they can expect to receive the information or have access to the offer. It boils down to setting proper expectations for your site visitors.

Be a Giver!

So do you want less email from “Mickey Mouse” (quantity) and more “quality” leads to your real estate website? Why not be have your website be viewed as the “giver” of desirable information. By providing great information first, you’ll gain the respect of your site visitors. Plus you will be viewed as the non-threatening provider of desirable tools and valuable information. You win by gaining instant creditability and your site visitors are highly educated and know exactly what they want.

 
 

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