With today’s emphasis on instant information, we are still seeing the average home buyer spending 12-18 months searching online before they ever reach out to a realtor. Most of this research is done on a computer, but more and more of it is done on smartphones or tablets. So what is the best way to make sure you are the one they reach out to when they are ready to start talking abouthome buying?
Websites Define Your Area
Most of us know that having a website is a given in the real estate business, but is your website one that homebuyers will gravitate towards? Most homebuyers are looking for local information, and your site is your chance to shine as the expert on your local area. Take time to do some research on local information that homebuyers want.Include links to local school information and transportation or better yet information right on your site. Highlight services in the area and let visitors know that you are their go-to person for any information they need before buying that next home.
Facebook is your Friend
Do you have a business page for your real estate work that is separate from your personal page?This is a vital tool for connecting with potential clients and building a community who will come to know and trust you. So how can you make it work for you? One of Facebook’s best tools is lists, in particular a “close friends” list. As opposed to your news feed which has everyone on it, this isa shorter list of key people whose posts you don’t want to miss. It is easy for important contacts to be lost in your news feed list, but managing lists in Facebook can be a great way to stay in touch with potential clients.
Moving into Mobile Marketing
While many homebuyers use the web as a major source of information, the key market that you want to reach frequently use cell phones as their primary source of all marketing information. For the real estate market, which was one of the earliest adaptors of cell phones, this means more ways to get that vital home market information into the hands of those who need it. Use text messaging to keep interested parties up to date on the latest listings, create mobile friendly versions of your website that will allow users to cruise your site for new listings on their smartphones or even look into pay per click advertising targeting the young mobile-savy user who is getting ready to buy that first home.
Search Engine Marketing Tricks
You want your website to be visible to search engines so clients can find you. There are several ways to do this. Link building will give your site more credibility with search engines and the easiest way to do this is by participating on social networking sites and exchanging links. Blogging is an effective way to give your page ranking a boost, and also helps to build visitor return ratesfor your site. And don’t forget videos. Video marketing has come to be a great tool, and in real estate the old saying of a picture is worth a thousand words is even truer when it comes to video. All of these can help a website be more successful as it moves to the top of the search engine page.
As you can see, it is a whole new world out there for many real estate agents who are harnessing the new media to stay in touch. We are just beginning to understand the many ways to keep our clients and potential clients only a short text message or click call away from the perfect deal. More and more, the sky is the limit
Websites Define Your Area
Most of us know that having a website is a given in the real estate business, but is your website one that homebuyers will gravitate towards? Most homebuyers are looking for local information, and your site is your chance to shine as the expert on your local area. Take time to do some research on local information that homebuyers want.Include links to local school information and transportation or better yet information right on your site. Highlight services in the area and let visitors know that you are their go-to person for any information they need before buying that next home.
Facebook is your Friend
Do you have a business page for your real estate work that is separate from your personal page?This is a vital tool for connecting with potential clients and building a community who will come to know and trust you. So how can you make it work for you? One of Facebook’s best tools is lists, in particular a “close friends” list. As opposed to your news feed which has everyone on it, this isa shorter list of key people whose posts you don’t want to miss. It is easy for important contacts to be lost in your news feed list, but managing lists in Facebook can be a great way to stay in touch with potential clients.
Moving into Mobile Marketing
While many homebuyers use the web as a major source of information, the key market that you want to reach frequently use cell phones as their primary source of all marketing information. For the real estate market, which was one of the earliest adaptors of cell phones, this means more ways to get that vital home market information into the hands of those who need it. Use text messaging to keep interested parties up to date on the latest listings, create mobile friendly versions of your website that will allow users to cruise your site for new listings on their smartphones or even look into pay per click advertising targeting the young mobile-savy user who is getting ready to buy that first home.
Search Engine Marketing Tricks
You want your website to be visible to search engines so clients can find you. There are several ways to do this. Link building will give your site more credibility with search engines and the easiest way to do this is by participating on social networking sites and exchanging links. Blogging is an effective way to give your page ranking a boost, and also helps to build visitor return ratesfor your site. And don’t forget videos. Video marketing has come to be a great tool, and in real estate the old saying of a picture is worth a thousand words is even truer when it comes to video. All of these can help a website be more successful as it moves to the top of the search engine page.
As you can see, it is a whole new world out there for many real estate agents who are harnessing the new media to stay in touch. We are just beginning to understand the many ways to keep our clients and potential clients only a short text message or click call away from the perfect deal. More and more, the sky is the limit
