| Every Real Estate Agent has a pretty good idea | | | | content on your target audience, and give them |
| how important a website can be for generating | | | | the kind of information they want. Usually this will |
| real estate leads. It is a well known fact that | | | | be listings, information about your community, or |
| something like 60% of all people looking to buy a | | | | general real estate information and services. Don't |
| home in the U.S. and Canada look to the web as | | | | get bogged down with trying to present a cool |
| their first source of information.That means there | | | | "image", or impressing people with your |
| are thousands of people looking to the web for | | | | accomplishments. People always want to know |
| real estate information about every community in | | | | "What's in it for me?"3. Keep your content fresh |
| the country. But relatively few real estate agents | | | | and updated. Make changes and additions on a |
| know how to tap into this huge mass of web | | | | regular basis. This keeps the search engines |
| surfers.As an online marketer, your objective | | | | coming back to scan your new content.4. Get |
| should be to turn your website into a lead | | | | external links from other websites. Links from |
| generating machine. It is not easy. There are | | | | other websites bring traffic, and also tell the |
| millions of websites that no one ever looks at, | | | | search engines that your site is important enough |
| and many of them are real estate websites. In | | | | to link to.Turning Visitors into ProspectsGetting |
| many cases these sites have cost hundreds and | | | | visitors to your site is the hard part but it is not |
| even thousands of dollars. But most have very | | | | the end of the story by any means. If you can't |
| little chance of getting much traffic, and even less | | | | convert some of those website visitors into |
| chance of converting that traffic into leads. The | | | | prospects, then you have wasted time, energy |
| reason is that they ignore some of the most | | | | and money, and squandered a golden |
| basic and most important web marketing | | | | opportunity.What is a prospect? It is someone |
| principles.You are in for a rude awakening if you | | | | who expresses an interest in using your service. |
| think it is a simple matter of setting up a website | | | | Web leads are usually generated when visitors |
| and then sitting back and waiting for eager home | | | | send an email message asking a question or |
| buyers and sellers to visit. It takes hard work to | | | | looking for further information. Often they fill out |
| create a website that gets traffic. And it is even | | | | a form on your website that says something like |
| more difficult to turn a reasonable amount of that | | | | "Fill in this form for further information."The |
| traffic into prospects.Basics of Web Marketing - | | | | obvious conclusion is that your site should make it |
| Getting TrafficFirst, you must realize that most of | | | | as easy as possible for people to contact you and |
| your website traffic is going to come from search | | | | request information. The best way to do that is |
| engines. In order to get people to your website | | | | to have a contact form on every page. That way |
| you need to impress the search engines that | | | | if they see something they are interested in on a |
| your site is worth visiting. Whether you like it or | | | | given page they do not have to click around |
| not, you are in competition with every other Real | | | | looking for a place to get in contact with you. The |
| Estate Agent in your community. You are | | | | form is right there on the same page.Equally |
| competing for "clicks". And you can't get clicks if | | | | important, you should offer different types of |
| you're not coming up in a prominent place on that | | | | information and services in order to encourage |
| first few pages.But how do you get there? That | | | | responses from your web visitors. Free reports, |
| is the question asked every day by millions of | | | | free home evaluations, hot listings, regular |
| people wanting to use the web as a marketing | | | | newsletters -- these all serve as enticements to |
| tool. The bad news is that it takes hard work, a | | | | get web visitors to respond, and in so doing, |
| fair bit of time, and considerable promotional | | | | become prospects.All of these things can be |
| resources.The good news is that with persistence, | | | | automated to a large degree. By using what is |
| patience, and a relatively modest amount of | | | | called an "autoresponder" you can send an instant |
| money you can successfully climb up the search | | | | response to anyone who sends an inquiry. For |
| engine ranks. And you will find that the payoff is | | | | instance, you might offer a "Free Report on How |
| substantial. Once you develop a "web presence", | | | | to Get Your Home Ready to Sell for the Best |
| the number of visitors to your website will | | | | Price." When visitors fill out the form requesting |
| gradually become a steady stream.Getting good | | | | the report, your autoresponder sends it out |
| search engine ranking boils down to these basic | | | | automatically without you having to do anything. |
| things:1. Define your website's target audience. In | | | | At the same time you receive notification of the |
| the case of Real Estate sites the target audience | | | | inquiry so you can follow up later. You can even |
| is normally defined in terms of location. Make it | | | | have the autoresponder follow up with a series of |
| very clear what location you are serving. Ask | | | | messages about other services you offer.By |
| yourself "What search terms would someone use | | | | using these and other similar techniques you can |
| who is looking for my service?" Normally it will be | | | | take advantage of the awesome power of the |
| something like "Real Estate in My Town" or "My | | | | internet, and turn your website into a 24/7 lead |
| Town Real Estate."2. Focus your website's | | | | generating machine. |