The real estate industry is extremely competitive, and you have to be creative and always looking for new ways to keep your company in the forefront to be successful. For best-in-class Realtors, digital marketing has quickly become the focus of their marketing efforts. From generating new leads to completing successful sales, the real estate industry is now reliant on digital marketing.
Here are some of our most valuable digital marketing tips for realtors who are looking to sell homes online or grow their presence on the Internet. Read on to learn more about what you can do to set yourself apart from other Realtors online.
Create an Awesome Real Estate Website
A great website can encourage potential homebuyers to pick you as their realtor, and will help you rank better for local search terms. Most people are going to visit your site for listings of homes that you are selling. Keep these listings up to date with photos and plenty of information, including the address, school district, and a way to contact you with questions or a request to visit the home. Make sure that this crucial section is easy to browse and loads quickly.
Your entire site should be responsive and as speedy as possible. The faster your pages load, the less likely you are to lose impatient visitors who aren’t willing to wait for the information. You should also take care to make your site navigation as uncluttered and clear as possible, which can be a big help in keeping users on the site. A confused buyer is likely to go elsewhere without ever contacting you.
Make absolutely sure your contact information is both easy to find and use. If your phone number and email address can’t be found in just a few seconds, you risk losing out on valuable business. Listing your location and contact information will also help you show up in searches for specific local terms.
Finally, consider implementing a live chat feature on your website. Your real estate business is extremely people-centric, meaning that it’s important to be available when they need to ask questions. Investing in a live chat software allows people to connect 24/7 and schedule appointments without necessarily speaking directly to you.
Get Locally Listed
It’s very important that your realty business be included on websites that specialize in local listings. You will need to create a Google Business Profile and search out online directories like YellowPages.com on which you can add your name, address, business, and contact information.
You might also want to consider adding your listing to local sites like Yelp or Foursquare. Yelp allows people to review your business – and as you probably know, reviews can be a big part in getting potential clients to consider you for your services. Foursquare also allows reviews, but is a great way to put your business on the map by allowing “check-ins.” You can encourage visitors to your office to check in and share that they were there.
You should also do SEO for your listings to help users find them in search engines so optimize your website’s content the best you can to help with local searches. Any copywriting done for your website should include specific and relevant local phrases like the one indicated above. If you are a Realtor in Dallas, making your web content descriptive with phrases like “Realtor in Dallas TX” can help send signals to search engines that your site is relevant for that phrase.
Stay Active on Social Media
Social media channels, like Facebook and Twitter, continue to be important parts of marketing plans for nearly every business type. Not every social media channel will make sense for you as a Realtor, but it is best for you to be the judge of what you can and should use. You don’t have to be on all the social media channels either, but it’s best to pick one or two where you can post content and remain active with users.
Before establishing a presence on any social media website, evaluate how much time you can dedicate to your pages, what content you plan on posting and whether or not your audience is really there. If you can’t post at least a few times a week, you may want to hire a social media professional for help.
Facebook is a great way that you can not only be found by those looking for a Realtor, but also a method by which interested buyers can contact you. If you create a Facebook Page and allow fans to message you, you might receive a few questions or comments about your listings. Facebook also gives you a platform from which you can share interesting content, or post photos of open houses that you are hosting.
Twitter is a great way that you can share or publish interesting content and resources for prospective homebuyers. If you have a long-term relationship with a client looking to buy a home, you might suggest that they follow you on your social channels to see the content you are sharing.
As an experienced real estate marketing firm, Bad Penny Factory knows that Realtors are busy people who need to focus on finding the perfect homes for their clients – not optimizing their website. We offer many digital marketing services for Realtors, from building a beautiful real estate website to creating a blog to running your social media profiles. We can even help with writing content or building links for you. Schedule a free, intake call today to learn more.