Blogs - my opinion

[noobdogs]

you've got to work at it. most "bloggers" write articles with titles like -

"okay, i started today"

or

"day 10: a day in the life"


that won't cut it. if you're doing it for a hobby, that's one thing - but if your intention is for people to actually read it and find it - that's not going to cut it.


it takes WORK.

[Jade456]

Quite true. More work than most people are willing to put into it. The real key is consistency. Erratic posting is about the worse thing to do.

[noobdogs]

so what would you consider consistent posting? how many articles per week?

on another note - i'd say that there's so much more that goes into a website in general. if you want people to actually read your content, you've got to do a number of things that increase the likelihood that it will be read.

[erogers]

Blogs and wesbites go hand-in-hand in my opinoin. A static web site is a great marketing/lead capture tool and can enhance your blog by driving traffic to it. A blog is a great community tool to interact with buyers, sellers and other real estate professionals and to get local news out. Blogs can also enhance your website by driving traffic and also by creating updated content for your site (if you set it up correctly).

[BigP]

that won't cut it. if you're doing it for a hobby, that's one thing - but if your intention is for people to actually read it and find it - that's not going to cut it.

You're dead on with this one! Many people do blog just to get their ideas down . . . in this case, what's the harm, right? Otherwise, nice to see you out and about, stranger.

[OregonLO]

like anything it takes some time and practice at it. I'm sure not ALL of my articles have been the best but some are better than others.

I'd say if someone is dedicated they should do 2 blogs a week, I guess more if they have the time but 2 a week is a good number plus it helps build the content and that whole bit. Then again, my website is still under construction so its not doing THAT much for me...haha.

[michael krotchie]

You're spot on about the boring posts, the thing most people don't realize is they probably know something good to write about but dismiss it as 'well people already know that.'

If you have some information about your local housing market, or a new subdivision going up, blog about it! Chances are a lot of people will be interested.

As for how often, 3-4 per week would be optimal, but 1-2 is probably more realistic.

[gjtrafl]

I have written about several neighborhoods that I have listings in. It is a great way to come up with material that others will find useful. One day I am sure it will also help to sell a home in one of these spotlights.

[Honeycomb Properties]

I agree that 1-3 blogs a week is likely the best, but filling it with what you had for breakfast won't do much for you. Whenever I write a blog (I do so for more than just real estate), I try and keep the reader in mind, do they care- if so why?

Setting up specific categories will help you keep focused. Some examples of categories I use:

Financing
New Construction
Foreclosure
Buying a home
Selling a homeThese are just some examples, but they give you an idea. I you consistently write good content, you will gain readers and credibility and hopefully some business.

[twalters84]

Hey there,

Blogs are all about driving people to your website.

If you do not know what an RSS feed is, please google it. If your blog does not have an RSS feed attached, get a programmer to create one. Let me tell you why.

RSS feeds can be submitted to thousands of RSS directories all over the internet. That means people will subscribe to your blog RSS feed, and when you update your blog, they will know about it. That drives people back to your website.

RSS feeds are for frequently updated content. That means you have to update your blog and often. I would recommend updating it with a new thread at least once a day. Writing a message only takes 5 to 10 minutes. I think the traffic you get from it is well worth that time.

In my opinion, all real estate websites should have a blog - with a RSS feed :)

Sincerely,
Travis Walters

[carlam]

I believe that if you have a website, you need to be blogging. The more, the better, but at least once a week and make it worthy of being written. My blog is about one of my passions - decorating. I help my clients visualize their things in their new home. A lot of people can not visualize, opps! This is not my blog!

[realestate360]

There are a few things that I find useful with blogging, and may help others who are short on topics. I constantly visit the blogs and articles of other authors - first off to get the latest news from their side of the fence, and also to see which topics are sparking the most discussion these days.

I don't fancy myself a great writer, but I'm passionate about a lot of things, which makes it easier to write. When surfing around the web, I almost always find some topics that I'm particularly passionate about. This makes the best and easiest writing for me. For example, I'm very into bringing businesses into the technology age, so when I see something that suggests a business or professional is shunning new technology, it inspires me to write. Living life with a limiting mindset is a big pet peeve of mine, so when I see it, I immediately want to discuss it. My blog is the best place to do this, and attracts both those who agree with me and those who don't (which sparks interesting and continuing conversation). So when you're out and about, think of how situations or stories you encounter could relate to your business or client base. If it fits, write about it. If you have particular expertise you feel could be helpful, write about it. If something is bothering you about the way certain professionals or industries handle business, wite about it. The more passionate you are, the easier writing will come to you!

I also make it a habit of carrying a little notebook around with me everywhere I go, and writing down topics as they come to me (maybe I saw a news clip that relates, had a conversation about a topic that relates, or saw another professional making good use of a tool or technique. This way, I have a store of topics to pull from and am not struggling to come up with articles each week. I encounter things that ca relate to my business, service or industry on a daily basis so my list has gotten pretty big, but at least I'm set for the next few months in terms of topics. It also helps that the situations or topics I encounter are also current events, so they are being widely discussed right now.

Visiting other blogs or articles for ideas, and writing those ideas down will help you to keep up a flow of quality content that will be popular, current and conversational - the best way to attract (and keep) readers!

On another note, you are all right in saying that it takes practice. Optimizing a blog for the web is very easy to do, but it does take work. I realize that many professionals are too busy to learn too many skills outside of their natural scope, but broadening your skill set can be beneficial in many ways. For example, just having a basic understanding of SEO can help you to properly optimize your blog as you're creating it, so that you'll begin attracting visitors from your very first post (instead of having to go back and apply optimization to posts you've already written). Just a basic understanding of "niche" keywords can help you to format your posts properly for the web as well. I never create a blog without first doing ample research on keywords. This helps to ensure that the blog will be popular, just based on the keywords' average search volume. Once you know exactly what readers are searching for (and take steps to position your blog there), the rest comes easy!

For those who haven't, take a little time to learn a bit more about SEO. Just a few extra steps can dramatically increase your blog's traffic. Learning more than what you think you have to may just seem like extra work, but can be well worth it in the end!

Happy Blogging!

-Real Estate 360°

[SteveNordberg]

This is the age old question you need to answer in any blog you write. What value are you imparting to the reader? As a blog writer you need to be the giver. The giver of information that will help the reader solve a problem; make some money; help their family or anyone of million other ideas.

[riza68]

yah..another opinion that i want to include is that, your blogging because you want people or readers to inform or involved bout the niche of your blog, so you must right an article that is informative or interesting so that readers will comment or share their opinions about your blog. Blog that has a sense or points of vie, not none sense article. Because other people blogging just for a habit, just you have said., because it's just a personal blog 4 some none sense bloggers out there.

[marcosll]

I find blogging very tough.

It's hard to come up with original things that people actually want to read. That's probably why most people just relate what they're doing so as to at least increase content.

I'm not sure if more content is better still.

[rainier]

i find it very interesting and fun...

[realestate360]

I find blogging very tough.

It's hard to come up with original things that people actually want to read. That's probably why most people just relate what they're doing so as to at least increase content.

I'm not sure if more content is better still.

Blogging doesn't have to be tough. Most times, customers are either looking for your point of view, or a solution to an issue they might be facing. Just taking the time to address issues which may be plaguing your customer base can help your readership to grow.

If you're having a hard time coming up with topics, just think about what's going on in your industry currently that your customer base may not be aware of, may not understand, or may have questions about. With real estate, there should honestly be plenty to blog about right now. Even providing info specific to your local market, your opinions about the locvl historical society and how they're doing saving and renovating historic property (I have a lot I'm looking to discuss on that topic), changes in rates or laws or anything could be of help to your readers. Businesses and professionals actually have it easier with blogging than the average person does! You can provide constant updates to your customers on your industry, company, services, service areas etc. The average person has to just thing of hot topics off the top of their head. Your "curriculum" however is basically set for you. It's just up to you to be consistent in your delivery of relevant content.

You can also try looking at other blogs which discuss things similar to your business or service. Looking at other blogs is a great way to get ideas for topics. You probably have a different opinion from others, so you can write from a different point of view and not have to worry about plagiarism or duplicate content.

Hope that helps some!

Real Estate 360°

[rainier]

blogging can help promoting your site...

[rainier]

it would be great if you updating your contents atleast once a week.

so what would you consider consistent posting? how many articles per week?

on another note - i'd say that there's so much more that goes into a website in general. if you want people to actually read your content, you've got to do a number of things that increase the likelihood that it will be read.

[jdonnovan]

I try to write several posts a week on my blog, using keyword tools to find long tail search terms to build each article around. After that most of my time is spent with promotion.

[rainier]

that is the right thing to do,just keep it up!

I try to write several posts a week on my blog, using keyword tools to find long tail search terms to build each article around. After that most of my time is spent with promotion.