What do consumers want?

[Canadian Realtor]

As lead generation moves forward and becomes increasingly more difficult, what do you think is the most effective way to generate leads. Some sites (Z57 etc...) use email correspondence, some use online forms etc... The problem that we are running into today is that people using the emails are getting inundated with junk emails and those using forms are getting false contact information.

What do you think the consumer wants? I mean, they obviously want to navigate a website as unsolicited as possible while being able to view as much info as is available. There must be a happy medium... what do you think it is?

[HHI Golf Guy]

To develop a successful real estate web site you need to distinguish the difference between an internet consumer and someone who walks through your door for information. The main difference is that web surfers feel more comfortable because of the anonymity of web surfing. To get them to take action, you need to first form a bond of trust.

You do this by positioning yourself as an authority in the market. Too many realtors focus on the warm fuzzies. People looking for a home don't really care about your pets and kids.

How do you position yourself as an authority? First, you need to have the most comprehensive web site in your market. If you anticipate every need that a home buyer may have (local info, DMV info, arts, activities, residential communities, etc.) you don't give them any reason to leave your site and end up on a competitor's web site.

Second, you must know your target demographic. I'm not just talking about income demographic. Who is your customer? What challenges do they face in every day life? The list of demographic questions goes on and on. Once you know your customer, then you use your web site to address the solutions to these problems in conjunction with what you are selling. Effective copy writing is what develops leads and conversions. High SERP's alone will not drive sales!

There's a lot more to developing a successful real estate web site. If you want to know more you'll need to sign a contract and send me your deposit ;) :)

[STVP]

Golf Guy,

I agree , that if you anticipate the consumer's moves and connect the dots then they wont leave your site. However i believe that the consumer when searching for real estate is looking for properties and photos, all of the other b.s. like school, activities are tangents that you may want to not focus on. For example when you go to purchase a car from a car lot you are looking for as many cars that meet your criteria as possible. Your not concerned with who the car salesmen is. I feel if you connect the dots when the consumer search's for real estate give them a easy to navigate website with properties and photos and you have a winning solution. Also i think alot of the consumer's have a yahoo or msn homepage where all of the b.s. info is at their fingertips. school ,map ect.. Let me know your thoughts on this plan of attack.

STVP :cool:

[HHI Golf Guy]

However i believe that the consumer when searching for real estate is looking for properties and photos, all of the other b.s. like school, activities are tangents that you may want to not focus on.

Check my first post again :) Part of becoming an authority is having a comprehensive web site. Take our new FSBO site, for example - you can even find out where to go for a deep sea fishing charter!

P.S. A comprehensive local site also helps your site become an "authority site" for your city / region a la the Hilltop algo paper.