Thread: Want some feedback on a marketing 'service' I had in mind for online and offline

That a good package already. If I'm a client, i will be interested. It will be better though if you offer SEO as well. I'm sure you've heard about it. It's Search Engine Optimization or Internet Marketing.

Actually I have heard a little about it

Since the website would be a wordpress or drupal powered site, I would possibly include some keyword research, directory listings, and RSS submissions to help with SEO. Also, since these sites will be hosted on different servers than realtors websites there would be an opportunity for a black link as well.

There are a lot of SEO possibilities with this.

Was thinking 1000 rack cards or flyers, 1 year hosting, domain, etc... for about $225.

Okay, here's what you'll have to offer the rest of us.

Website design, hosting packages that begin at 3 months. None of that "Sign up for a year" minimum nonsense.
The site must be able to house gigs of info. Including virtual tours.
SEO that'll allow the website registrar (your customer, not you), track hits and convert warm leads.
Email address/sign up feature for the visitors.
The ability to have the customer update their site without having to wait till 9am to speak with someone.
The site will handle all updates, when the customer wants them. Cut & Paste. Don't force the customer to have to deal with "only two changes allowed per month" crap.

Do the math and keep it cheap. But don't sacrifice quality.-no cartoon websites that only allow the customer to update it only twice a month.

Your competition is offering syndication and interactive, customer controlled websites.
They're also ripping them off. I don't want to hear another word about having to buy servers and Ma Bell owns the lines...etc. You can do it. Do what your competition does, but cheaper! Yes, in this economy and Realtors dropping like flies, you may have to wait till next summer to "keep things cheap". But hey, you got a shot.

I feel, since I'm one of the most impatient people you'll ever meet, you'd be wasting your time offering flyer and business card design. Why? Because even people like me have ten minutes out of our day to design something on vistaprint and nobody hands out flyers anymore.

-CM

The ability to have the customer update their site without having to wait till 9am to speak with someone.

The site will handle all updates, when the customer wants them. Cut & Paste. Don't force the customer to have to deal with ""only two changes allowed per month"" crap.

These are the two I would pay extra close attention to in your planning. This isn't the type of service wherein a customer signs up, you perform your service, and the transaction is complete. Your customers are going to be in constant need of website/property listing updates. Therefore you must either a) make it easy or for them to make the updates themselves, or b) be prepared to update all of these individual sites yourself, which will be an increasingly difficult and labor-intensive task as your customer-base grows.

Just wanted to make a quick post that I am watching this thread and appreciate the feedback.

The site will be powered by a CMS that will allow customers tomupdate their site as often as they want. Templates will be unique per property and hosting of the sites will be dread across multilevel serves to aid in seo.

The CMS will be drupal and you can choose one of five locations to host your site across the globe.

I will post more later, but I just wanted to address those requests now.

Thanks again,
Kevin

Christopher makes some excellent points here. The biggest challenge is that a website is just a flashy business card unless it has SEO. Websites need to be a tool and a value provider to a customer. And flyers and biz cards are losing relevance in today's internet marketing environment.

Originally Posted by Chrisopher Moltisanti

Okay, here's what you'll have to offer the rest of us.

Website design, hosting packages that begin at 3 months. None of that "Sign up for a year" minimum nonsense.
The site must be able to house gigs of info. Including virtual tours.
SEO that'll allow the website registrar (your customer, not you), track hits and convert warm leads.
Email address/sign up feature for the visitors.
The ability to have the customer update their site without having to wait till 9am to speak with someone.
The site will handle all updates, when the customer wants them. Cut & Paste. Don't force the customer to have to deal with "only two changes allowed per month" crap.

Do the math and keep it cheap. But don't sacrifice quality.-no cartoon websites that only allow the customer to update it only twice a month.

Your competition is offering syndication and interactive, customer controlled websites.
They're also ripping them off. I don't want to hear another word about having to buy servers and Ma Bell owns the lines...etc. You can do it. Do what your competition does, but cheaper! Yes, in this economy and Realtors dropping like flies, you may have to wait till next summer to "keep things cheap". But hey, you got a shot.

I feel, since I'm one of the most impatient people you'll ever meet, you'd be wasting your time offering flyer and business card design. Why? Because even people like me have ten minutes out of our day to design something on vistaprint and nobody hands out flyers anymore.

-CM

The sites would be on-page SEO'd but I cannot guarantee precise search engine placement.

Can you give an example of what you expect?

There's only so much you as the designer can do. The SEO will come in time with the website registrar's daily updates and stuff. Maybe you could offer, SEO tips with your package instead of racking your brain on how to deliver SEO results. Tips that are clearly and precisely spelled out in plain English. Bullet-pointed for those who don't wish to read and re-read and re-read again, the same paragraph of filler, waiting for the author to get to his point: There's too much of this already about SEO on the net.

Offer easy-to-update, WSIWYG, cut & paste, user freindly, non-cartoon, websites that offer virtual tours and allow the user to update when necessary without having to call someone. Simply put: Your customer, has to be in control at all times. From size of fonts to paragraph placement, to blogs, to virtual tours, size of pics, all of it. I'm not saying to give away the store, no. I'm saying make it affordable and EASY TO USE.

There are many reasonable services out there already for realtors for postcard printing, flyers, etc. Try to come up with an offer or service to add to it that would be unique.