Thread: Agents need to market online more than ever!

As many of you know this decline in the real estate market is quickly becoming the end for many brokers and agents. Normal techniques of marketing are not working like they used to.

This is why I recommend marketing your listings online. A recent study conducted by eMarketer suggests that Newspaper classified sales have dropped by almost 25%. This is mostly due to the superior advertising alternatives that the Internet offers. Publications are finding that most realtors are getting hip to the web and are starting to invest in web-based solutions to market their properties.

If you're a real estate agent and you don't have a web site... you are stuck in the stone age. The fact is that the Internet offers you a MUCH more cost-effective means to promote your business and properties to millions.

We've been developing and marketing real estate and mortgage web sites for over 10 years now and our brokers bring in from 10 to 100 leads per day from their web sites. If you hand someone a business card and it doesn't have your web site address on it... you're a fool

If anyone needs help with their online presence please feel free to PM me.

I'm wondering what could be the percentage of Real Estate agent without a website these days...
I don't believe it's very high...

I've found that 50% of the agents that call us don't have web sites or have web sites that are simply a joke. Having a good web site is key. Many realtors 'do' have web sites, but I would say about 70-90% of them don't ever bring in one lead. Some have spent thousands on web sites that look georgous, but don't produce ONE lead.

WHAT GOOD IS THAT?!?

It's not good enough to have a web site. You need a web site that actually produces LEADS

Way too many agents or brokers' websites are built the same way. They look the same. These sites are built out of the same templates. You can't tell one from the next. You need to build something that is unique and fit the taste of your clients. The key is to make your website stand out of the crowd. It is your effective sales presentation, so make it work.

Very good point

One of the most important things in optimizing your web site is to make sure you have a completely different site with unique content from anyone else. Having duplicate content does not help (can even get you penalized). Some people insist on using software that cannot be altered to look different from other sites (these are called cookie-cutter sites) and in doing so they lose any chance of seeing any real search engine traffic.

Originally Posted by fractional-homes

Way too many agents or brokers' websites are built the same way. They look the same. These sites are built out of the same templates. You can't tell one from the next. You need to build something that is unique and fit the taste of your clients. The key is to make your website stand out of the crowd. It is your effective sales presentation, so make it work.

Totally agree, same old boring template.
As a buyer, when I see websites using the same templates, it makes me think it comes from the same listing firm.

My suggestions to you real estate agents, do you own site, even a simple blog will make you stand out and make sure you have videos.

I am not in the real estate business .

good luck

Check out: Online real estate videos-Free

A website does not have to be gorgeous, it just has to work.

Originally Posted by yourfindit

A website does not have to be gorgeous, it just has to work.

I believe you must always have both.. but of course it should be leaning more on the functional part than the aesthethic part...

Originally Posted by yourfindit

A website does not have to be gorgeous, it just has to work.

I don't agree. If I see cheesy web design from last century with some ridiculous HTML4.0 and with no CSS, and not even a trace of dynamic web pages, I wont even bother to browse through it because I know that owner is sloppy and has no clue about the business, or that he/she is a cheapskate.

Cheers

Originally Posted by scout

I don't agree. If I see cheesy web design from last century with some ridiculous HTML4.0 and with no CSS, and not even a trace of dynamic web pages, I wont even bother to browse through it because I know that owner is sloppy and has no clue about the business, or that he/she is a cheapskate.

Cheers

My reply was rushed. What i really meant to say was that a website should be balanced, but more importantly it must work. There are many great looking sites out there that barely function. On the other hand, many forums are plain but contain everything consumers need.