Are you using the internet marketing websites your broker offers…Why?

Perhaps the real question should be, “Is your Real Estate Broker offering you things for your company website that will get you more leads and more business?” I realize the title of this post might of indicated your company offered internet marketing websites are not any good…that’s not all together true!

There are some really great platforms out there I’ve seen. And if they are cost effective…then they are certainly worth having! But is your broker owned website really designed to work for YOU?

5 Must Haves on your company provided internet marketing websites:

1. IDX Home Search – Not just a home search but a robust tool that allows you to rank, capture leads and index well with the search engines! Having a site that offers community map searches, featured property widgets and a way to see who is on your site looking for homes right now is a vitally critical piece of your business! With IDX providers charging anywhere from $30 a month on up, a good IDX solution for your website is a cost any good real estate broker faces…so if your company provided internet marketing websites say they offer you a free home search, make sure it benefits YOU and not just THEM!

2. Blog – Clearly the power to have an interactive component built in to your site is incredibly important for engaging and building relationships. You must also have the ability to get folks to your site and having a blog that is linked to your social media network and syndicating to a multitude of search engines is a great place to start!

3. Ability to Add Video – More times than not, visitors to your site are really there for one thing…to look at homes for sale! So why not give them a slew of homes to look at with a video gallery of YOUR featured listings! Too often I run across a company website that has a group of homes for sale on the home page…and not one of them is yours! The company will offer a selection of listings to view but if they aren’t yours, your chances of capturing that visitors business is greatly diminished! It’s too easy these days to make a nice 30-45 second video with just your still photos! There are no excuses not to have 3 or 4 videos to choose from on your main page!

4. Simplicity – It goes without saying but not all real estate professionals are technically able to go into their company owned internet marketing websites and just start turning knobs! If the site your broker offers is both too hard to manage and just as difficult to add content…it’s so not worth having to get your business!

5. Lead Capture – As I stated in number 1…your website should have a robust back-end that identifies and captures visitors as they search for homes. Many sites will offer a ‘force register’ set up that allows the visitor to view 2 or 3 listings before they are taken to a window that asks them to give their name and email address in order to continue viewing. Not everyone on your site moves forward from here and in all honesty, you don’t want those folks on your site anyway! A serious buyer will see the value in registering and by doing so, has given you the opportunity to engage and build a relationship!