10 SEO Tips for Real Estate Business Growth
When you work in real estate, it's absolutely critical that clients are able to find you online. Many people who are interested in buying homes or commercial properties will do the first part of their browsing online long before they connect with a real estate agent in person, and you want to be sure your name is the one that stands out from the crowd.
By following these ten SEO tips for real estate professionals, you can watch your business grow and thrive as you attract more online attention than ever before.
10 SEO Tips for Real Estate Agents
1. Provide information that's relevant to buyers.
It's not just about house listings. Think about other things buyers might be searching for, from information about the best commercial areas in your city to information about what first-time buyers should expect from the home-buying process.
Maintaining a regular blog will allow you to rise higher in search engine rankings as well as ensure you have a highly visible presence in your local area.
2. Don't forget about sellers.
After all, your best business comes from people who are willing to hire you to manage their real estate listing.
Include relevant data that will bring sellers to you over your competitors. Take a look at the most important search terms used by your customers and your competitors, then make sure your content fleshes out the information they need.
Target everyone from first-time sellers who want to know how to optimize their home in order to take advantage of the best selling price to experienced fix-and-flip professionals who want to know how the market is doing or what areas are new to the market.
Keep in mind it's not just about bringing your name higher in search engine rankings. It's also about establishing yourself as an authority in your field so interested parties will trust you when the time comes for them to choose a real estate professional.
3. Optimize for local traffic.
As a real estate agent, you work solely in a specific geographic area. Outside that area, traffic is irrelevant to you. That means you should work the names of local areas into your blog posts, your listings, and your websites.
You should use county names, city names, and other area names relevant to your buyers in order to ensure when they're looking for real estate information in your city, your name appears at the top of the list.
4. Keep it real and interesting.
Google, in particular, doesn't just care about the keywords you've chosen to highlight in your blog posts, on your website, and in other content you've produced. It also wants to know when people visit your website, they spend time on it.
Their goal is to provide searchers with information that's actually relevant — so you should be sure your content is interesting, current, and actually useful to the clients you're targeting.
5. Build backlinks.
Post on other real estate agents' blogs as a guest if you have the option (hint: you can form a partnership with other local agents or work with the ones in your company to help build back links for each other).
Post content other real estate professionals will link back to. The more backlinks you have, the more you will be recognized by search engines as a reputable resource they should direct traffic to.
6. Think unique.
Do your best to think outside the box and come up with the search terms customers are using, but your competitors aren't highlighting. Not only that, think about the things that make you unique and how you can use them to help build your brand, your audience, and your client base. You don't have to be crazy in order to stand out.
Whether you specialize in finding the perfect office space for new businesses just starting out or you love finding homes that are perfect for the families you help, make sure your website and your blog highlight what you're good at. That will help you find the clients you're best positioned to help.
7. Supply a variety of content.
It's not just about blog posts anymore. Many people are searching for different types of content, and search engines are pick up on that need.
Consider doing a video walk-through of homes on your list or offering a video tutorial of how to prepare a home for sale. Provide plenty of pictures — and keep in mind it doesn't end with pictures of the properties you're trying to sell. Include infographics, pictures of homes with great curb appeal, images of how to stage a room, and anything else that you think might appeal to your readers.
Those pictures can be the difference between being noticed by a search engine — not to mention the searchers who are using it — and being ignored at the bottom of the list.
8. Incorporate social media into your SEO strategy.
Your social media presence is crucial to interacting with your customers. You don't have to have a presence on every platform to reach them. Instead, find out where your customers are most likely to spend their time.
Business professionals, for example, might find LinkedIn or Google+ more important, while families looking to purchase a home might spend more time on Facebook.
Optimize your presence on the channels that matter most to your clients for the best outcome.
9. Make sure you're optimized for mobile.
Not only is mobile browsing becoming increasingly common, it's the easiest way for interested parties to check out properties before they visit them, double-check an address while they're on the road, or pull up your phone number to let you know they're running late.
Mobile optimization is critical for making your website easier for your clients to use, and most search engines know it. Make sure your site is equally responsive no matter what device visitors are using. That way, you'll never have to worry you've lost out on a sale because your website was too clunky.
10. Encourage satisfied customers to leave a review.
Did you work out a great deal that left both the buyer and seller satisfied with your work? Do you have a great track record of finding the dream home for families who use you without causing them to overspend their budget? Reviews matter, especially in today's highly digital age.
In many cases, interested parties will trust reviews they've read online just as much as they would trust a personal review from someone you've worked with in the past. That means you need reviews, especially from satisfied customers.
It's equally important, however, to take advantage of negative reviews. When you do have dissatisfied reviews, don't delete them. Address them in a positive manner to showcase your professional demeanor and determination to help your clients instead.