Tag archive for "search" | Blog.PropertiesOnline.com

Social Media Marketing for Real Estate

Social media marketing is essentially word of mouth marketing, but it is done on a much bigger scale thanks to the Internet.

The idea of social media is that you simply talk with people – you reach out and network and have discussions just as you would have in a real life business function. The fact that it is online social networking extends your reach far beyond your immediate area, and makes networking much easier, because it can be done from your home computer, your laptop, tablet, smartphone or from the office desktop.

The secret to having a successful social media marketing campaign is to be genuine, and this is true for any type of social media campaign, including real estate. Reach out to relevant people – don’t just follow anyone – and initiate real conversations. Try to be as helpful as you can! Many business owners are using Twitter Search to create an ongoing search for a certain keyword. Every time someone mentions that keyword on Twitter, you get the opportunity to respond.

For example, if you specialize in Phoenix, AZ, homes, you might want be alerted when people mention “Phoenix homes” or “Phoenix real estate” on Twitter. See if you can help or contribute to the conversation, and after you have contributed, follow that person.

This strategy will help you build a social media account that is not just active and vibrant but also very effective, because it focuses on your target market.

10 Simple Ways to Boost your Real Estate Website Ranking

Optimize your search engine website ranking results with these 10 straightforward tips:

Start with an overall online marketing strategy. Consistency is key across all your online branding and communications. Links from your website to your blog to your Facebook page and beyond are important connectors. Beginning with a blueprint that covers the where, how and why is of instant benefit.
Keyword like you mean it. This cannot be stressed enough. The three to five keywords you choose for your website must be utilized across all web mediums. Don’t overdo it and water down your site. Focus on two keywords per web page, max, and stay on top of your keywords through analytics, to make sure they’re working for you. The web is not stagnant, and you can’t be either.
Use Google to your full advantage. Claim your office on Google Places. Create (and use!) a Google+ page. Install Google Analytics, review the data and make the necessary changes to your website to better your results and conversions. It’s all free.
Web users are visual. Smart use of photos and videos will go a long way. Make you’re your branded YouTube channel directs viewers back to your website, and make good use of tags and descriptions. Videos and photos should be uploaded to your computer under relevant file names that include your keywords and descriptive words. When uploading photos to your website, be sure to use keywords in the ALT tags and descriptions. Go one step further and upload your photos to photo sharing websites, and be sure they’re keyworded, tagged, well described and include a link back to your real estate website.
Blog. Daily if you can. And make sure the root domain of your blog is your website. Make good use of keywords, links, tags and headings. Your blog can have a tremendous impact on your site ranking if you’re willing and able to put in the time.
Get social. One of the quickest and easiest things you can do is to add social sharing buttons to your blog posts. This allows your blog visitors to easily share your posts with their networks via Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, email, Google+ and more. More shares = higher ranking.
Interact socially. Staking your claim on your branded Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and so on real estate is crucial. At its most basic level, it simply means you’ll be found in more places on the web. Used strategically, these social networking platforms give you huge opportunity to create two-way dialogue, encourage links and shares, increase your exposure and interact with current and potential customers, each of which can bolster your ranking.
Get help with your keywording by adding an SEO plugin to your blog. Here are eight different options for WordPress users.
Encourage feedback. Reviews are little bits of affirmation gold when it comes to search engines. You’ve already been told to get on Google Places. Consider also listing your business on Yelp. Then ask clients to supply a review. This can be done very politely at the closing of a sale, when you officially thank your customers for their business.
Review and revise continuously. Keep an eye on your search engine ranking and make regular changes to keep your site listed as high as you can. This is a process that never sleeps.