Real Estate SEO: 10 Steps To Earn Website Traffic And Leads

In the last few years, property realtors are following real estate SEO to connect with homebuyers. Digital marketing has aided the development of almost all fields of businesses. However, when it comes to real estate, the figures are even more dramatic.

According to data:

• 92% of home buyers search online to find their dream homes.
• 84% of Real Estate Professionals are using SEO and Social Media to advertise their services.
• 89% of all homebuyers are using mobile phones to search for real estate offerings.
• In four years (2008-2012) searches on real estate related terms increased by 253%. The figure is now crossing 500%.
• Nearly 50% of all homebuyers start their home searches online.

These statistics point to the fact-digital is one of the most progressive mediums for Real Estate. It is no wonder then that realtors are using real estate SEO like never before.

Climbing to the top of the search rankings are enabling them to get in touch with how buyers. In this article, we will look at how digital marketing agencies are offering select Real Estate SEO packages.

We are also going to help property developers and sellers understand how they can use digital marketing to grow their businesses.

Real Estate SEO: Meaning and Definition

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. It is a series of adjustments, which make websites, rank higher on search engines. If you are not on the first page of search, you are missing many advantages.

For example, you are missing out-

1. On more contact queries.
2. Referrals
3. Prospective customers
4. Direct revenues
5. Credibility and reputation
6. Long term business growth and feasibility

This is why most property companies and developers are now pursuing a strong digital marketing strategy. This strategy stretches on both search and social.

In the last few years, digital agencies are customizing SEO services strategies for two main industries-

• Real Estate
• Legal Services

In terms of traditional SEO services, real estate SEO is a high performance-driven strategy. When it comes to Real Estate SEO, agencies are focusing on a strong Local SEO dimension.

If you are a real estate firm and opened up a brick and mortar store, you cannot expect people to just stumble in. Well, you can, but you cannot expect a steady flow of people. No one who stays 30kms away is going to walk in. However, if you have a strong digital presence, people who are staying 30 km away are going to find you, and ask for your help.

A strong digital presence means ranking right at the top of search results. This is how real estate companies are evolving their businesses. The strategy, which is helping them take their businesses to the next level- Real Estate SEO!

How to create the best SEO Services strategy for Real Estate SEO?

In this section, we will look at 10 steps through which property companies can evolve the perfect Real Estate SEO strategy–

1. An SEO Optimised Website:

Your website should be the center-point of all your SEO optimizations. A fully functional website is critical to helping brands reach out to potential customers. This means that your On-Page SEO Services strategy should be spot-on.

Please ensure that your business website meets the following conditions-

1. Fast Loading Speed
2. SEO Optimised URLs, Meta Tags, Title Tags. Alt Tags, etc.
3. Rich UI and UX
4. High Quality Original, Informative and Long Format Content
5. Secure and Safe Website (HTTPS site)
6. Schema Mark-up implementation

There are other major On-Page optimizations, which we will discuss separately in the below points. However, I have mentioned the above six points, as they are the base/foundation on which the website stands.

The above points should be properly implemented at the design and development stage of the website only. This will help you save time and effort, and it will avoid duplication of work.

2. Keyword Research for Real Estate SEO:

Keywords are probably the most important part of a real estate SEO services strategy. Property developers looking to optimize their websites, need to have the most complete and holistic keywords on their website.

The spread of keywords should be there on not only the home page but also the product listing pages and blog sections. When it comes to real estate, it is always a good idea to have geography-based keywords.

Homebuyers are very particular when it comes to making searches for home and property-related items. For example, if you are a property realtor in New York, you should target keywords like-

1. New York homes for sale
2. Best neighborhood in New York
3. New York realtor
4. Properties in New York
5. Properties on rent in New York
6. Villa in New York
7. Condos New York

Your SEO services agency needs to present a keyword-targeting list with set periods for keyword rankings.

Read more: Best Keyword Research Tools For Small Brands In 2019

3. Mobile SEO, Optimization and Responsiveness:

If you have been reading the article carefully from the start, you will know how important mobile is for real estate SEO. According to experts, 89% of all homebuyers are using mobile phones for making home relates searches.

This means that your mobile website needs to be as complete as your desktop one. Please ensure that your agency makes your mobile site 100% responsive and optimized. The site should have a fast loading speed; it should not compromise on content or design.

Please bear in mind that almost all your leads, queries and prospects will be coming through mobile devices. You would want to present your best experience for them. This means that you should pay as much attention to your mobile site, as you should to the desktop version.

If you want to create a Mobile Application for your business, please go ahead and do so. An App is a sound and great investment for your business. It will also help ease the UI, UX and enable more people to engage with you and your business.

4. Local SEO (Google My Business):

The digital is a dynamic and holistic eco-system. It needs to work incompatibility with different digital platforms. This means your SEO services strategy needs to have a powerful Local SEO dimension.

Google My Business is one of the best ways to make your website rank on search in a geographical location. By having a fully functioning and effective GMB listing, you can climb to the top of search within a month.

Please concentrate on the following factors, when it comes to a GMB listing-

1. Focus on getting 5-Star Reviews and comments. The more reviews and comments you will have, the better will be your search and visibility.
2. Post offers post and new products as often as possible. Just like social media, you can post all your offers, new listings, discounts, and other information about your business on a daily basis. Try to post at least 3 times a day.
3. Maintain a complete business profile- This includes your address, website details, social links, contact information, and accurate map location. Please mention timings of operations as well.

Please be careful to spread keywords in your GMB profile as well.

5. Listing and Citation Sites for Real Estate:

Like all industries, real estate too has attracted the conceptualization of aggregator platforms. Please understand, that the more visibility and brand mentions you have, the better will Google be able to index you and find correlations.

There are many real estate aggregator platforms like Trulia, Zillow. 99Acres, Magic Bricks, Housing.com that see millions of traffic on a daily basis. By registering on as a dealer or as an agent, you can list the same property on multiple platforms.

This will help you tap into a wide-cross section of the target base. This will also help you get as many brand mentions on industry authority sites as possible. If your display is attractive and content different, you will see a lot of direct call queries, as well as a lot of website visits.

Even though single businesses are wary of aggregator platforms, because of technical complications and deep discounting, I would still recommend them to be a part of such platforms.

6. Create an Active Blog Section on your Business Website:

This is where most property businesses and realtors lose the plot. They do not pay as much attention to the blog section as they should. Inbound Marketing is the next evolution of digital marketing. The aim should be to offer more than just listings and images of the said listings.

A blog is not only a source of new traffic, but it is also a rich repository of related keywords. While most competitors are concentrating on the basics, you can take the offering a notch higher. Try to mention schools, banks, markets and other amenities in an area.

People pay a lot of attention to these factors when selecting a property. It might not be possible for you to mention everything on the listing page. You can use the blog section for an individual review of a start property/listing.

Try to use the blog section as a review section. In addition to mentioning details, put images, videos, 360-degree views, and other media. People, who are not in a position to make a physical inspection, will get a virtual tour of the property on your blog section.

7. Aggressive Social Media Strategy:

With nearly 4 billion users on social media, no brand can afford to ignore it. When it comes to real estate, social media becomes important in order to reach out to prospects. Property realtors should maintain an aggressive presence on at least three social media platforms.

Read more: An Advanced Guide to WhatsApp Marketing By Experts

According to me, Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest are attractive options. By posting regularly and mixing up the content forms and types, businesses can expect more engagement and organic reach for their businesses.

When it comes to real estate companies, visuals are a key determining factor. In addition to the above platforms, if businesses are willing to spend on YouTube and create videos, they can expect far greater ROIs.

I have already mentioned that creating a digital ecosystem on search and social is critical. Brands can use social media to redirect users to their brand website and app. This can help in increasing website traffic and gain potential leads for their businesses.

Read more: 10 Importance of Social Media to Enhance Your Brand

8. Create Videos to Push Engagements:

Videos offer 300x times more engagements and organic reach on search and social. If you are creating good quality videos, you can expect more queries. This is because of the nature of the medium. The same video asset can be used on-

1. YouTube Channel
2. Social Media Pages (edited versions)
3. Listing Sites
4. Brand Website (Blog Section)

I can guarantee that videos will help you convert more customers than any other media representation. Most of the biggest property dealers are also experimenting with Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR).

The more precise information you are able to give of your brand, the better will be the exposure and engagement rates. By creating videos, you will increase your queries, which in turn will lead to better sales and revenues.

Try to mix up the video forms by recording customer testimonials, walk around videos, detailed reviews (hire a model if you can), etc. The more complete the video offering, the more encouraged will people be to pick up the phone and call you.

9. Offer Complete Services in the Home Buying Process:

Buying a home is not an isolated process. People are also interested in finding the following-

1. Finance Options (EMIs from banks)
2. Insurance Options
3. Moving Options (Movers and Packers)
4. Construction Companies
5. Interior Decorators and Designers
6. Legal Paperwork (Lawyers, Attorneys, etc.)

This means that you can tie up with some of the best businesses in the industry. You can also create your own ecosystem with these bodies. In turn, they can place your backlinks on their websites as well.

The idea is to offer the most complete home buying solutions to a potential customer. Your aim should be to create a one-stop-shop for all the home-related needs of a prospect. By doing this, you will be offering them more than any of your competitor’s will.

People do not want to migrate to different sites and manage all the above things on their own. As a realtor, you can help them align all their pain points and solutions at one go. This will make you stand out as a thinking and customer-friendly business.

10. Patience and Simultaneous Implementation of Real Estate SEO strategies:

The above-stated points are going to help you rank faster on search. However, the ranking also depends on other factors like the competition in your industry. Please try to execute and implement the SEO services strategy together.

This will help you track progress in real-time. This will also help you maintain a holistic ecosystem on search, social and other digital platforms. Many businesses do not implement strategies together. They direct their agencies to do this first and then do something later after three months.

This results in complete and utter failure. Neither will you be able to see real results; you will end up destroying all your investments. By pushing an aggressive strategy, you will move on to the next stage of your business- converting visitors.

If you are able to follow the above-mentioned strategies for a period of three months, you will see your digital presence increase manifold times. From website traffic to site metrics and search rankings, you will see a quantitative and qualitative change on all markers.

Conclusion:

In terms of other businesses, Real Estate SEO needs to be done in a strategic fashion. In terms of results as well, a robust, well planned and executed SEO services strategy shows a marked spike. It is critical for brands and individuals engaged in the real estate to evolving.

The advent of digital has made users evolved, sophisticated and proactive. There is a direct correlation between complete information and sales conversions. A real estate SEO services strategy is capable of helping realtors take their businesses to the next level.

Do let me know what you thought about the article. If you are looking for Real Estate SEO Services, feel free to reach out.

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