|
Points
for Web Design
|
While you get
no extra points for having multiple Websites, give
yourself 10 points for having at least one Website.
Homebuyers and sellers of all ages in both city and
country environments expect real estate agents to have a
Website. If
you do not yet have your own Website or if the site you
have is not up to snuff, I urge you to request a Free
Custom Web Plan online at http://www.sellrealestate.net/
FreeWebPlan.asp.
Your credibility will suffer without one.
POINTS
FOR CLARITY
Without
scrolling down the page, check to see if your name, phone
number and Email link appears on your home page.
If so, add 5 points to your score.
Take an
additional 5 points if the name of your city or area is
mentioned predominantly on the page.
POINTS
FOR CONTENT
Give
yourself 5 points if your Website gives visitors the
opportunity to search through all your MLS properties.
Take an additional 5 points if you have a custom
IDX option so that your name and contact information
appear for every listing in the MLS.
If you click on the link provided in the previous
paragraph you will find a whole section devoted to IDX,
Internet Data Exchange.
GO
THAT EXTRA MILE
Add on 10
more points if your Website also includes interesting
content for sellers by including recent sales data for
your area.
So far
there are 40 possible points for Web Design. What is your
Website’s score?
|
|
|
Search
engines are somewhat like exclusive clubs where
Membership has its privileges.
Website design issues have a great deal to do
with whether or not your Website will be accepted.
POINTS
FOR GETTING IN
If
your Website is optimized for top search engine
placement give yourself 10 additional points.
A Website is optimized if the Web designer
followed the search engines’ guidelines for
design, which includes HTML design elements, text or
words on the page, use of graphics and certain Meta
Tags. An optimized Website has a good chance of
being accepted into a search engine’s index for
specific keyword phrases. A Website that is not
optimized may not even make it that far.
Being in the index of a search engine is like
being in the National Library of Congress, the
largest library in the world with more than 130
million items on about 530 miles of bookshelves.
POINTS
FOR NETWORKING
Since
search engines rely on networking to judge a
Website’s relative importance and thus determine
exactly where it should be placed in the Index, give
yourself 10 points if your Website has built in
networking or link sharing capabilities.
If you don’t know whether or not your
Website has these capabilities, it probably
doesn’t.
POINTS
FOR KNOWLEDGE
If
you know the top three-keyword phrases or search
terms that people use to find real estate in your
area, give yourself an additional 10 points.
Do not accept these points if you are only
guessing. You
need to know what search terms your buyers are using
and how often a search term is requested over a 30
day period.
There
are 30 possible MEMBERS ONLY Points.
How did your Website score?
|
|
|
Most
real estate Websites focus on buyer needs and
concerns but completely ignore the seller. If you
are a buyer’s agent and completely uninterested
in talking with sellers you won’t mind if your
Website ignores them BUT if getting listings is
your main goal, a Website without Marketing
Strategies to attract sellers is not doing the
job.
MINI
MARKETING STRATEGIES FOR SELLERS
Give
your Website 5 points if it offers a Free CMA and
includes a form to make it easy for sellers to
contact you.
Add
5 points if your Website offers sellers
information about pricing their home.
Add
10 points if your Website includes a password
protected Seller’s Checklist to keep your
clients up to date with information about their
home’s sales process.
YOUR
SCORE
80
– 90 POINTS – A Money-Making Web Machine
60
– 79 POINTS – Not Quite There Yet
40
– 59 POINTS – Time to Rethink Your
Strategy
Below
40 POINTS – Start Over Time
If
you don’t like your Website’s Point Score,
call me toll free at 888-814-5347 for ideas on how
you, too, can have a Money-Making Web Machine.
|
|
|
