Archive for January, 2008
If the founders are on schedule, you should be able to see the newest online resource for real estate starting today. According to an article by RISMedia, January 15, 2008 marks the date when a new real estate “wiki” goes live.
According to the RISMedia article, founders of the new wiki have
“. . .produced more than 3,000 definitions and terms, almost 1,000 answers to home buying, selling and financing questions, hundreds and hundreds of industry used acronyms, bios of prominent real estate leaders, authors, more than 1,000 brokers and top producing agents, details of real estate associations, institutes, councils, designations, courses, blogs, social networks, publications…the list just goes on and on.”
The site is called www.RealEstateWiki.com.
The thing I found interesting about the RISMedia article, and the site itself, is that there is no indication of who pulled all this information together. And, I wonder how this site will compare to the InmanWiki, or Zillow’s Real Estate Guide that is also set up as a wiki.
Other questions that come to mind:
- Do sites like these provide a good hunting ground for agents to find information or to get ideas for their own blogs, websites and clients?
- Are they good marketing tools for real estate professionals?
- Will these sites have a positive or negative impact on the real estate industry?
- Who decided who the top 1000 brokers and agents are?
- Is there a danger that erroneous information will end up being taken as fact?
Check it out and let me know what you think!
Do-It-Yourself-SEO: Part 7
· CommentsUse this link to see all the posts in this series: Do-It-Yourself SEO.
Off Page Optimization
Anything that doesn’t have to do with how your website and your web pages are set up is off page optimization. Most often, the term refers to obtaining incoming links – also called backlinks or inbound links.
Incoming Links - And Why You Need Them
An incoming link is a link from another web page to one of your web pages. You need them because the search engines put a lot of emphasis on incoming links to determine the popularity of your web pages. Each incoming link is counted as a “vote” for your web page.
What’s The Best Way to Establish Incoming Links?
Interrupting People is a Bad Thing…
I’m sure someone taught you that it is impolite to interrupt other people. And, I’ll wager that you don’t constantly interrupt people when you talk to them in person – especially potential clients!
Now, you need to take a look at your website and figure out if you’re making this social faux pas without really thinking about it.
I wrote a post last year called “Real Estate Marketing: Sell Your Services, Not Yourself“. That post was about the importance of selling your services when you create a personal brand. But, I also use that philosophy when creating website copy.
When an Internet home buyer or seller first reaches your website, they’re not looking for you – they’re looking for information and the tools that will help them in researching their next real estate transaction.
Make sure you’re giving them what they’re looking for – without interruption!
How can You Interrupt a Visitor on Your Website?
Read this very amusing but extremely on-point post by Dr. Jay on Michael Russer’s ePowerNews Blog. The title of Dr. Jay’s post? Interestingly enough, it’s entitled Sell Your Services…Not Yourself!
Whimsical Wednesday: Suburban Wildlife
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Suburban Wildlife – Things are Tough All Over
The other day I was driving through my neighborhood headed toward the main road when I came upon several cars stopped so that they were just about blocking the road. It was an unusual occurence because our little neighborhood streets are not really prone to traffic jams.
As I slowed to a stop, I discovered the reason behind the problem. One of our local squirrels had been unlucky enough to be hit by a car and standing next to it was a turkey vulture. So, this was something of an event.
I’ve seen turkey vultures floating on thermals, but I’d never seen one this close. It wasn’t really a pleasant experience except for the novelty of it.
If you haven’t seen a turkey vulture up close, rest assured that it is an animal only a mother could love. This bird was about 2 feet tall, and probably had close to a 6′ wing span, it had a feather-less red head and the skulking posture that makes it difficult to consider it a cute animal.
Supposedly, turkey vultures stay in open spaces such as fields and less dense wooded areas. Evidently, no one explained that to this particular bird. And, the other odd thing was the bird’s evident disregard for the cars and people around it.
Since I needed to be on my way, I started to advance slowly to get past the cars stopped on either side of the road. Did the bird fly away? No, it simply walked over to the side of the road to let me by, then returned to its dinner.
Perhaps the drought in our area has reduced the vulture’s opportunity for feeding in the open fields where it is supposed to stay. If so, that’s another reason for me to want this drought to end.
Given the vulture’s air of entitlement on our neighborhood streets, I imagine the next thing we can expect is a personal visit the next time we grill steaks . . . .
Are You Proud of the Neighborhood Information on Your Real Estate Website?
Providing useful neighborhood information on your website can be a challenge. You can try to keep updated information on your site yourself, but that requires more time than most agents have to spend.
You can also provide links to other websites, but that sends your visitors away from your site – never the best solution. And, just linking to other sites is not the most professional way to make your site a true hub for real estate information.
Here’s an Answer: Offer Neighborhood Information and Get Leads at the Same Time!
If you’re not familiar with Neighborhood Scout, you need to evaluate this service as a way to provide very unique neighborhood information, and as an irrestible offer that will turn visitors into leads.
Neighborhood Scout is more than just a compilation of neighborhood statistics, it is a neighborhood search engine.
- Your visitors can use that search engine to find neighborhoods that meet their lifestyle, whether they’re looking for a good family neighborhood, a place friendly to young singles, or good places for first-time homebuyers to look, among other things.
- If you work with transferees, they’ll enjoy the search that lets them find a match for their current neighborhood in your geographic area.
Neighborhood Scout Can Be Integrated Into Your Website
The best news is that Neighborhood Scout offers a version just for real estate professionals that you can frame into your web pages to keep your visitors on your website. And, unlike some other services like Onboard, this company’s fees make it reasonable for you to put the search on your individual website.
The search is also set up so that the visitor is offered some useful information just for doing a search. But to get the complete story, registration is required. Anyone who registers on your site is your lead and you can then follow up with them.
If you give Neighborhood Scout a try, let us know what you think!
