If a website is the online equivalent of real estate, why do so many real estate professionals still lack this basic tool for doing modern business?
In fact, a study by the National Association of Realtors found that only around 70% of real estate professionals have a website. In this article, I will focus on the real estate industry and the top reasons why real estate agents need a specific real estate website.
Build Awareness and Online Presence
Let’s face it, in today’s connected world customers are looking for their services online. According to the 2022 National Association of REALTORS® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, 51% of buyers found the home they purchased on the internet. This means that online marketing should be one of the primary marketing tools for real estate professionals.
The internet has become an important tool in the home search process. Real estate agents who do not have a real estate website or listing may be missing out. Although most agents rely on finding their real estate leads from referrals and repeat business, it’s important to utilize a web presence to establish name recognition for your real estate business’s brand awareness. In the long run, marketing and advertising agent’s own brand will result in more business.
Generate Quality Leads
With a website, real estate agents can team up with digital agencies to build marketing strategies and generate quality real estate leads. For long term, content and inbound SEO marketing can be applied for organic growth. For immediate lead generation, paid marketing such as PPC coupled with relevant landing pages is the better plan.
Regardless of marketing tactics, real estate agents can free up their valuable time to close more sales and generate more revenue. In addition, agents who add more value to their services for existing clients will be rewarded with more referrals and repeat business.
Increase Credibility and Branding
Most real estate agents believe that using the website of a well-known real estate firm should be sufficient for online presence via a single page profile. However, there are several issues with this approach.
When buyers or sellers visit the firm’s site, they are visiting a real estate agent’s umbrella brand instead of the agent’s own brand. This means that the agent is relying on the umbrella brand to refer the lead, and that agent is not in control. In addition, this agent is competing with other agents in the umbrella brand for the same business.
When an agent decides to leave the umbrella brand, it will require that agent to start his or her online presence over from scratch, which takes time to build. With a website in the agent’s own brand, this is avoided since the established online presence is tied to the agent’s brand instead of the agent’s umbrella brand.
Services Education
Everyone wants a solution to solve their problem, instead of being sold on a product or service. This mentality is no different for buyers and sellers. Real estate agents with a website can increase their value to potential clients by providing valuable information to help guide buyers or sellers throughout the buying or selling process.
Part of this process is ensuring that the agent’s website has updated listings, community resources, FAQ, and contact information. Educating the buyer or seller and explaining how real estate agents provide their services can build trust, rapport, and earn agents more business.
According to the 2017 NARS Real Estate in a Digital Age report, photos and property information were most important to Millennials (born between 1980-1998). For the Silent Generation (born between 1925-1945), real estate agent contact information, virtual tours, and photos were most important.
Customers Expect Real Estate Agents to Have an Online Presence
According to the NARS report, social media plays a big part in the tools utilized by real estate agents, with Facebook leading at 80% followed by LinkedIn at 71%. Having a real estate agent website is vital because it serves as the core of your online presence.
An agent’s website can be the center of marketing and have all other social pages and local directories link to the website. It’s also a great place to add client testimonials and resources for buyers and sellers.
One issue with not having a website is that real estate agents don’t have full control of their information. This specifically applies to agents who rely heavily on social media for their online presence. Real estate agents don’t own their information on social media. They must ensure information is up to date along with related photos. An experienced web designer can help realtors own their information online.
In addition, any algorithm change in social media platforms may have adverse effect on their ranking. Real estate agents that own their website can have rich analytics reports from how visitors got to their website, what keywords they used, if they used mobile phones or desktop computers, where they visited on the site, and where they go after leaving the site.
With this insight, agents can take the guesswork out and understand their visitor’s behaviors. Real estate agents that have a profile page under their umbrella brand have analytics but usually have limited access to reports.
A Major Component of Your Marketing Strategy
Every small business can benefit from having a website and online presence. This is no different for the real estate industry. With a website, real estate agents reap these benefits: building brand awareness, generating quality leads, increasing credibility, helping buyers and sellers throughout their buying or selling journey, and full information control.
Creating one’s website is a small price to pay for increasing potential clients, supporting existing ones, and ultimately increasing your business. This is why every real estate professional should have a website.
If you’d like some assistance in crafting the perfect online home for your real estate business, contact an experienced real estate web design provider.
This article was originally published in February 2022.