Are you ... with your ... been there before. Everyday you check your ... and every day you see the same poor results. A ... of ... no real leads - it gets p
Are you frustrated with your website?
I've been there before. Everyday you check your visitor
statistics and every day you see the same poor results. A slow
trickle of visitors, no real leads - it gets pretty painful.
The good news is that this problem can be remedied very quickly
(and cheaply) with just a few minor tweaks to your website.
But first you need to know the problem. Let's take a look at at
the top 10 offenders that can cripple your website's success.
1. No Traffic
You must steer a large number of people to your website to be
successful. One or two visitors a day isn't website traffic -
it's a waste of time. Success on the web is a game of numbers -
without traffic you have a very low probability of converting
visitors into clients. Getting 'mucho' traffic to your site
should be your first priority.
2. No Listings
Don't even think about building a website that does not have
MLS listings. Like a boat, a website without MLS listings is
just a hole you throw money into. The #1 reason why people
use the Internet to research a home is to read MLS listings.
No Listings = no go. Just that simple.
3. No Community Information
The second reason why people use the Internet to search for a
home is to research neighborhoods, schools, shopping and
entertainment. Visitors to your website will expect you to give
them a snapshot of their desired community. The first realtor
who gets them this information wil win.
4. Not Search Engine Friendly
Eighty percent web surfers use search engines to find
websites that interest them. If your website isn't easy to
index by search engines you will have a very difficult time
getting quality traffic.
5. Old Information
The carnal sin of the web is to have outdated information on
your site. If you haven't updated your website within the last
three months - you may be upsetting your visitors. Sites with
old listing and community information are quickly bypassed by
Internet Homebuyers.
6. Poor Design
White text on black backgrounds. Yellow on purple. Blinking
logos. Flashing text. Micro-print. Flavor of the week fonts.
All scream unprofessional. Ugly websites get ugly results.
7. No Follow-up
You are missing an incredible opportunity if you are allowing
your visitors to exit your website without leaving an email
address. Collecting email addresses is The #1 objective for
your website. These addresses are the only chance you have for
transforming cold browsers into hot buyers (and sellers!)
8. Misspellings and Bad Grammar
Misspellings spell disaster. I always recommend reading every
page of your website out loud. This way you will hear sentences
that don't sound right. This is also the best way for catching
words that your spell checker overlooked.
9. Resume Oriented vs. Benefit Oriented
Some realtors make the mistake of thinking that their visitors
care more about resumes than listings. Leave your certifications
and job history to your contact page. Make sure listings,
community info, and featured properties are front and center.
This is what your prospective clients want - give it to them -
quickly.
10. Never Advertised
Build it and they will come is not true on the Web. With over
6 billion web pages, your website is just a blip on the radar
screen. Your site will get swallowed alive if it is not
actively promoted.
Do a quick checkup of your website and see if these 10
offenders are hurting your websites success. With some minor
changes you can turn your website into a lean, mean,
prospecting machine.
