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Your
Website Leads Your Marketing
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There are several reasons why Internet
marketing may be your most important tool for business
growth these days.
One:
Most buyers and many sellers start their real estate
research online. A
Website that is well-positioned on the search engines
ensures that your message is available to every
prospective buyer and seller in the world that is
interested in real estate in your area
Two:
Traditional marketing has overloaded the consumer and
is known to be less effective today than it was even 10
years ago.
Three:
U.S. Postal rates went up yet again making Email marketing
far more cost effective than traditional direct mail.
Market research also shows that Email marketing is
far more effective than traditional direct mail in terms
of results.
Four:
A well-designed Website enables you to deliver highly
targeted messages to different prospects simultaneously.
For example a prospective buyer may be searching on
one part of your Website while a prospective seller is
using a different section.
All the while, an established client may be
accessing a password-protected section with information
specific to their transaction.
Five:
Certain technology, if programmed onto your Website, can
help a real estate broker with agent training, recruitment
and enable agents to access important forms and files from
any location.
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But
What if You Do Not Follow its Lead? |
If
your Website was developed following a well thought
out marketing plan, good for you! Now
the next step is to let that plan be your guide or
let your Website Lead Your Marketing.
In other words, everything you do in
marketing must be coordinated.
Want some ideas on coordinating your
marketing? Visit
me online at http://www.sellrealestate.net
/coordinatemarketing.asp and take the online
self quiz.
SOME
PEOPLE
IGNORE THEIR WEBSITES
Yes,
it is true! In
fact it is common.
Here’s how it works.
An agent decides to target a geographic farm
for listings. A
Website is created that includes lots of interactive
marketing designed to please this market.
Maybe the Website includes a section on
recent sales data for the area.
Maybe the site also includes an interactive
page called Online Pricing Analysis.
You would expect this agent to talk about
these things in any direct mail that goes to the
farm, wouldn’t you? But
that is not always what happens.
Instead, some agents send out postcards
saying they want to “Be Your Agent for Life.”
Others send out TV football schedules and
still others send out recipes.
In other words, they set up a custom Website
and then use template postcards.
There is absolutely no coordination in this
and it is not effective.
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What
if Your Web isn't Going Anywhere? |
| If
designed properly, your real estate Website
should reflect your marketing plan.
Now, if you have a template Website the
odds are that your Website does not reflect your
marketing plan or if it does, then you may want
to re-think your marketing plan.
Why? Because template Websites are the
same for everybody and if your marketing plan is
just like everybody else’s, you are in
trouble.
WEBSITES
LEAD BY
STICKING TO THE PLAN
If
your Website was not developed in accordance with
your overall marketing plan, it is not leading you
anywhere. So,
if you either don’t have a plan for making the
Internet work for you or if you have a plan but
your Website hasn’t heard about it, please
contact me toll free at 888-814-5347 or visit me
online at http://www.sellrealestate.net/FreeWebPlan.asp.
WEBSITES
THAT ARE GOING NOWHERE
Most
template Websites are designed using what is known
as Framed Pages.
If the information on your Web page scrolls
down separately from your sidebar or top graphic,
then your Website was put together using the
design type known as “Frames.”
Framed pages are NOT content pages.
There is no way to optimize a Website that
is designed using Framed pages and that is why the
only option for getting on the search engines with
a framed Website is to use pay-per-click
advertising.
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