SEO for real estate is an effective way to automate lead generation, increase traffic, and get Google to help promote your real estate business.
95% of home buyers begin their journey online, so your real estate website should be up to date and optimized for SEO.
The most successful real estate agent is now the one who provides clients with more ways to find them, rather than just finding customers themselves. This is where real estate SEO comes in to help.
This article will explain what SEO is and how real estate agents can use it to their advantage.
What Is Real Estate SEO?
SEO is the process of making a website more visible in search engine results.
This means that real estate agents need to be at the top of the search engine results when people are looking for someone to help them buy or sell property.
The way you search for things on Google is similar to the way potential consumers search for homes. Both types of searches typically involve choosing from the top 3 or 4 results.
To make your page show up as one of the top results, you will need to do some specific SEO work when creating your community pages, blog posts, and landing pages.
Real Estate SEO Tips
Although it can be quite stressful, try not to worry too much about ranking above all the other real estate firms on Google. It’s unlikely to happen, especially if you use a home search with iFrames or subdomains. Instead, focus on ranking for local SEO in your area.
There are ways you can make your website more appealing to search engines, buyers, and sellers. Try implementing some of the following tips:
1. Do the Keyword Research
Keywords are a key part of SEO strategy. This article will show you many tactics that depend on knowing what local keywords to use. This includes using specific keywords like “real estate in New York”, as well as appealing to what your audience is looking for.
Keywords tell you what kind of content to publish on your website. Your keywords should always match the needs of your local market and appear on your different site pages, including:
- Blog Posts
- Landing Pages
- About Me/Bio Page
- Community Pages
- Page Titles
- Meta Descriptions
- Alt Tag
It is important not to use the same keyword on more than one page of your website. This is because you do not want your website to be competing with itself for ranking on search engines. Using different keywords for each page of your website will help improve your website’s ranking.
Here are two categories of keyword research to consider.
- Broad keywords. These are the keywords that you’ll optimize for your major pages, such as the about us page and home page. They include simple keywords, such as “Tampa home search” or “Miami real estate”.
- Long-tail keywords. These are the keywords that determine your blog content. They include answering the questions the home buyers in your area may be struggling with. For example, “the cost of a three-bedroom condo in San Jose” or even “how much do I need saved up before buying a house”.
Searcher Intent
Google altered its focus a few years ago to prioritize “searcher intent.” By taking into account all the information they have on a person along with the terms they inputted for a search, Google is now able to generate results that are unique to each individual.
As an example, if someone searches for “condos in Atlanta”, Google knows that the person is a single mother looking for a condo within walking distance of Ponce City Market. If you create a hotsheet or community page with the title “Condos within walking distance of Ponce City Market” and good content, you could rank for that search.
Don’t Overuse Your Keywords
Too many keywords on a website can result in that website being penalized by Google. This is because it looks like the website is trying to cheat its way to a higher ranking.
Although your keywords should be strongly related to the topic of your page, you should not have too much trouble incorporating them into the text. Do not try too hard, the content on your page should seem natural to both your readers and Google.
. If you’re unsure about how natural something sounds, a good way to test it is to read it aloud to yourself. If it sounds strange or unnatural, it’s likely that your site visitors will have the same reaction.
2. Make Sure Your Website Is Mobile-Friendly
If you started your real estate business a long time ago, you might have overlooked the need for website compatibility with mobile devices. However, recent research shows that over 50% of web traffic comes from mobile devices. Google has picked up on this trend and is now using mobile compatibility as a factor for ranking.
Test how your website looks and functions on a mobile device. If it is slow or difficult to use, make the necessary changes.
There are ways to make your site work well on both desktop and mobile, such as making it responsive. It’s important to do this, because if a mobile user clicks on your site and sees that it’s not mobile-friendly, they’re likely to click back and go to a different site within 3 minutes.
If you want your real estate website to look its best, make sure you are using a modern IDX that avoids iFrames and subdomains. Those can break even the best website theme. For some guidance, here is a blog post on which WordPress themes are best for real estate websites.
3. Improve the Speed of Your Website
Internet users expect websites to load quickly. If a website takes too long to load, users are likely to leave before they even have a chance to see it. This loss of traffic can be detrimental to a website’s success.
The following text discusses the implications of a high bounce rate on a website’s ranking. A high bounce rate indicates to Google that people are not finding what they are looking for on the website in question. Since user satisfaction is a key factor in Google’s algorithms, this can have a negative impact on the website’s ranking.
To help your website load faster, here are some steps you can take:
- Choose the right host provider
- Compress images
- Enable browser caching
- Reduce the number of plugins you’re using
4. Use Internal Linking
Creating links to other websites and within your own website can help improve your SEO. Backlinks help Google find your posts and can keep older posts relevant. There are two kinds of links you should use within your website’s content:
- Links to other relevant sites. These links help your readers find more relevant information, which makes you a reliable source they’ll keep coming back to. These backlinks also give search engines a chance to find your own blog posts.
- Links to posts on your own site. These links allow you to keep the traction going on older blog posts and pages. With each new page you create, think of where you can insert a link to an older, but still related, page on your site.
If you want to add backlinks to your website, community pages and blog posts are the best places to do so.
Community Pages/Hotsheets
A community page is a type of page on a website that includes links to other pages on the same website, typically in a section labeled “Resources” or “Related links.” For example, a website about the neighborhood of Brookhaven in Atlanta might have links to other neighborhoods in the area, such as Midtown or Buckhead. This allows website visitors to easily find more information about the topic, and it keeps them from leaving the site.
Blog Posts
If you want to increase the number of backlinks to your website, write blog posts on a variety of topics. Link to other relevant pages on your website using keywords and phrases. If you can, link to older blog posts as well.
If you want your real estate website to show up higher on search engine results pages, try using statistics and facts within your content. This is because search engines love websites that include this kind of information, and including it will help to improve your ranking.
5. Add Your Website on Review Sites and Relevant Directories
Create profiles on popular websites such as Google My Business, Yelp, AngelList, and Trust Pilot, as well as real estate websites like Realtor.com, Zillow, and Redfin. Keep an eye out for local real estate listing websites, as these will be especially beneficial for your Google ranking.
The sites allow you to create a backlink, which is important for your ranking, and it expands the number of places your customers can find you online.
Be consistent with the formatting of your business information across all listings. This will help Google understand that the listings all pertain to one business. For example, if your business is in New York, do not submit “New York” on one listing and “NY” on another.
6. Invest in Good Photos For Your Website
The emotional connection home buyers make with photos is what drives the sale, not just good reviews and good content.
Your real estate website is more likely to result in a sale if you have high quality photos. Remember to add optimized alt tags to improve your ranking on Google.
Video Content
If you are able, try going above and beyond by adding video content. This could be a blog that has been turned into a video using Canva, a video tour of a new listing, or even a video of you sharing current statistics from the real estate industry.
7. Promote Your Content on Social Media
If you want to be successful in real estate SEO in a small city, you need to be ahead of the competition. However, if the competition is tough, sharing your content could increase your chances of getting more traffic to your site.
A majority of your current and potential clients are on social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram, according to Pew Research Center. In particular, 82% of 30-to-49-year-olds use at least one social media platform, with Facebook and Instagram being the most popular choices. Therefore, these age demographics are going to be your home buyers for the foreseeable future.
Sharing your content on social media increases the likelihood that it will be seen, and it gives search engines additional websites to find you on.
There are several ways you can use the content you already have to create graphics, videos, and testimonials to post on social media. For some tips on how to optimize your social media for your business, check out this article on Social Media for Real Estate.
In addition, use your email list to get support from your loyal subscribers. If you need help promoting your content, talk to one of our Showcase IDX Certified Partners.
Why is SEO Critical for Real Estate Agents?
The National Association of Realtors states that 44% of all buyers use online property listings as the first step in their journey.
The above text states that in 1981, the most popular way to find a home was through newspaper ads, while now the internet is the most popular resource.
For buyers who start their searches for properties directly, it is essential that your property listings are optimized for Google. This includes the bordering neighborhoods and other terms that indicate local relevance.
Local home searchers visit the site hundreds of times a month from a small set of keywords.
Wherever you look, no matter the location, there’s going to be between hundreds and tens of thousands of prospects searching for real estate in that local area every month:
- san antonio homes for sale is searched 7900 times every month
- studio apartments chicago is searched 1700 times monthly
- houses for sale in florida with pool gets 600 searches monthly
Since the majority of clicks go to the first result in a Google search, it is important to rank highly in order to get more clicks.
Then ranking #1 for
- San Antonio homes for sale = 2875 targeted leads visiting your site every month
- Studio apartments Chicago = 618 targeted leads visiting your site every month
- Houses for sale in Florida = 218 targeted leads visiting your site every month
However, not everyone who is interested in buying a property has the same mindset. Some people may not be ready to buy yet because they have questions that need to be answered first.
Around 13 percent of people who use search engines are only looking for more information on a topic, rather than trying to find a specific product or service. These users may not be as ready to buy something as those who search for something specific, but they are still potential customers that businesses should try to court.
You can use informational keywords to target searchers and give them helpful content to build brand awareness and grow your lead list.
Do You Want to Know More About Real Estate SEO?
By optimizing your content for real estate SEO, you can make it easier for your clients to find you. By providing great content and answering questions your customers may have, you can position yourself as a leader in the real estate industry in your area, which can help build trust for your brand.
