Real Estate SEO – Getting Started & First Steps
To begin the three part series of Getting Started with Search Engine Optimization (SEO), this article will cover how to properly set up your myRealPage website and online strategy so you’re ready to begin optimizing. The following two parts of the series will cover aspects of on-site optimization and off-site optimization with SEO tips for improving your website’s visibility.
What is SEO and how can it Benefit my Business?
Search Engine Optimization is the practice of improving the visibility of your website in the search engine’s natural (organic) results. There are many ways to do this. SEO has two main aspects which are: on site optimization and off site optimization. The main goal of most online marketing is attracting website visitors, but how does a new business compete with the hundreds of local competitors that have already established a client base and reputation? Three words, Search Engine Optimization. Did you know that people generate 4.7 billion searches a day and 20% of those searches are unique – meaning they’ve never been searched before? Once you understand this, it becomes imperative your business becomes as visible as possible in search engines.
Is your Website Ready for Optimization?
Creating a website is just the beginning of your online marketing and like all journeys there are many paths you can take. However we recommend following these steps to ensure your website is effective as it can be. The first step is to sign up for and install Google Analytics and Webmaster Tools. Google Analytics lets you know where your traffic is coming from and how visitors are behaving on your website. Google Webmaster Tools provides you with information on your website including broken pages, indexed pages, error messages, inbound links and it even allows you to see which terms people are searching for to get to your website.
The next step is to make sure you have a blog set up on your myRealPage website. A well maintained blog can become one of your most effective marketing tools because blogs have a direct effect on your website’s rankings. Placing keywords in the title of your bog post as well as in the body lets search engines like Google understand what the blog post is about. After coming across your keywords a number of times Google begins to understand your website is important for the specified keywords. Including internal and external links is recommended for every post in your real estate blog.
Including nice images is also recommended for every blog post. Aside from looking great, nice images in your blog will increase the likelihood of your blog post being shared through social media. The last step is to ensure you have personal as well as professional social media profiles. We recommend including the big three, which are Facebook, Google+ and Twitter. It’s also recommended to include complimentary social networks like YouTube, Pinterest, Houzz or LinkedIn. Complimentary social profiles can help increase your reach through videos of your listings, video blog posts, images of your listings and region. Once you have these profiles set up it’s important to let your visitors know that you are available through social media. You can do this by clearly displaying your chosen social media icons on your website.
