There's a pathway to success that almost every real estate agent we work with has followed. It starts with a website to help users find information quickly and efficiently. Then, real estate agents add in digital marketing services, using PPC and eventually SEO to drive more leads to their site. Once this is done, our clients start seeing significant improvements in lead generation. But then their progress stops. The leads accumulate, yet nothing happens. We've watched agents generate more leads than they can handle, yet... no sales. In the end, these agents end up thinking their leads are garbage and their website investment was a waste of money. What went wrong? They only did half the job. These agents didn't realize that lead generation is only…

Website customizations are incredibly powerful. They're the invention of something brand new—taking a language of code, then using it to thoughtfully craft features or functions that didn't exist before. It's like solving a complex puzzle that doesn't have an answer-key, baking a new dessert without a recipe, or constructing a house you've never seen the blueprints for. Most importantly, customizations provide limitless opportunity. Real estate agents can create the exact site they want, bring their ideas to life, and have a web presence unlike anything else in the world. That's the reason why, at the end of the day, Real Estate Webmasters loves customizations. But let's face it: website customizations aren't for everybody. They can be time-consuming and…

With 2018 just around the corner, it's time to set some goals and create your plan of attack for reaching them. Let's talk about 6 simple steps for planning goals that will improve your overall success! 6. Decide on one major goal The first step is pretty simple: decide what you want to achieve.What do you want for your business? What will a successful 2018 look like for you? What sort of targets get you excited? The most important part of this initial task is choosing a big goal that will motivate and inspire you to push yourself in the coming year. Deep down, you probably already know exactly what you want to achieve next year, but take the time to really lock into it. 5. Write down your big goal & share it There's just something enchanting about…

Every week, we get questions about which meta tags a site should be using to achieve X result. In many cases, people are trying to accomplish relatively simple tasks with overly complicated methods. When it comes to SEO, the best message you can send to search engines is the simplest one. Here's a simple breakdown of the intended purpose of each tag, including examples of when and how they should be used. rel="canonical" Possibly the most misunderstood of meta tags, rel="canonical" seems to pop up all over the place—and rarely where it should! Intended Purpose: To tell search engines the original source of content, when 2 or more copies of that content exists. Best Use: To give credit to the original source of content, when you're republishing that…

Picking out a new real estate website provider is tough work! There are a lot of options out there and they vary in quality, price, experience, and capabilities. In this post, we've put together 8 tough questions you need to ask any website provider before signing on the dotted line. 8. What level of support will I get? The type of support offered by web providers varies significantly. Ask your web provider what support they offer and don't settle for anything less than you deserve: 7 days a week coverage, with the option to contact the support team by phone or email. 7. How well do you integrate with the programs I already use? Your website is meant to make your life easier. If there's a program or piece of software you're already using that you love,…

This article is part of a series about real estate PPC. We highly encourage you to read the entire guide. Real Estate PPC 101: Everything you need to know The Cost of Real Estate PPC PPC Ad Metrics Explained Recommended PPC Settings How to Convert Real Estate PPC Leads Common PPC Problems and Solutions Real Estate PPC Case Study: Forced Registration Real Estate PPC Case Study: Challenge Realty If you’re running your own PPC campaign, or are interested in starting your own, then make sure you take 5 minutes and read this article—it’s for you! At REW, we employ a variety of advanced strategies and tactics, and often delve into advanced settings that can help take campaigns to the next level. But in order to experience PPC success, a strong…

If you don't track your ROI, you're not alone. But we do want to help you change that, because ROI is one of the most important numbers in your lead generation strategy. If you understand what investments are bringing you money, you can make smart business decisions—like increasing budgets that produce twice as much money as you put in, and axing campaigns that aren't profitable. What is a conversion? First, let's define a conversion. On a real estate website, you're going to see two different types of conversions: people who land on your site and convert into leads, and leads that convert into sales. While it's important to watch both types of conversions, it's the latter that's most important for ROI. You want to know exactly how many sales you made…

I'm often asked what will be included in an REW SEO project by smart Realtors who are looking to enhance their digital marketing strategy. The truth is that every single project at REW is a bit different, because we look at your company, competition, and opportunity within your market, and then develop a strategy accordingly. Your designated SEO expert will be able to create an individualized strategy for your site and share it with you fairly early into your project. In the meantime, let's take a look at what we plan to accomplish for every new SEO project that comes across our desks. We want to transfer existing content If you have existing content on an old site, our first activity will be evaluating what you have and determining what is worth…

Choosing a domain for your site shouldn't be stressful, but it does require thoughtful planning. This easy guide will tell you how to choose a domain, and walk you through the details you should consider. Domain Authority How old is the domain? Generally speaking, the older a domain is, the more likely it is to have a history. That history can be extremely valuable if the site naturally earned links over the course of its time, which in turn builds domain authority. For this reason, your oldest active domain is usually your best choice. Note: If you participated in link-building or other potentially spammy SEO tactics in the past, consult with an SEO expert before deciding on an existing domain. Branding & Memorability Your domain is your calling…

Running into some snags with your real estate PPC campaign? No problem, we're here to help! In this blog post we'll talk about the three most common PPC challenges we come across and what you need to do to improve them. Problem 1 – My Leads Are All Junk This is one of the most common problems in ALL types of online advertising. While there's no way to ensure all of your leads will be qualified buyers looking to find a home today, you can increase the specificity of your ads to help target buyers who are further along in the buying process. These types of leads will be more likely to register as they are at the point where further help is needed, rather than simply wanting to browse. For campaigns in the real estate industry, the easiest way to do this is…