Real estate has become an increasingly competitive sector with the rise in house prices and earnings an agency can make per acquisition. Real estate marketing has also became a sector where it is not merely real estate agencies that are competing to close a sale, so to are affiliates that earn a commission from an agency for each deal they refer. This article gives a brief overview of the methodology that real estate agents are following to market their business on the web.
Paid Search Marketing (PPC/CPC)
Real estate businesses are now choosing to market their business through paid search advertising. This is where the owner pays a search engine for each click made from the search engine to their website. Search engines such as Google, Yahoo and MSN display these adverts on the right hand side of search results. The advantages of marketing through this method include that people are searching for what you can provide along with the fact that you can choose what kind of budget you wish to allot to your paid search advertising. The level of scalability can range from as low as $20 per month all the way up to $20,000 plus. When opting for this method of advertising it is best if you really know your stuff; that is why taking an online PPC training session such as the one offered by Google can really help.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Search engine optimization is where you can choose to position your website for searches such as "real estate" in the organic search engine results. This means that you do not pay anything, rather visitors come to your real estate website through the searches that they conduct that are relevant to what your business offers. Although you do not have to pay anything to the search engines for advertising using this method, you may have to pay money to a search engine optimization company that will work with you to increase your search engines position. They will advise you to add more content to your website and will attempt to garner back-links to your website from other real estate websites. When working with a search engine optimization company it is important to ensure that they employ ethical tactics to increase your websites position in the SERPs. You should ask the company if they comply with Google's webmaster guidelines and also ask to speak to past clients of theirs that have had a positive experience and had increased levels of traffic as a result.
Email Marketing
Email marketing was a far more common form of marketing in years past, however it remains just as effective today as it was in the past, even although search engine marketing has become increasingly popular. Email marketing will not convert as well as search marketing because people are not necessarily looking for services that you offer. Despite this, email marketing is still a highly effective way of finding customers for your real estate business. If you decide to work with an email marketing company it is important that you ensure you do not break the rules, and that you comply with anti spam laws that are in place.
