Real Estate Marketing SEO Blog

Six Ways to Get Traffic From Facebook

Image via Wikipedia

How do you get traffic from Facebook?

• Likes
• Shares
• Comments
• Posts

I am not going to get into the intricacies of this so much as you can guess if you have any experience at all with Facebook.

However, lets get a bit more aggressive shall we?

How can we get our message onto more profiles such that we get more traffic.

• Engage other people.Sharing engages people with you. It does nothing for the engines until your content that you want found is shared or liked or tweeted etc. You engage to get folks to get into you and your stuff. So they will consume your content (maybe buy) and share your stuff. 
• Comment on other profile walls.
• Tag other profiles onto your pictures or videos. This puts your message onto their wall. Some people may not like this. One way around it is to ask if they will themselves tag their profile to a picture. Jonathan Altfeld asked me to do this for a flyer of his for a seminar. How could I help but say yes?

How to Get Listed in Google, Bing, Yahoo Locally

Google is and always has been important for traffic.

However, local search has risen to 30%-40% of the marketplace.

Find out how to get local listings in Google, Yahoo, and Bing.

Mind you that a listing is not a first page listing.

Contact us on how to get that.

Download Creating Local Business Listings on the Three Major Search Engines

Get more special reports and access to the exclusive backroom.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Groupon of Real Estate

I recently met Dave from HouseTipper.com when one of his clients ran an insertion into RealEstatePressRelease.com

We hooked up for a textual interview to find out a little more about this company and the unique Group buying experience they provide in the real estate space. When I investigated them, I saw offers by agents like the one currently running on the top of their home page: "$2,500 cash back at closing when buying or selling a home with Regina Wagner".

What is HouseTipper?
HouseTipper is the first and only group buying platform created specifically for the Real Estate Industry. We offer consumers huge savings on Real Estate and Home & Garden deals. We've created HouseTipper as a central platform for the industry to showcase these deals and use them to help generate qualified leads. Deals are everywhere in Real Estate but sometimes they are hard to find and sometimes you don't get them unless you know what you are doing. Our goal is to change that.

How Does Your System Work?
Our platform works much like other group buying sites. We feature a great deal, we set a tipping point and if enough people buy the voucher then the deal is on. What's different about us is our types of deals.

We offer real estate agent deals, home builder deals, mortgage deals, leasing deals, time-share deals, home & garden deals, and real estate investment deals.  

What gave you the idea to start this company?
We liked the group buying model as a lead generation tool and thought it would be great to use to feature something else other than cheeseburger, botox, and Brazilian blow out deals. My partner and I both have worked in sales. We hated cold calling and didn't like buying expensive ads. The group buying model works and our deal-makers like it because there are no upfront costs.

Why wont a Realtor just go and use Groupon or Living Social instead of
HouseTIpper?
Good question. They could but Groupon and Living Social's focus is on high volume impulse buying deals, so I' not sure how much they want to be in this particular area. HouseTipper was created for the Real Estate Industry and we think it's deserving of its' own platform. Plus most Real Estate professionals don't want to be viewed as just another group buying commodity.

 How do you get buyers and sellers for your advertisers/Realtors?
We are getting some great deals on the site but the key is distribution. We are working on building up our subscriber lists in each city. In some cases we are working with advertising firms on behalf of their clients. They like the fact that we are flexible and they can integrate a HouseTipper deal page into their existing marketing campaign. We also work with online marketing consultants who are looking for new lead generation tools for their clients. Last but not least, we are also forming strategic partnerships with other Real Estate websites to give our deals even more visibility.

How did you get here? What did you do in your previous life? My partner is a 10 year Real Estate agent. I have a sales and marketing background. I called him up one day to discuss the idea. We then put our heads together and thought of all types of unique ways that group buying could work for the Real Estate Industry. So there you have it. The Groupon of real estate.

Get Access to Our Insider Information. Subscribe Today to the Back Room

6 Reasons Google Might Not Love your Site

Image via CrunchBase

Have you heard the Dr. Phil and Oprah line,"If you love yourself others will love you."

There are many websites out there that are self loathing.

Well Google will love your site only when you love your site. How does Google know you love your site? When you take care of it.

Here are 6 markers that prove to Google that you take care of your site.

Google May not love your site if:

1. You are not using updated and valid html code.
2. If you are using html from 2005 You have not updated your sites content since Bush was in office.
3. You have failed to place social markers on your site. (Facebook Likes buttons, Google +1, Twitter etc)
4. Your site is on valium instead of caffeine.
5. You site gets little traffic. Ye the rich get richer.

 

25 Ways To Get A Site To Link To You

1. Because you paid them for a listing in a directory.
2. Because you are a member of a trade organization.
3. Because people are discussing your products or services (Set up Google Alerts on your brand names. This is good reputation amnagement practices anyway).
4. Because you are a member of a local group or organization.
5. Because you create a terrific case study.Also take place in surveys and offer your own opinions.
6. Becasue you are joined to a specific demographic group. Join with like minded community.
7. Because you submit a tip or how to information.
8. Because you comment on a breaking news story.
9. Because you compile a resource list (linkbait).
10. Because you offer a discount.
11. Because you make a donation to a charity online that links back to you.
12. Because you support your local industry and they might link back to you.
13. Because you have a unique or unusual business or business practice. People love crazy ideas.
14. Because you are interviewed.
15. Because you offer an internship or job.
16. Because you attend an exibition. Make sure the organizers know you exist.
17. Because you buck a trend or ride a wave.
18. Because you publish a video on your site.
19. Because you publish videos on Youtube
20. Because your products or online information makes great gifts.
21. Because your help your audience make or save money.
22. Because your products or services are healthy.
23. Because you support a local College(EDU links are believed to be very helpful for SERPS)
24. Because you seek help and ask a sensible question.
25. Because of reviews of your products or services (Google Places, Yelp, etc)

This linking list was provided by wordtracker my favorite keyword research tool.

Get Access to Our Insider Information. Subscribe Today to the Back Room

The Dirty Truth About Facebook Marketing

As entrepreneurs we all love the game.

You know the game. The next big thing. And online the next big thing is every other day. Often times I need to council my clients that they need to blog or publish to be successful online. More often than not it falls on deaf ears because it is not very fun. Blasting crap all over the net is easier and less work.

A little Fun from Jack and Tom with Today's theme.

Facebook Killed Plug N Play

As business people we fight long and hard to scale everything we do. So Realtors used IDX. And syndicated using tools from their IDX providers or tools like Postlets.com. Other industries are not so lucky to already have a built in content mill ready to churn out to the masses.

Either way social media, particularly Facebook has made the Plug N Play a death trap. Sure scale is important. But it is called social media for a reason.

Social Democracy

When you essentially spam Facebook just to spam Facebook, you will never know that your post was called spam, or you were removed from ones wall. Call it Social Democracy. There is no dislike button on Facebook. But what I described quietly serves the same purpose.

Look at your own profile of "friends" see how often they:

• Post on their own profile.
• Engage others via Comments or Likes.
• The last time they were active.
• What is the quality of the commentary on others posts and on their own?

Finally The Dirty Truth of Social Media

There may be 700 Million + folks on Facebook, but this little experiment will prove out that there is not as much socializing going on as the numbers might imply. And that can serve as your trap or your opportunity to spread your message. People do not know what to do when they get onto the social media. Engage them and you can easily become a thought leader in your niche.

However, do not fall into another trap whereby you go around asking if someone wants to buy your stuff. Socialize with them and talk about things that they care about.  Think of it as a giant Chamber of Commerce meeting.

 

 

Google Releases Their Own Social Noise Maker: +1 Button

Google has released their own social noise maker called plus one. OR +1. This is Google's answer to Facebook's like button. And as I have said before that likes are the new links as Google, and Bing embrace the social authority of ones social graph. Neglect to use these at your own sites demise. Twitter just released their Follow button whereby you can follow an individual or company on Twitter.

Real Social Media SEO for Local Businesses

Image via CrunchBase

I have counseled my real estate agent clients to be their neighborhood advocate. That means be the online source of hyperlocal or neighborhood information. This advise really can apply to any local business from the dentist, to the plumber and even restaurant, and more.

What most people think is that what I mean is to post dry boring statistics about home values, and recently sold homes. Of course for a home owner these things are a big deal when they are considering "hows the market?". However, they are a mere blip on the radar for most of the time. Thus, your message is wasted.

Instead, any local business can stoke community pride by video taping the events they participate inside that community.

If you properly tag your YouTube video you will get local folks watching your video about their town.

This was brought home to me the other day as I posted a video of our local home town parade we attend most every year.

I put the video up on YouTube late Saturday night. By Sunday morning it was already at 37 views. As of  right now Monday morning it is 126. Based on experience it will keep growing. I also posted pictures of the parade and the video into Facebook.

So imagine if I would have put Tim's Real Estate, Or Torrance Dentist, or Torrance Fill in the blank,  as a watermark, or bookend on either side of the video? 126 People would see my message so far. The marketing benefits of doing this are delightful.

• Branding
• Community involvement
• Socialized SEO as the video gets picked up by the social nets
• Its cheap
• Its ongoing
• You are not always selling, youare perceived as a community advocate
• Its more fun!

Imagine if I hammed it up a bit as roving reporter and placed the branded bookend and footers?

Here is the short clip and a photo taken by my daughter.  Turn your speakers down.

You can also post your photos and watermark them with your appropriate branding. Put them on photo sites like Flikr with full creative common rights so people use them on their website. Post them across the social media and your message spreads virally.

Positive Real Estate News On the Horizon

The Cotton and Company sent 65,732 registrants on resort and real estate websites a survey on their home buying intent.

Total responses to date: 807 Survey sent: February 25, 2011 Click the PDF graphic to get the report.

Or visit www.TheCottonSolution.com

Background: The Cotton and Company are industry leaders the sales and marketing of residential real estate throughout the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean. Managed more than 1600 properties over the past 28 years. Provides integrated market research, analytics, marketing, web development, public relations, sales management, and customer database management services.

Some of the more salient findings:

The vacation home market has experienced a rebound in 2011, moving from 4% to 36% interest year-over-year. This is the
highest level of interest throughout the 3-year period.
• In 2010, 95% of the respondents who were no longer in the market for real estate cited economic instability as the reason for not
purchasing. In 2011, 46% of the respondents cited no desire to move, indicating a 41% drop in the response aligned with
economic conditions.
• Buyers who must sell their home prior to purchase dropped 10% year-over-year, reflecting 32% in 2011.
• Buyers who plan to purchase within 6 months saw a 21% increase from 2010. In 2011, 25% of the buyers indicate a timeline to
buy within 6 months, however, a 13% increase in the “over 2 years” category was also noted.
• Respondents remained virtually unchanged in their answer to “Have we reached the bottom of the market?” signifying continued
concern over pricing stability.
• The level of anticipated price reduction continues to show improvement in 2011, a result of significant price adjustments in the
market. In 2009, the median anticipated discount was 50%. In 2010, 30%. In 2011, this level has reduced to just 20%.
• Buyer transition indicates a continued trend toward downsizing and geographic relocation. This trend is also reflected in the
increased interest in smaller villa product type.
• 1,700 to 2,300 square feet remains the most popular residence size. However, growth occurred in the smaller home segment
with 31% of the market seeking a home between 1,000 and 1,600 square feet of space.

Mr. Cotton offers up his advice to Realtors and Mortgage pros on how to get their marketing ready to handle the realities of todays real estate market.

Social Media by Proxy

Image via CrunchBase

 Yahoo Research has found that just 20,000 people are responsible for tweeting half of all tweets on Twitter. That is less than one percent. The sample size was 260,000. Nevertheless, this is social media.

Right now stop what you are doing and go count how many of your "friend" on any social network has posted anything.  Now go and see when they actually interacted.

The numbers are far less than the hype would indicate. (this story reminds me of the story of the Mall employee part time Realtor who was brought onto speak at NAR about the gold mine called Twitter. Check credentials before buying into the Koolaid)

Is this reason to not socialize?  Let's not throw the baby out with the bathwater. HOWEVER......