Top 5 SEO website design tips for estate agents

Estate agents that are purely concerned with website design will fall at the first hurdle. Think of it this way, if no one is there to see it, what's the point in having it? In website design, you have to be passionate about the way it looks AND the way it performs in search engines. This is known as Search Engine Optimisation (SEO). Without it, only users that know your web address will know where to go. Resource techniques has complied the top 5 SEO tips for estate agents below.

1). Content is King

This is undeniable when talking about SEO. Google is looking for relevant current content in the web sites that they index. This can include text, images, videos, animations, applications, blogs, social networking etc. Providing local or national property news is ideal for estate agents. When writing content, think about the wording as search engines scan for this.

2). Keywords

When scanning your website, Google will look for repeated keywords. Website designers will thoroughly check the density of keywords so that the website's SEO is optimised, but there is debate on what percentage that keywords should be used. Ideally a website design should be looking towards a 2% - 3% of repeated keywords. For estate agents, 'Estate agents in' and the local area is a particular favourite of the public as it follows a logical thought process.

3). Meta Tags

This is an invisible code that is embedded within your website. Meta tags are used by search engines to summarise the website. There are two main Meta tags that play an important role in SEO; description and keywords. The description Meta tag is a summary of the main text and the keywords Meta tag are the keywords that search engines at. Previously these have been abused by people using black hat SEO techniques, so now endlessly repeating keywords will flag your website as 'spam'.

4). Links

Simple rule for links: The more links you have pointing to your website, the better for SEO. This indicates a sense of popularity and is looked upon with great affection by search engines. The best links are from websites that have similar content to your own i.e. estate agents linking to other estate agents. Ideally you would want links to the most relevant pages on your website and not all to your homepage. One exception to this is having a website that is considered to be 'bad' pointing to your website, will count against your SEO.

5). Site Map

Search engines love an organised website design. A website that has sporadic page placement and erratic links will make the user experience very difficult and this will affect your SEO. The simplest way for estate agents to erase this problem is to draw out the website design and then draw lines between pages to show the links. To optimise SEO, ensure that every page can link to every other page.

For help or advice on optimising your site call Resource Techniques 0208 457 4777

Or why not take advantage of our free web review offer

Team announce launch of new website, teamprop - NOW EVEN BETTER

"If we can't match the major portals for sheer size, we can certainly outdo them when it comes to quality of presentation." So says team's IT Director Peter Byrne, describing the brand new cutting-edge version of the Association's industry-leading website, www.teamprop.co.uk, which was launched this week.

Teamprop has long enjoyed the reputation of being by a considerable margin the UK's most accurate and up-to-date property website, courtesy of team's unique multi-listing technology which ensures that all property information displayed is automatically updated every 15 minutes. This compares to an industry norm of once every 24 hours, and helps explain why teamprop has consistently punched well above its weight in terms of visitor numbers.

Now, with this latest version, developed in close association with team's IT partners, Resource Techniques, the site is even better.

The first thing you notice is an eye-catching new look and a clearer, more straightforward layout. But this is much more than just a stylish makeover, according to Peter Byrne. "The entire site has been totally redesigned and re-engineered from the ground up using the latest technology to make it faster and easier to use than ever before, while at the same time incorporating a whole array of advanced features designed to give a much richer and enjoyable user experience," he says.

Particular attention has been paid to the design of the site's all-important search function, to make it exceptionally fast and user-friendly. The quality of the photographs has also been enormously improved, utilising automatic visual optimisation to set new industry standards for clarity and printability, and enable properties to be displayed to the best possible advantage. Among the very latest features to be incorporated is Google's revolutionary Street View. And an ongoing process of optimisation has been initiated to maximise the site's visibility to the principal search engines.

All in all, then, these changes look guaranteed to further reinforce teamprop's popularity with both buyers and sellers - as well as those lucky team agents who enjoy exclusive access to it!

Resource Techniques launch new website ad campaign

Based around the principle that a website has just 3 seconds to impress the visitor, impress them enough to compel them stay rather than exit the site before you are able to get your message across. The campaign titled, 3 second 2 impress (www.3seconds2impress.co.uk) is aimed primarily at estate agents, although the message is the same whatever your business

The campaign encourages estate agents to look at their existing website and consider the following:

1) Google Ranking:

Is their website listed on page one of Google when searching for estate agents in their location.

2) An Affordable solution:

Do they get value for money or is their ROI (Return On Investment) a good one, by accessing the placement within Google, site features and user experience how does their existing website compare with their local estate agents they compete with or what's available from Resource Techniques.

3) Latest Technology:

How their existing website stacks up in the technology stakes and how this compares with the technology available on a Resource Techniques product.

4) Specialist:

Is their existing website created by a specialist company with experience in building websites for estate agents? And the benefits of using a company that specialises in building websites for estate agents.

FREE WEB REVIEW:

Finally, the 3 seconds 2 impress site (www.3seconds2impress.co.uk) offers the estate agent a free web review of their existing website, by simply completing the online form, requiring basic information, they receive, entirely free of charge, a review highlighting areas of concern and possible improvement. See - www.resourcetechniques.co.uk/webreview.aspx

Facebook fan page for Estate Agents

If someone offered you free advertising to 29.2 million people, would you take it?

You have to have had your head buried in the sand to have failed to notice that Facebook is the biggest social network in the UK. Even though popularity is unrivalled, only a few estate agents have taken advantage of it. By creating a 'Page' or a 'Fan Page', an estate agent has access to 29.2 million people in the UK. Creating a page takes less than 5 minutes, and regularly updating content will provide users insight into the people behind the brand name. Below is a list of 8 helpful ways to improve your website quickly and efficiently.

Content - This is what Facebook users will be looking for. Provide details on your opening times, nearby parking and public transport. An underlying theme here should be to make it as personal as possible.

'Write something about...' - This is a short summary of your business. You can put in the company motto, mission statement or even a person message. For example "Welcome to the **** Fan page. Here you can see regular property updates and what goes on behind the scenes".

Keywords - do your own Search Engine Optimisation (SEO). Your fan page can be searched by anyone on the web. When writing your content, think about keywords that search engines might pick up on. These can include the name of the estate agency, where you're placed, location of houses you sell etc.

Create links - Remember to link the Fan page to your property website. This will help users to not only access your website with ease but also increase the SEO of your own website!

Start discussion topics - Are the roads bad in your local area? Is there a development that's affecting residents? Again this is about providing a personal face to your business. Showing you care will show to people that you have corporate social responsibility.

Staff members can help - Get staff to kick start your popularity by getting them to all become fans of the page. Input from staff members will increase the quality of the content and show users that there is a clear dialogue between staff and the public.

Reviews - This is where members of the public can provide feedback. A great opportunity for you and other members of the public to see how great estate agents are!

Video - Internet users love video and it's a chance for them to see your creative side. Upload a video of a feature property, a staff social or even a review of the area. It's completely up to you!

People love honesty and a personal face to a business. Adding content that people can relate to will reach millions of people who have been gripped by Facebook. Have a look at Resource Techniques Fan page for ideas: http://www.facebook.com/pages/London-United-Kingdom/Resource-Techniques/41521113790

Estate Agents, can your website design improve business?

Design and usability matter a lot when creating any Web site, for estate agents getting it right could be the difference between success and failure. Troy Stanley, Technical Director of web designers and software provider Resource Techniques, offers some good advice.

Getting Web design right is both hard and controversial. If you ask a cross section of the population their opinion of a particular design, there are usually as many opinions as the number of people. To try to understand design, it's worth asking what's the difference between design and art? I would define design as the constrained application of art. Good designers are interested in the practical application of their creative output. And design is not just about aesthetics, it also embraces usability, good functionality and of course cost.

Designing a Web site that can sell successfully is an art in its self, and as getting it right can be the difference between business success and failure, building a web site that achieves this goal is critical.

Design basics

The aim of design has to be to support the objectives of the site and in turn the business it's supporting. In the case of a site for estate agents, it primary goal is to attract buyers and sellers of property.

How can design help to achieve this? First of all we must communicate the brand message that the company wishes to convey to the target demographic. If there is any disconnection between these two, this will jar with prospects and significantly reduce their likelihood of buy in.

The next objective of design, and closely related to brand, is the prime message. Maybe the site wishes to communicate a contemporary feel, maybe something more traditional. Whatever it is, it's the objective of the designer to create an emotional reaction in the people engaging with the site. We call it the WOW factor, research confirms that a site has around 3 seconds to impress the user enough make the stay and not press the back button and exit your site in favour of your competition, the WOW factor is critical.

Design has the chance to bring clarity to what is offered on the site, establish trust and clearly explain how the offering can be accessed. Good web design will attract visitors, impress them and make them stay, make them enjoy the experience, keep them coming back and tell their friends about.

Marketing

Creating a point of difference... How can you as an estate agent in a hugely competitive market place stand out from the crowd? How can you have a clear point of difference? Essentially all estate agents offer the same service, the same selling features, rightmove, newspaper adverting, boards etc, etc...

Your website can create that point of difference, if it stands out from the crowd, if it offers a rich user experience with large high quality images of each property, large easy to read floor plans, PDF brochures, mapping highlighting local amenities such as schools, doctors, dentists etc, Google street view and email alerts.

There is little point in attracting people in your site if they aren't able to quickly access what they're looking for, research shows that 97% of visitors come to an estate agents web site to search for property. It is therefore essential to have clear 'calls to action', 'Property Search' should be clearly identifiable and navigation to relevant property information should be easy and require minimal input.

Usability 101

When designing websites, there are some principles that should always be applied. These include keeping your site simple and easy-to-use. As above, make sure that there are clear 'calls to action' like how to access 'Property Search'. Use common metaphors such as About Us, and Contact Us. Also stick to common concepts, such as making the logo clickable.

Remember that buyers can arrive at any page on the site via search engines, so ensure that each page supports the brand proposition. This is another reason for providing contact details throughout the site, including telephone number, e-mail, and physical address.

Remember the key rule of usability - if in doubt just keep it simple.

The final word

Your web site is your shop window to the World, it has the potential to bring new business 24/7, ensure your website is driving traffic to you and not away.

For further help and advice contact:

Troy Stanley

Resource Techniques

Attracting the 'You Tube' Generation

Whilst many agents have produced and continue to produce virtual tours, now is the time to consider upping the game and using video content within your web site as well as expanding the marketing opportunities the video format offers. The adage 'A picture paints a thousand words' has never been more true. Video is now increasingly used within email messages, this is fairly new to the UK but is massive in the US, particularly in the real estate agent market, so be the first in your area to send video content by email and your clients will be impressed.

Video has quickly become the preferred communication medium for personal contact within the younger market, the buyers and sellers of today and tomorrow. Business communication will no doubt follow the trend in the hunt for this increasingly lucrative sector of the sales market. In the US, real estate agents use video for business cards, introducing themselves and their services. Whilst it's not certain it will catch on here in the UK but its been found some UK estate agents are producing video of their local area and in some instances property for sale and rent. You only have to look at the success of the recent video based viral marketing campaigns of T Mobile (100s of synchronised dancers in a railway station) and Cadbury's (drumming gorilla) TV ads, to see it's potential, as both have achieved an enormous following on 'YouTube'. This type of marketing initiative is fantastic for the company as the brand is promoted by this self replicating viral process, and it's free... so keep them interesting. You never know, you could become a 'YouTube' phenomenon!

Creating video has never been easier or cheaper with many new computers being produced with built in video cameras, this then enables quick and easy production of personalised video messages from your desk. The next step is to produce a video promoting your local area. You can even use your iPhone but camcorders can be purchased for as little as £100 but for around £400 you can buy the latest highly rated slim line compact Sony HDR-TG3. Producing video is as simple as point and press since the camera then plugs directly into the USB port of your computer and the video is downloaded in seconds.

Before embarking on your first video, think about the message you want to give and plan how you're going to shoot it. The goal is to use video to improve and build your web presence, this is achieved by providing rich content that illustrates what it is like to live in your area.

Ensure that your videos are easy to find on your web site; around 90 percent of your visitors go directly to property search or property listings page, so it's important to make sure that your videos are accessible and well promoted within your site. This makes your web site "sticky", keeps people on your site longer and keeps them coming back and hopefully they'll tell their friends, this is how viral marketing starts... Good luck.

Top Video Tips:

1. Produce a video about your local area

Produce a video about your area. In the video, act as a tour guide showing what makes your area unique. This is not a sales pitch about you, the goal is to give viewers a sense of the local lifestyle.

2. Sales team viewing

Present each new instruction to your sales team at your morning meeting, negotiators will be better informed after seeing every new instruction without leaving the office.

3. Get a head start on the competition

If video is the new black then make a start now before it becomes common place, take advantage of the marketing opportunities now whilst it's still new and tell everyone about it.

4. Architectural/places of interest tour

Most areas have certain architectural styles or places of interest that are unique to the area. Make a video of the best examples of architectural style and places of interest in your local area.

5. Post/distribute your videos

Having shot your video, post your video on YouTube, Google Video and Yahoo Video, your own web site, blog, Twitter, Facebook etc etc... All at no charge.

Video will increasingly become important, in terms of both our personal and business communication. Images and text will no longer be satisfactory to the next generation of Web users. Instead, they will expect a full range of video applications that create the experience of "being there", in the future of the here and now, so join the multi media revolution today!

Troy Stanley - Technical Director

Resource Techniques

Free Website Review

Nowadays, both estate agents and internet users demand more from a website. They want a property website to have a user friendly experience that is update in internet website trends, quality imagery with rich context that can keep users coming back again and again.

Not only do that, but property websites have to perform well in SEO (Search Engine Optimisation). This is needed so that your website will appear on the top of search engines. For example, if someone types 'Estate Agent in Brighton' they will most likely click on the one of the first links given to them at the top of the page. Performing SEO on your property website gives you the maximum amount of traffic without having to pay for expensive online advertisement.

Do you feel that your property website does little for your estate agency? Well help is at hand. Resource techniques will provide you with a FREE website review service from our 20 years of experience in property websites. In the FREE website review, we provide:

* SEO Review
* Functionality Review
* Design and usability Review

There's no point in having a fancy website if no one goes on it or a website that has a lot of traffic but looks like it's from the 1990s. This report will help you expertly see exactly how your website is positioned and will suggest easy solutions for all levels of technical ability.

You can either call Resource Techniques on 0208 457 4777 or email us at freewebreview@restech.co.uk.