The 11 Elements You Must Have on Your Real Estate Website to Build Trust
AUGUST 17, 2021
An SSL certificate, good branding, and nine other elements your real estate website needs.
As a real estate agent, you need a professional website to grow your business. Those who are looking for properties or who are seeking an agent to help them buy or sell real estate will likely go to your website to find out more about you before they take the next step and call you or schedule a showing.
To ensure that your website is making a good first impression and building trust with your ideal client, it needs to have certain elements.
Here are the most important.
1. A Blog
A blog is one of the best ways to continually update content on your website. Not only will useful blog posts help build trust with those who may want to do business with you, but it will also help increase your SEO rankings if you use the right keywords. Make it a goal to update your blog at least a few times a month so your prospects can see that you are active and committed to providing them up-to-date information.
An SSL certificate, good branding, and nine
other elements your real estate website
needs.
Database Marketing Strategies
The Importance of Your Website as a Realtor
As a real estate agent, you need a professional website to grow your business.
Those who are looking for properties or who are seeking an agent to help them
buy or sell real estate will likely go to your website to find out more about you
before they take the next step and call you or schedule a showing.
To ensure that your website is making a good first impression and building
trust with your ideal client, it needs to have certain elements.
Here are the most important.
1. A Blog
A blog is one of the best ways to continually update content on your website. Not
only will useful blog posts help build trust with those who may want to do business
with you, but it will also help increase your SEO rankings if you use the right keywords.
Make it a goal to update your blog at least a few times a month so your prospects can
see that you are active and committed to providing them up-to-date information.
Why is Your Database So Important?
Your database is your key to staying in touch with those who may do business with you or who are likely to give you referrals. If you don’t have a way of keeping in touch with them and engaging with them, they will likely forget about you and their business (or referrals) will go elsewhere.
While many agents think they can keep track of those they need to touch base with by retaining their business cards, writing them down in their planner or simply remembering who they are, most are not organized and disciplined enough to do so. They need to rely on a system that involves not only building their database, but also effectively using that database to develop marketing campaigns that can include email newsletters, text campaigns, phone calls, or social media marketing strategies.
Some real estate agents decide to split their databases into two distinct groups: a lead generation group that includes only those who the realtor is attempting to gain as clients, and a sphere of influence group that includes past clients, networking and referral partners, and others who are likely to pass their names on to others who need a real estate agent. While both of these types of databases are useful, most agents find they get more business from their sphere of influence group than their lead generation group — especially if they are not using a professional, unique lead gen system.
What Mistakes Do Agents Make When Building Their Database?
Many agents suffer from “shiny object syndrome” when it comes to building their database. Instead of playing the long game and focusing on ways to slowly build their database with solid leads and close spheres of influence, they jump on the latest and greatest marketing trend and shift their efforts to a strategy they think will make them some quick sales. Unfortunately, a change in algorithm or other occurrences out of your control can easily put an end to the effectiveness of trendy marketing techniques. When you focus on building a solid database, you’ll insulate your business from external changes and reap the benefits a few years down the line when your list pays dividends and your income skyrockets.
Other agents do a good job of building a strong database, but then fail to utilize it by not creating a robust marketing strategy connected to it. Compiling the names is only part of the battle. The more important component is developing a system that consistently engages those in your database to keep them up to date and interested in what you are currently doing. Your system also needs to have “triggers” to let you know when someone in your database is at a stage where they might make the decision to work with you or pass on a referral so you can follow up with a phone call or an in-person meeting.
The Wrong Messaging
Build and Market to Your Database
As a realtor, your database is your best friend. This is your list of past, current, and prospective clients as well as referral sources who can help grow your business. A basic rule of thumb is that an effective database consists of around 1000 names and contact information. Once you’ve built a solid database, you can market to your contacts through regular email newsletters, texts, or personal invitations to events or open houses. The marketing you do to your database should follow the same guidelines as your social media marketing: keep content informational and helpful rather than salesy. This keeps your contacts engaged with your brand and ensures they will continue to pay attention to what you have to say even when they are not actively looking to buy or sell real estate.
Harness the Power of Social Proof
The theory of social proof states that people are likely to conform and copy the actions of those in their peer group or those they view as experts or who are trustworthy. When it comes to real estate marketing, you can take advantage of social proof by featuring testimonials on your site and social media, soliciting online reviews from those you’ve done business with, and by establishing yourself as an authority on the local real estate market with helpful, informative content. When you harness the power of social proof, you essentially have others selling for you and no longer have to hustle or chase leads.
2. Links to Active Social Media Profiles
Having a strong social media presence shows your
potential clients that you are up to date, active in the
industry, and committed to connecting with those you
work with. To make it easy for your website visitors to
connect with you on social media, make sure you add
links to each of the platforms you are on.
2. Links to Active Social Media Profiles
Having a strong social media presence shows your
potential clients that you are up to date, active in the
industry, and committed to connecting with those you
work with. To make it easy for your website visitors to
connect with you on social media, make sure you add
links to each of the platforms you are on.
Database Marketing Strategies
The Right Messaging
3. A Privacy Policy
To make sure your website visitors feel confident when sharing their contact information with you, include a privacy policy that states how data from visitors is handled. Make sure to include that all information is kept confidential and that their email and other information will never be shared with or sold to third parties.
4. Trust Badges
Are you a member of the Better Business Bureau, National Association of Realtors, local Chamber of Commerce, or other established organizations? If so, put their logos on your site and state your membership. This will show that you are active in the community and that you are committed to the values and ideals of the organizations you belong to.
Now that you understand that talking yourself and your accomplishments up on your site is the wrong messaging, let’s take a look at the content that works. Here are some tips on creating messaging that resonates with your target audience:
Content that is helpful. What are the issues your ideal client is dealing with? Are they attempting to buy and sell homes at the same time and need assistance with financing a down payment? Are they struggling to find a home they are interested in due to low inventory? Are they trying to decide if they should relocate or buy a second home now that they are empty-nesters? Identify the pain points in your target market, then address those points through blog posts that you then share on social media and in newsletters that go out to your database.
Content that establishes you as an expert. Those looking for help buying or selling property want to work with the best. To show that you are an expert in your local community and industry, develop content that revolves around neighborhood events, local real estate news, and other industry issues.
Content from experts and past clients. When you use the power of social proof to develop your website content, you let others do the selling for you. Social proof is the phenomenon where others copy the actions of people they see as peers or as trusted individuals. If they see your past clients talking about your high level of customer service in a video testimonial or read reviews from experts in the industry who have worked with you, they will be more likely to choose you as their realtor.
Content that stays ahead of the game. Your ideal client wants to know what’s going on in the industry as soon as possible. They also don’t want to read the same old content on your site that they’ve read on all your competitors’ sites. To address these needs, stay on the cutting edge of the industry and share information your visitors can’t get anywhere else.
Components of an Effective Lead
Generation System
How the Right Messaging Increases Conversions
3. A Privacy Policy
To make sure your website visitors feel confident when sharing their contact information with you, include a privacy policy that states how data from visitors is handled. Make sure to include that all information is kept confidential and that their email and other information will never be shared with or sold to third parties.
4. Trust Badges
Are you a member of the Better Business Bureau, National Association of Realtors, local Chamber of Commerce, or other established organizations? If so, put their logos on your site and state your membership. This will show that you are active in the community and that you are committed to the values and ideals of the organizations you belong to.
5. A Robust Bio
Don’t skimp on the bio portion of your site. The road to trust starts with your clients getting to know who you are and what makes you different from other agents. Include information like where you grew up and went to college, details about your family, your hobbies and interests, and any other details that sets you apart from your competition. Make sure you also have a professional photo (or multiple photos) to help your prospects picture working with you.
5. A Robust Bio
Don’t skimp on the bio portion of your site. The road to trust starts with your clients getting to know who you are and what makes you different from other agents. Include information like where you grew up and went to college, details about your family, your hobbies and interests, and any other details that sets you apart from your competition. Make sure you also have a professional photo (or multiple photos) to help your prospects picture working with you.
6. A Way to Get in Touch with Your Team
Don’t make your prospects search every page of your website to find a phone
number or email address. Good websites have prominently located contact
forms that are easy for visitors to fill out. If you want to take this to the next
level, you can even add a chat feature that allows visitors to reach out and get
an answer immediately from one of your team members.
7. Professional Lead Capture Technique
Your website needs to have a way to get contact information from visitors
who are interested in working with you. However, it can’t be annoying or
compromise the user-friendliness of your website. Consider having a helpful
guide or other piece of free content that visitors can download in exchange
for giving you their contact information.
8. An SSL Certificate
A Secure Sockets Layer, or SSL Certificate, is a digital certificate that encrypts
information that is sent to the server and authenticates the identity of a website.
They are needed to keep any user data secure and prevent hackers from creating
a fake version of your website. An SSL certificate will also increase the trust
of your visitors as they will see that you are committed to keeping their
information secure.
9. Easy Navigation and Quick Loading Time
Your prospective clients want to know that working with you will be hassle-free.
If your website has long loading times or is difficult for visitors to find what they
need, they will get the impression that working with you will also be hard. Put
their mind at ease by ensuring your site loads quickly and is easy to navigate
with simple menus and buttons and landing pages for specific needs.
10. Good Grammar
Nothing ruins trust like a website full of errors. If you have bad grammar, spelling
mistakes, or other errors on your site, visitors will get the impression that you
don’t care about the impression you are making. Have your content created by
a professional writer and make sure you have a few sets of eyes look at each
blog and other pieces of content before they are uploaded to your site.
11. Testimonials
Those who are looking for real estate agents to work with want to know that you have a good track record and have helped others who have similar needs. Reach out to past clients and ask for testimonials that you can share on your website. The best testimonials are short and sincere and feature pictures of the people giving them.
12. Good Branding
Your brand is what visitors will remember most after they leave your website.
Make sure your logo is prominently displayed on each page, that colors are
consistent throughout the site, and that your brand conveys professionalism
and care.
13. Listings and a Good Search Feature
Of course, no real estate site is complete without listings of homes for sale.
Make sure the listings on your site have plenty of details and professional
images. You also need a good search feature so visitors can easily find the
home type, price range, and areas they are interested in when looking for
a home.
Are you a new realtor or have you been in business for years and know your
website is missing some of the key elements listed above to build trust?
Reach out to the professional website designers at Luxury Presence to help
you create a site that will grow your business.
6. A Way to Get in Touch with Your Team
Don’t make your prospects search every page of your website to find a phone
number or email address. Good websites have prominently located contact
forms that are easy for visitors to fill out. If you want to take this to the next
level, you can even add a chat feature that allows visitors to reach out and get
an answer immediately from one of your team members.
7. Professional Lead Capture Technique
Your website needs to have a way to get contact information from visitors
who are interested in working with you. However, it can’t be annoying or
compromise the user-friendliness of your website. Consider having a helpful
guide or other piece of free content that visitors can download in exchange
for giving you their contact information.
8. An SSL Certificate
A Secure Sockets Layer, or SSL Certificate, is a digital certificate that encrypts
information that is sent to the server and authenticates the identity of a website.
They are needed to keep any user data secure and prevent hackers from creating
a fake version of your website. An SSL certificate will also increase the trust
of your visitors as they will see that you are committed to keeping their
information secure.
9. Easy Navigation and Quick Loading Time
Your prospective clients want to know that working with you will be hassle-free.
If your website has long loading times or is difficult for visitors to find what they
need, they will get the impression that working with you will also be hard. Put
their mind at ease by ensuring your site loads quickly and is easy to navigate
with simple menus and buttons and landing pages for specific needs.
10. Good Grammar
Nothing ruins trust like a website full of errors. If you have bad grammar, spelling
mistakes, or other errors on your site, visitors will get the impression that you
don’t care about the impression you are making. Have your content created by
a professional writer and make sure you have a few sets of eyes look at each
blog and other pieces of content before they are uploaded to your site.
11. Testimonials
Those who are looking for real estate agents to work with want to know that you have a good track record and have helped others who have similar needs. Reach out to past clients and ask for testimonials that you can share on your website. The best testimonials are short and sincere and feature pictures of the people giving them.
12. Good Branding
Your brand is what visitors will remember most after they leave your website.
Make sure your logo is prominently displayed on each page, that colors are
consistent throughout the site, and that your brand conveys professionalism
and care.
13. Listings and a Good Search Feature
Of course, no real estate site is complete without listings of homes for sale.
Make sure the listings on your site have plenty of details and professional
images. You also need a good search feature so visitors can easily find the
home type, price range, and areas they are interested in when looking for
a home.
Are you a new realtor or have you been in business for years and know your
website is missing some of the key elements listed above to build trust?
Reach out to the professional website designers at Luxury Presence to help
you create a site that will grow your business.
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