Don’t Make These Mistakes When Building A Website

POSTED BY JD ESAJIAN 

Are you sabotaging your real estate business and website with these mistakes?

Even many real estate agents, investors, and mortgage firms that have invested a lot in various parts of their websites and online marketing can be killing their results with these mistakes. So how do you get from where you are to the results you want from real estate?

Are You Online?

New data from StatisticsBrain shows that a surprisingly small percentage of small businesses actually have websites (53%). Yet, only 4 percent said they’ll never need one. Sometimes there may seem like there is already a lot online, there is still huge room for growth. Some individual real estate agents and investors or private lenders may think they can survive without a website, but there are clear financial advantages to having one. Small businesses with annual sales of $2.5M to $4.5M (the highest earnings in the small business category) were the most likely to have websites. The lower the likelihood of having a website, the lower the earnings of the business. It’s so incredibly easy and affordable to get up areal estate website that there are really no excuses not to have one.

Website Design

Most real estate brands and professionals have realized that they don’t need overly complex websites. However, they do need good looking ones. No one should be doing business with anyone without checking their website out first. Since you can do it from your phone, most people do. Consumers, prospective freelancers and employees, business partners, merchants, and investors and funding sources will all want to check out your website. They’ll sum you up in a matter of seconds. What impression will your real estate website give them?

Search Engine Optimization

If the key to buying real estate is “location, location, location,” the same is true for real estate marketing that works. It’s just like the old days of having a physical store. The better positioned your store is to receive more passing traffic, the more customers you are likely to pull in. Yet, most real estate businesses might as well be invisible online.

Sadly, this is true, even of those that have invested a lot in great content, awesome ads, and that have a really great product. Neglecting some of the finer details can mean that no one ever sees or comes to your online real estate store. They’ll never see how awesome your product and service is. If they don’t know it exists, they can’t buy it.

Some of the factors that may be keeping your real estate website hidden include:

• Not being mobile friendly
• Too slow
• Cheap content, and copied content
• Failure to use keywords in page tags and descriptions
• Not claiming business citations or social profiles

If you are publishing great, relevant, and keyword rich content, but aren’t getting the visibility you think you deserve, look at the other items above.

The Right Keywords

Most real estate website owners are failing miserably in selecting the right keywords. Some are investing in quality content, and a lot of it, but they are getting hung up on the wrong keywords, and metrics. Some are using keywords that really aren’t being used by their customers. Others are choosing high volume keywords that have very low conversion rates. Some are targeting too tight, and aren’t getting the volume they want. If you choose the most trafficked keywords, but have a ton of competition, conversions will be low. You need both volume and targeting.

Great Online Content

Some of the best content to publish isn’t focused on keywords at all. Getting people to your real estate website is one thing, but you’ve also got to keep their attention and trust. You want them to keep coming back, sharing, and linking to your content. You should be a source of inspiration, resources, and practical tips. If your budget is limited, you may want to focus on creating less content, but the greatest content you actually can. Think infographics, statistics, highly valuable action items, etc.

Off-Site Promotion

What you get published off-site can be equally as important as what gets put on your site. So where else can you get content published? Who can you get to reference or link to you? Press releases have made a comeback with Google, and other third party sites always need content. Just make sure that you aren’t feeding the competition too much.

2015’s Hottest Distressed Real Estate Markets

Posted by JD Esajian

Real estate activity is doubling in some major cities, while some types of foreclosures are too. So where are home buyers flocking? Where are the hottest and most distressed real estate markets in the U.S. this year?

Busting the Two Biggest Myths about the U.S. Housing Market

There have been two very counterproductive and irresponsible myths being floated around this year. You’ll be glad there is proof that they aren’t true.

Myth #1: The U.S. Housing Market has Finished its Growth Phase

People love controversy and attention. As a result. the media has published plenty on how growth may slow. Historical data clearly shows that once we get back to par, we’ll still have years of great growth ahead. While some markets may be getting back close to their previous values, there appears to be no signs of slowing. Given that the economy really hasn’t caught up yet, we should see robust growth when it finally does.

Myth #2: Foreclosures Are Over

This is a dangerous myth for two or three reasons. First, it can take the motivation out of additional aid for those that are struggling to keep their homes. Second, it causes some real estate investors that rely on the hype to pause. They become afraid that there aren’t any deals left. This, in turn, can cause many to overpay for properties, or buy wildly due to a scarcity mindset. However, new data from the Mortgage Bankers Association reports that the percentage of Fannie Mae loans that were 60 days or more past due almost doubled in the first quarter of 2015.

Sizzling Summer Buyer’s Season Starts Early in 2015

According to Realtor.com, website traffic is up 50 percent. More individuals are shopping for houses online. According to the firm’s chief economist, house searches and online real estate traffic keep setting new highs. Expectations are that the summer buying season will boost these numbers even further.

Consumers aren’t just looking either. Rising home prices are enabling more homeowners to get out from being underwater and list their homes. However, while home listings are up, Realtor.com reports that the national average marketing time for homes keeps dropping. In May 2015, days on market (DOM) fell 10 percent month-over-month.

America’s Hottest House Markets in 2015

According to the latest rankings, California has half of the country’s hottest housing markets based on online search activity, searches per home listed, and how fast homes are selling.They include:

• San Diego-Carlsbad, CA
• San Francisco, CA
• Vallejo, CA
• Santa Rosa, CA
• Sacramento, CA
• Los Angeles, CA
• Venture, CA
• Stockton, CA
• Santa Cruz, CA
• San Jose, CA

America’s Hardest Hit House Markets in 2015

RealtyTrac reports that banked owned properties doubled in April 2015 over the previous year, and rose almost 25 percent month over month. RealtyTrac shows the 5 states with the highest foreclosure rates as:

1. Florida
2. Nevada
3. Maryland
4. New Jersey
5. Tennessee

Real estate investors and homebuyers are likely to find high foreclosure density in ‘judicial’ foreclosure states where the foreclosure process takes the longest. Think New York, where it can easily take over 900 days to foreclose on a home.

Even though California is now one of the hottest and healthiest housing markets in the nation, the statistics show there are plenty of distressed properties coming online in the Golden State. Properties in foreclosure appear to be split almost equally between pre-foreclosure, going to foreclosure auction, and becoming bank owned REOs. California bank REOs shot up 74 percent in April 2015 alone.

Summary

Looking at the big picture, we see plenty of distressed properties working through the system. Meanwhile, the retail end of the market is experiencing a great uptick in demand, and with sunny expectations for price growth. This creates an incredible sweet spot and window of opportunity for those ready to step in and serve both distressed borrowers and asset holders.

8 Steps to Establish Small Business Credit

Establishing business credit is an important step for any new small business and helps you to: (1) maintain a credit history separate from your personal credit history and experience the business benefits of having good business credit, and (2) demonstrate separation between owners and the business.

Why separate credit histories?

By having a business credit history separate from your personal one, you can minimize the effect negative events on one might have on the other. For example, if you have some financial missteps that impact your personal credit history and score, they shouldn’t impact your small business credit if you have established a clear separation and vice versa.

Why separate business and owners?

Unless you’re operating your small business as a sole proprietorship or general partnership, you need to demonstrate that the business is separate from the owners. One of the key benefits that corporations and limited liability companies (LLCs) provide the owners is protection of their personal assets. Keep this protection in place by consistently showing clear separation between the owners and the business.

Eight steps to establishing your business credit

1. Incorporate your business. Even though you may be incorporated when you’re reading this, it deserves a mention. With sole proprietorships and general partnerships, the business is legally the same as the owner; therefore, there can be no separation of business credit history from personal. Incorporating a business or forming an LLC creates a business that is legally separate from the owner(s).
2. Obtain a federal tax identification number (EIN). The EIN is basically a social security number for a business. It is required on federal tax filings, and is also required to open a business bank account in the name of the corporation or LLC. In order to comply with IRS requirements, many larger businesses also require an EIN from their vendors in order to pay them for services provided.
3. Open a business bank account. Open a business checking account in the legal business name. Once open, be sure to pay the financial transactions of the business from that account. If you use a business credit card (see below) for many financial transactions, be sure to pay the credit card bill from your business checking account.
4. Establish a business phone number. Whether you use a landline, cell phone or you use VoIP, have a separate number for your business and in your business’s legal name. List that number in the directory so it can be found.
5. Open a business credit file. Open a business credit file with all three business reporting agencies: Experian, Equifax and TransUnion.
6. Obtain business credit card(s). Obtain at least one business credit card that is not linked to you or any other owners personally. Pick a business credit card from a company that reports to the credit reporting agencies.
7. Establish a line of credit with vendors or suppliers. Work with at least five vendors and/or suppliers to create credit for your company to use when purchasing with them. Ask them to report your payment history to the credit reporting agencies.
8. Pay your bills on time. Perhaps it should go unsaid, but be sure to pay your bills on time. Like with your personal credit, late payments will negatively impact your business credit.

Benefits of having good business credit

Having good business credit can provide a number of benefits, including:

• Positioning your company for more favorable payment terms with new vendors and suppliers.
• Reducing the number of times you will need to prepay for products or services purchased.
• Allowing you to obtain better interest rates and credit terms from lenders and banks.

Once you have established and built good business credit, be sure to monitor and protect it, just as you do with your personal credit.

Can Your Real Estate Business Survive Without A Mobile App?

Posted by JD Esajian

Can real estate businesses really survive without a mobile app today?

This question has been around for a while, but now that Google favors mobile apps, is it time to take a second look at getting a real estate app?

The Google Factor

By now, every real estate investor, agent, and company knows that it pays to serve Google what it wants – at least if they want to keep getting business online. Google has announced that the majority of online traffic is now coming from mobile devices, and we already know that the majority of home buyers are searching on mobile devices. Now Google says it is giving preference to mobile friendly websites. The bulk of real estate professionals and companies have probably already moved to mobile responsive websites. That puts them ahead of the game. Inc. points out that many consumers are now skipping the web altogether, and are relying on the apps on their smartphones.

Too Busy

Many real estate marketers may have seen their traffic and lead generation slow down recently. Google’s recent changes to preferring mobile friendly sites, and demanding better content could be behind it. It could also simply be a symptom of more consumers being lost in the noise. There is so much of it. If there wasn’t enough going on, on the web, now tablets and smartphones are slammed full of apps. It’s also worth noting many people may have enough mobile apps and games to tie up their attention for another decade.

Real estate agents, investors, and other companies can combat these battles for attention by making sure they keep at the top of mind. This can be via email, social networks, and the press. All of which can be tied back into their mobile friendly websites.

Entrepreneur magazine warns not to be too fast to jump on the app bandwagon. A recent report via the publication reminds us that businesses really need to hone in on their specific customers. For some, this might mean going with a mobile app. For others, it may just be a distraction. Then there are those that may benefit from a combination of both mobile friendly real estate websites and apps.

So before going any further; do you know your customer? Who are your ideal customers? What platforms and devices are they really using? What have you been doing that has been working? Where is the bulk of your current online traffic coming from? Is it from desktop computers, Apple phones, or somewhere else? What is the next step in technology they are likely to take? And how can you be the first on it?

Types of Apps for Real Estate Companies

There are a variety of different types of apps that might work for real estate companies:

• Apps for scanning real estate magazine and sign ads
• Apps for delivering updates on new listings and news
• Local home search and property evaluation tools
• Wealth tracker and investment management apps
• Transaction coordination apps
• Real estate magazine apps

Looking forward Face Time and Amazon May Day style apps that connect consumers to advisors by video chat in real time may be smart. Now that everyone has these types of apps, why shouldn’t they become the preferred method of communication? They sure beat paying for phone calls, and it can be the closest thing to in-person connection, with all the benefits of online. Even though Google Glass has been quiet we shouldn’t be surprised to see more augmented reality apps in the future. It is the only logical next step in the evolution of technology.

For those on a tight budget, and just wanting to stay connected with clients today there are even DIY app builders. Many are simple drag and drop design tools that require no coding skills.

Summary

Ultimately the choice to go with an app, or just a mobile friendly real estate website is all about your niche. You’ve got to know your customer. You’ve got to stay ahead of the curve. And no matter what medium you decide to focus on you’ve got to know how to maintain their attention, while retaining their trust. This also often comes down to your ability to position your product and service right, and to educate the consumer on what they want, and what they should be looking for. Despite the noise, and our busy schedules people will always make time for what they really want to.