DIY SEO for Every Realtor® – Part 1 – The Preparation
Over 90% of home searches start online.
Web searches and online presence is a critical way for Realtors to earn more business. Recent studies show that 90% of people use online resources when hunting for a new home. Websites produced by Brixwork come with a host of handy SEO tools available for self-serve use by each client in order to improve the odds of our clients picking up new clients from Google searches.
Over 90% of home searches start online.
Web searches and online presence is a critical way for Realtors to earn more business. Recent studies show that 90% of people use online resources when hunting for a new home. Websites produced by Brixwork come with a host of handy SEO tools available for self-serve use by each client in order to improve the odds of our clients picking up new clients from Google searches.
Traffic Numbers That Matter On Real Estate Websites?
Total visitors? Entry page engagement? What numbers should I be looking at? Let’s start with understanding WHY these SEO tips matter in this tutorial video:
Understanding the above numbers requires a Google Analytics account with the tracking tag installed on your website. You need to know the current stats to measure the efficacy of your efforts, and see improvements!
SEO breaks down largely to internal factors, and external factors
Search Engine Optimziation (SEO) can be influenced by both on-site and off-site actions. In this section, we refer to these as Internal Factors and External Factors. Awareness of these factors will be of great help to your DIY SEO efforts.
Internal, AKA On-Site Factors
External Factors, AKA 3rd Party Links
#1 – Know Your Current Status & Traffic
The first step is to know your current numbers. Google Analytics will break down your current traffic (volume, sources, device type, geographic location etc.). To set up your Google Analytics account and install the tracking code into your page please click here. This is a critical step that every website needs! There is a limit to the number of websites we can attach to each email address, so each client needs to set this up on their own, then grant the Brixwork support team access to the email prescribed above.
Tracking Setup Checklist
#2 – Social Media Setup is a Must!
Social media is a great way to generate immediate traffic, and get some backlinks – in other words, an important cornerstone for search engine optimization. Also, social media popularity metrics does play into determining the ranking of websites to a degree.
Social Media Setup Checklist
1. Accounts Must Be Set Up!
2. Linked Up Well & Looking The Way It Should
#3 – Website Major Title & Description Checklist
On major pages on your website, such as the homepage, listings top page, and biography & contact page, it’s important to customize the meta titles & descriptions. This meta title is critical for the page to rank well for specific keywords. The meta description is what will show up on search result pages and generate a higher overall ranking (but has little to no value for actual search ranking). Click here to learn how to set up meta title and description for your pages.
Setup for all major top level and second level pages:
Congratulations! At this point, you have finished initial stages of setting up your website’s SEO. With just a few more steps you will be well on your way to higher search engine rankings. If you need the Brixwork team to do this you can learn about our SEO Packages here.
To continue learning how you can maintain your SEO ranking, visit Part Two of our Do-It-Yourself SEO article here.
