Content is the Key to a Real Estate Web Design
A Web Hosting Article Contributed by Frances Rhea
Content Your Real Estate Visitors Want
The key to a successful Real Estate Web site is in the design. The traditional approach of selling does not work on the Internet. The design for your Web site is not a brochure or Yellow Pages ad. Rather than selling, provide the information buyers need.
It is important to have local information online. Even if all your listings are available online, buyers will still need a realtor.
If your visitors do not find the information at your Web site, they will go elsewhere rather than contact your company for more information.
Plan Real Estate Listing Information in Your Web Design
Property photos are the most important aspect of your online listings. Even the most compelling description does not generate the interest that photographs will.
Obtain an unlimited amount of disk space for your photos. Unlike a magazine or brochure where each photograph takes up valuable space, online you can include as many pictures as you want. The more pictures the better.
Try to include photos of each room and any areas that are particularly interesting. If the property has a nice patio, pool, balcony or a breathtaking view, show it. You can even include graphics of the floor plan.
The more information you provide your visitors, the more likely they will consider your company a valuable ally in their search.
Community Information for Your Real Estate Web Design
Most buyers will have chosen a community before they choose their home. If you provide the best local area information, you will establish your Web site as a community resource that they will return to. Your Real Estate company will also have established itself as the area expert when it comes time for them to choose their real estate agent.
Other Content for a Real Estate Web Design
Whether you contract template or a custom designed Web site, it will be up to you to create the in depth content for your area. Consider what questions people relocating to your area usually have. Consolidate all of the questions you are commonly asked and make the answers available on your Web site.
Have special pages designed with this information and when appropriate, link to other Web sites that have more information. Describe your links in detail so visitors know where they will get more information.
Add to your links regularly and check them occasionally to make sure they are working properly. Web sites change and your links can become outdated.
Some suggestions for information and links are public and private schools (from pre-kindergarten to college), local parks, sports leagues, gyms, golf courses, museums, theaters, operas, symphonies, bars, nightclubs, great restaurants, fast food, and family dining, local government sites, neighborhood demographics, weather, transportation, shopping malls, grocery stores, and trendy shopping districts.
Putting Your Real Estate Design Together
Forget lots of useless graphics except for your logo and the photos for your listings. Along with the content you provide, this will bring visitors back and ultimately sales for your company.
