In this article, we'll be focusing on features you should look for when creating a new website.
There are many features website developers and hosting companies provide for specific industries as well as for general/informational websites. We will be looking primarily at the features Real Estate agents and brokers will be most interested in.
There are basically two types of websites:
- Custom
- Template
A custom website is developed specifically for an individual or company. The process of developing a custom website includes: Hiring a company for the development, meeting with the developers to design the website look and feel and designing the features of the website. While custom websites typically contain the most features, they also tend to be very expensive. The preliminary design of a custom website is a paramount consideration. If the details of the website are not fully understood and provide for growth, this type of website will incur ongoing development costs that will significantly affect your bottom line and ROI (Return on Investment).
If you opt for a customized website, I recommend you hire a 3rd party consultant that will over see the production and development of the project. Customized websites can be very complicated and require unique expertise to implement well.
A templated website is a nice choice for a beginning website. Templated websites offer new website owners the opportunity to obtain a website at a reasonable cost and provide for growth. There are many companies that offer templates at a reasonable price (Search the web for Real Estate Websites) and many come with hosting plans that have the features required to maintain the website easily and efficiently.
Obviously your choice will be based on your budget.
There are two main areas of features for a website:
- Primary - Features that are a must have
- Secondary - Features that can be added later
Opinions vary on which features are primary and secondary. My discussion is based on my experience and therefore, are my opinions. There are many secondary features available, so we we'll only be discussing what I consider the most useful for a start up website.
Primary Features
Primary features for a new Real Estate oriented website include:
- Ease of use
- Enhanceability
- Listings display/Property Search
- Obtaining Customer Contact Information
Ease of use
How easy will it be to maintain the website yourself. is very important if you will be managing and maintaining your own website. Some purchased websites offer the ability to maintain the website through some form of website management system that only you and your designates have access to. This makes maintaing the website easy and may not require you to become proficient in the languages of the web (html, php, asp etc.) which will allow you to focus on what you do best... Real Estate!
Enhanceability
This is the ability to grow your website as you become more proficient in its use and promotion. Many templated sites come with the ability for growth built in by providing advanced features. Some of these features may incur additional costs. As your knowledge of website management grows, having the ability for your website to grow with you is very important.
Listings display
The ability to place your listings on the website either individually or by adding your own IDX/VOW or MLS seach ability is perhaps the MOST important feature for a Real Estate oriented website. Customers will be coming to your website not only for the information you provide but also for the ability to search for properties in your area of service. This item is NOT negotiable. If a template or company does not offer either the ability to create a solution or the ability to incorporate your local real estate boards IDX/VOW/MLS solution, move on. For more information about IDX/VOW, consult your Local board of Real Estate agents.
Obtaining Customer Contact Information
Your website should contain some way for customers to tell you who they are and what they want and how to contact them. This can be in the use of forms the customer fills out and submits to you or some other method. Without this ability your website will not be able to generate leads and you will not be able track the return on your investment.
Secondary Features
Secondary Features for a new Real Estate oriented website include:
- Contact Management System
- Statistics
Contact Management System
Contact Management is the means by which you track and maintain your customers. I consider this a secondary feature because most computers today come with some form of software that allows you to do this free of charge. Whether it be MS-Excel, MS-Outlook or Mozilla Thunderbird in the beginning you already have the tools necessary which can significantly reduce the start up costs of your website. Part of the expansion of a website may include this feature to fully incorprate a Contact Management System to automate your processes.
Statistics
Website Statistics are very important as both your knowledge of your website and the website itself grows. Knowing the traffic your website generates will enable you to target market your audience more effectively.
There are many additional secondary features that should be discussed such as Local Mapping of Properties, built in referral abilities and others, but we'll leave those for additional articles if requested.
Summary
Obtaining the most important features at a reasonable price will provide you the opportunity to create a new Real Estate oriented website to suit your needs. As your website grows, the ability to add additional features will provide your visitors and potential customers a pleasant web experience.
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