How to Write Community Pages that both Google and your site visitors will love...
Do your community pages stand out?
Or do they look like every other community page in your marketplace?
Do they bring you plenty of organic traffic from Google and the other search engines?
Or are they just "kind of there," adding a page to your website without bringing you much benefit?
I've seen plenty that were "just there." In fact, I am sometimes amazed by how many agents simply copy whatever Wikipedia has to say about a neighborhood or community and call it good.
If you want to attract visitors you need to stand out!
You've no doubt been reading about how Google favors long pages and blog posts, and is moving those pages up in the rankings. Search engine experts now recommend writing posts of 1,000, 2,000, and even 3,000 words.
If you want the community pages on YOUR website to be the one searchers find on page 1, then you should consider following Google's wishes.
Can you write 1,000 – 2,000 words about a community? Of course – but it does take time.
Last month I agreed to write a series of these long community pages, estimating that each would take me about 3 hours. Boy was I wrong! To do it right took about 3 hours for research and another 3 to sort the data and turn it into something worth reading. I think the results were worth the time. Not only will Google favor those pages, the site visitors will learn something interesting about the communities they're considering. And… they'll see my client as the expert.
How is it done?
Begin with Wikipedia. If you're lucky that will give you basic information along with clues to follow to learn the "really good stuff," such as the history of the community. When there's a reference to some event that took place in the past or regularly takes place in the present, make a note and do more research. Google it!
Find out who the first settlers were – and what brought them to the area. Is that industry still going strong today, or have most people forgotten about it? Has the city's name changed over the years? If so, what was the original name, and why was it changed? If the industry today is different from that of the past, find out why. What drives today's economy? Do most residents work there, or do they commute to another city?
From there, go to a site called "City data." That will give you demographics, cost of living, major employers, etc. Another good research site is www.areavibes.com/.
Follow every lead to learn about shopping, dining out, medical care, recreation, education, etc. Don't be surprised if one link leads you to several others. Follow them. Not every business has its own website, but many do, so go there and learn more.
When you take time to learn more about those places you'll sometimes run across interesting tidbits. For instance, the local steak house may have been there almost since the town was founded, and have a rich history to share.
The types of stores and dining establishments will give your readers clues about the makeup of the community. Is it filled with night spots for dining and dancing? Is there an abundance of family-oriented restaurants? Are there several crafts stores, bike shops, or fitness centers? Perhaps there are an unusual number of garden stores, farmers' markets, or health food stores.
When it comes to education, don't stop with public and private schools for children, colleges, universities, and trade schools. Look for private special-interest schools, such as those that teach wine making or chair caning.
Names can be interesting too. Who was that person whose name is on the town park, the high school, or one of the old buildings down town? Why was it named for him or her?
Learning about recreation can give you and your readers some good insight about the residents in the community. Are most of the activities centered around children? Is there a group of avid hikers, cyclists, or equestrian enthusiasts who maintain a series of trails?
Next go to your MLS and get real estate statistics. Note the average, high, and low prices. See how detached single family homes compare to condos, townhomes, etc. Pay attention to days on the market and the number of months' worth of inventory you have. Note how much prices have increased since last year at this time.
Since I'm a copywriter and not a MLS member, I look at trends on Zillow. (I know, not totally accurate, but the best I have access to.) I also compare the median price to the high and low prices of homes currently for sale. Just because the median is $500,000 doesn't mean that there aren't nice homes for $200,000 or $300,000. It just means that there are areas in town where homes sell for $800,000 or even a million or more.
In some communities neighborhoods and Homeowner Associations have their own websites. Visit those sites to see if there's information you didn't find elsewhere. If you can find a forum where people are asking and answering questions about the community, go read it. Often these comments will tell you more than any "official" website.
Do potential new residents want to know about events such as annual community yard sales, Christmas tree lighting ceremonies, Halloween Haunted Houses, and neighborhood Barbecues?
Sure they do! So learn about them and write about them.
When I'm preparing to write one of these pages I do a lot of cutting and pasting, taking information from a variety of sites and putting it in a word document, which I can then sort into some kind of order that the piece will eventually follow. Naturally, some of the same information will pop up in a variety of places, so part of sorting is deleting the duplicate material.
Once I have things in order I read it, then read it again before I begin to write it in my own words. After I begin to write I often find holes in the information, so stop to do a bit more research.
It takes longer, but if what you wrote makes you ask the question "What about…" then you need to take time to answer it if you can.
You can do the research a little at a time, as you have a half hour or so to spare here and there. You can also do the sorting in small increments. But do try to set aside a couple of hours to do the actual writing all at one sitting. When you do it in 2 or 3 sittings, it can sound choppy.
Do remember to go back the next day to proofread and make edits. Your expanded community pages will cost you six hours or more of your time, but when you're finished you'll have the best pages in your marketplace. I think it's worth the effort.
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