website: Free IDX Search Tools (feedback request)
- 05/27/08 10:07 AM
We're reviewing the usability of a free generic version of our IDX search tools located at www.nwrealty.com/washington prior to official release later this week. Due to the increase of Buyers seeking owner terms we've included easy access to listings that offer "Lease/Purchase" and "Owner Financing" options. These are provided via buttons at the top right and how we should display results is where I would appreciate your input. Right now the results are limited to 200 listings which are currently sorted by list price (high to low). About half of the available listings are in excess of $1 million. Since few Buyers are interested in this high price … (0 comments)
website: Web Traffic still on the rise
- 11/17/07 07:33 AM
Google Analytics tools are tracking some unexpected trends for our Washington Real Estate website as we head into the holiday season. A really useful feature is the ability to compare a window of statistical data with data in the past. Here's what I'm monitoring for the period of 10/17 thru 11/16 compared with the period of 9/16 thru 10/16 ... Number of visits UP 9.66% and page-views UP 3.61% which is the exact opposite of seasonal trends from previous years. Average Time on Site DOWN 8 seconds and Pages per Visit DOWN 5.52% which I attribute to the season. If this doesn't reverse by February I … (2 comments)
website: Google Page Rank Finally Updated - What's your blog's PR?
- 10/30/07 08:20 AM
After six months Google has finally released the update of its "Page Rank (PR)" data. This is but one factor used to determine your website's position in search engine results. Since starting this blog in July of this year I've monitored numerous indicators of direct value to our Washington real estate website. I view this release of PR data more as a report card of how my blog building efforts have progressed. Google PR is rated on a scale of 0 - 10 with 0 indicating very little value and 10 indicating the highest (only the big mega sites get above PR7). Here's … (29 comments)
website: No More Link Exchanges
- 09/22/07 07:38 AM
Spread the word to your peers that link exchanges are all but useless! Many agents have posted linked text, banners or logos to the main page of their website in exchange for a listing link buried several pages deep in directory sites. This arrangement may have been mutually beneficial a year or so ago, but today these agents are getting the extreme short end of the deal. They are giving a tremendous boost by linking from their main page while receiving relatively nothing in exchange. For the most part the days of link exchange schemes are over. Link building efforts should now focus … (20 comments)
website: Google PR of AR real estate profiles and blogs
- 09/21/07 08:45 AM
The Google Page Rank (PR) assigned to your real estate profile and blog is a major indicator of your blog's value and rewards your efforts of posting relevant articles. In addition to AR and other real estate blogs, I also monitor several Search Engine Marketing (SEM) and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) blogs and web gurus everywhere are anxious for the next round of Google PR updates. The last Google PR update was April 30, 2007 ... so this stretch of almost 5 months sets a new record for the time between updates. The previous record was set after four months in February 2006. I suspect … (20 comments)
website: Real Estate Website Trends In The Pacific Northwest
- 09/03/07 09:44 AM
In a previous post I used tools at compete.com to compare traffic rankings of the websites for companies based in Washington State. The websites are broken down into two categories: (1) those serving up NWMLS listing data only and (2) those serving up listing data from multiple states. I haven't found anyone challenging result from compete.com and below are updated graphs for the month of July (made available mid-August). 1. NWMLS ONLY WEBSITES We're the blue line and very please with our increased traffic. Most of the other sites display a gradual increase of traffic, which may seem unusual. We're accustomed to seeing more … (1 comments)
website: Do I need a logo?
- 08/25/07 05:44 AM
This question is often asked when starting up your first website. The answer ... No, if your an agent and Yes, if your a brokerage or team. I firmly believe that agents should brand their photo and use it like a logo. But brokerages and teams need more. Developing a logo can take tons of time and money so this is something you should seriously consider outsourcing in a cost effective fashion. We decided to use the folks at logodesignguru.com for our logo. They offer affordable packages and we had a really good idea of what we wanted before contacting them. … (7 comments)
website: Be Clear about Your Marketing Message
- 08/25/07 05:26 AM
Many agents and brokers have asked me how to get started and where to begin with their online marketing. I always suggest that they maintain consistency with tangible items that they've already invested a great deal of time and money to create. Like their logos, mailers, print ads, CMA presentations, etc. Before you creating out-reach promotional materials, you've got to clearly identify your marketing message ... what value you are selling and why it is important. This makes it much easier to create all marketing materials. Your logo becomes clear, slogans come to mind, strategies develop and your website naturally flows. Your message is the springboard for everything you present to the public. Before worrying about colors, design, or … (2 comments)
website: Google Webmaster Tools (Part 2)
- 08/07/07 05:41 AM
In a previous postI introduced Google's free Webmaster Tools, leaving off with the report of the current top 20 placements for search queries driving traffic to http://www.nwrealty.com/. (Before going further I need to disclose that these were only the top 20 of over 13,000 keywords and most of the top 20 were unintended.) Bare with me ... I'm actually going somewhere with this. Google defines the next report as "Top search query clicks are the top queries that directed traffic to your site (based on the number of clicks to your pages)." In other words: These are the most productive search phrases. Top search query … (2 comments)
website: Anyone benefiting from IRED?
- 08/07/07 05:02 AM
For many years we have considered advertising on IRED.com an investment well worth the $25 annual fee but for the past few months I cannot detect any SEO/back-link benefit. Logs indicate that we do receive a handful of visitors every month, but our motivation is SEO. I've dug around quite a bit and cannot find where Google is recognizing any IRED links. Even links on their spotlight pages aren't being picked up. Their annual fee is minimal, but I can't justify spending another $25. Let me know if you're observing anything different. … (2 comments)
website: Keyword Stuffing
- 07/26/07 06:00 AM
Short and sweet ... I found a comical example of keyword stuffing was posted on Matt Cutts' blog this morning. www.mattcutts.com Matt is a Google employee that shares insites of Googles operations. A good blog to follow for website owners and those interested in SEO. added 8/1 ... Simply put, keyword stuffing is a practice of writing web content for search engines, not humans. If the target is "real estate", a stuffer will use that phrase repeatedly in the various elements of a web document. This will include title, description, keywords, image alt tags, hidden form fields, and the text content of the page … (8 comments)
website: NWMLS IDX Solution
- 07/26/07 05:56 AM
I browsed the "AR IDX" group and didn't see very many posts so I thought I should post to that group and other groups in Washington State. We've provided websites with NWMLS IDX search solutions since 1999. Adhering to three principles has enabled us to share a significant degree of success with our customers ... Employ basic "User Friendly" design with easy to follow navigation. Stubbornly stick to the fundamentals of website design and Google's "webmaster guidelines". Mirror the Brokerages business online to best serve their clientele.We've seen numerous "flavor of the month" technologies come and go. And I've witnessed several competitors flee from the … (4 comments)
website: PPC Bargain Shopping
- 07/24/07 04:42 AM
If a web site is part of your personal promotion, sooner or later you should plan a monthly budget for Google "Pay-Per-Click" advertising (aka Google Adwords or PPC). When that day comes you will face decisions of how much you're willing to spend to acquire one visitor. In Seattle Metro areas like Bellevue, Tacoma, Everett, Gig Harbor, etc., the price commonly exceeds $3.50 per click. Last night through this morning was one of those rare magic periods when the allocated budgets of high bidding real estate advertisers (nationwide) was depleted and the cost dropped to about $2 per click. This only happens a few times each month and only … (4 comments)
website: Web Design Fundamentals
- 07/23/07 05:51 PM
Here are some simple, but essential web design fundamentals ... The internet continues to evolve causing website development, design and marketing to becomes more sophisticated and complex. New technologies allow us to create impressive web sites. Keep It Simple! The purpose of all websites is relatively the same. Provide visitors with a fast, efficient, easy to understand and enjoyable online experience. Purpose. Each web page must have one! And it must be clearly stated. Just as a consistent look and feel is vital across your site, each page has a specific function. That function should be clearly understood by all. Focus. Minimize use of flashing and moving objects that distract and make your services harder to identify. Consider the broadband challenged. There are … (4 comments)
website: Care and Feeding of Your Domain Name
- 07/23/07 05:18 PM
Most site owners don't realize the importance of maintaining accurate, up to date domain records. The most critical item being the Registrant's (the owner) and the Administrative Contact's email address. Several times each year we'll have a new customer that changed their ISP and didn't think to update their domain records. For instance ... their records indicate an old aol.com email address and they're currently using a comcast.net address. This is a real problem because all domain changes (like moving your site to a new company's servers) require email authentication. What routinely takes just a few minutes now takes several days of doing things the old … (5 comments)
Keeping the fingers of Buyers, Sellers and REALTORS on the Pulse of Puget Sound Real Estate and their eyes on the little details of the big picture in Washington.
We're reviewing the usability of a free generic version of our IDX search tools located at www.nwrealty.com/washington prior to official release later this week. Due to the increase of Buyers seeking owner terms we've included easy access to listings that offer "Lease/Purchase" and "Owner Financing" options. These are provided via buttons at the top right and how we should display results is where I would appreciate your input.;)
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