Rebranding: The importance of redesigning a brand

by Adrián Pablo Conti | Branding | 6 comments

Why redesign a brand?

In this post I want to tell you about the differences between Rebranding and Restyling, and the importance they have when redesigning a brand, with examples that have arisen through specific personal experiences with some of my clients.

I will also show you how, through the redesign, other very important objectives were achieved that had not been taken into account until now.

These are cases of clients who already had a brand in use and had not considered the possibility of changing it, as they did not consider it necessary or, alternatively, they were not aware of the growth possibilities that a new image could give them.

Read my post The most complete guide to understanding logos for more information

>>> I WANT MY LOGO <<<

Rebranding vs. Restyling

The terms Rebranding and Restyling are often used synonymously, but in reality they are quite different concepts, and although the result of both is obtaining a new identity design, we should not confuse them.

Both concepts respond to the need to update the image of a brand and ensure its permanence and recognition over time and in different circumstances and applications.

Restyling, a question of visual style

A brand restyling is an update of the aesthetics, a facelift, but without altering its fundamental essence, preserving its perfectly recognizable key elements.

It is an efficient option when a brand wants to stay relevant in a changing market.

Over the course of a company, product or organization's life, its visual identity, like many other elements, may need to be transformed, adapting to current times and different brand application environments (graphic media, digital media, social networks, videos, etc.)

These design transformations are usually gradual, even very imperceptible, and always maintain the original concept of the brand.

Below we can see a clear example of restyling in the evolution of the Burger King logo, where after experimenting with various styles.

It is a curious case since they have decided to return to their classic logo, but adding modern elements.

This change seeks to reinforce its identity as an authentic brand focused on customer experience (UX).

Rebranding, rethinking new communication strategies

Rebranding (redesign) is the intensive modification of the visual identity of a brand to adapt it to a new desired positioning.

Unlike restyling, it involves a complete review of the brand's communication strategy and identity, which may include a complete change of the logo, institutional colors and value proposition, reflecting a strategic change in the company's direction.

Many times a brand feels “threatened” by new competitors or motivated to change by current technologies, and this leads to the decision to make more drastic changes, even changing the name and the entire identity design.

A recent case of extreme rebranding is that of the social network X, formerly called Twitter, in which absolutely all the identity elements have been changed (name, colors, fonts, etc.)

The following example shows the case of the comprehensive redesign of the logo of the TV channel Animal Planet.

The brand explains that the goal of this change is to “interact with mass audiences across all platforms.

“We can reach all generations through our content and storytelling; we are here to entertain and delight by bringing people closer to animals and nature,” they say.

Rebranding always starts from specific objectives or needs so that the brand can be aligned with the company's strategy and verbal identity, and therefore, involves deeper changes in its identity.

It is a process that goes beyond changing the visual style or modernizing the aesthetics of the logo and addresses essential aspects such as the company's mission, vision and values, strengthening the links between the brand and its target market.

The little apple is always at the forefront

A very illustrative example is that of Apple, which went from being a "nerd brand" of garage computers to becoming a worldwide reference for design and technology.

This led to a brutal rebranding in 1977, which went from having an emblematic illustration depicting Sir Isaac Newton under the apple tree to identifying the brand with the now world-renowned bitten apple.

From then on, the following updates consisted only of restylings that were adapted to the brand's communication needs.

As a curious fact, Rob Yanoff, the designer of the Apple logo, is said to have revealed that the creation of the famous logo was thanks to some apples he bought to paint in a portrait.

In an attempt to simplify the company's symbol, Yanoff wanted to include the image of the "bitten apple" since the word "bite" in English is bite, which is similar to a computing term (which is byte, like gigabyte, megabyte, etc.), taking advantage of the wordplay with phonetic pronunciation.

Knowing how to advise the client

In my professional experience I have often found that some of my clients were clinging to an image that has identified them for years.

They were not very willing to innovate and make changes, despite my suggestions and the needs that the market itself was asking of them.

Regardless of whether the brand is good or bad in terms of design, I consider that in these cases, a restyling is the most appropriate, since a rebranding would be a very drastic option and difficult to assimilate for the client and the people who work in their environment.

Let us not forget that behind a brand there are always “people” who feel, have emotions, stories, memories, traditions, etc.

Many times these are family businesses or enterprises, where the original brand was created by someone who is no longer with us, or who deserves the respect of continuing their legacy by their successors.

For this reason, in these cases, I suggest to my clients a restyling of the existing brand, preserving the original concepts in semantic graphic elements and colors, but adapting them to more current forms that allow their application in various graphic and digital media.

Accepting the need to innovate

The example illustrated below is the case of a client who has a family business manufacturing fabrics for footwear, leather goods and decoration, with more than 60 years of presence in the Argentine market.

I was called upon only to update a website that had been “forgotten” for some time, but there was not much to salvage in its content, and that is why I proposed redesigning it entirely.

My client immediately accepted my proposal and also my suggestion to update their brand.

I suggested that by doing so, we would have many more corporate elements to develop the design of the new website, applying logos, colors and styles that respond to the brand and identity of the company, and being able to unify communication criteria with all the elements that emerge from the logo (social networks, catalogs, advertisements, flyers, publications, etc.)

Keeping company traditions

The company name corresponds to his family name, and therefore I tried to respect all the traditional and emotional aspect that it represents for my client, but persuading him of the need for an adaptation of the brand that would allow him to have a stronger presence in print, digital and social media.

That is why I proposed to preserve the concept of the initial “t” and the loom, which represents the company’s activity, and to standardize the use of colors and fonts, obtaining a more modern, appropriate and versatile brand.

This brand restyling allowed the company to take a new level of visual communication, through product catalogues, websites, social networks and even stands at exhibitions in which it participates.

You can visit the website by clicking HERE.

Changing habits

It is often a very hard job, but effective and satisfying when achieved, to convince the client that, based on having a new good institutional image, they must change their communication patterns with their own clients or consumers, always choosing quality options with professional criteria, and leaving behind amateur, improvised and illogical issues.

I always suggest that once you have your new image, you accept it and incorporate it into your new life, showing it off with pride and improving day by day.

I also recommend that if you take photos, they should be quality and well edited, that you carefully choose the content of your social networks, that you show your image with coherence and criteria, always in the same way, with the same colors and fonts.

Esos son los aspectos que forjan y favorecen la forma de comunicar una marca, y que sus consumidores terminan adaptándose y eligiendo ese estilo de comunicación, en que se sienten cómodos y a gusto.

Elements such as well-designed commercial stationery, advertising banners, graphic pieces, flyers, printed or digital, social networks, well-written texts and, above all, a professional look, are essential allies to promote the growth and positioning of a brand and its products.

It is always about improving the experience of our users, so that we make their daily lives easier and more enjoyable and therefore that they "choose us", since that is what the success and permanence of a brand is all about.

Rebranding: A change of strategy in communication management

We've already talked about restyling and the benefits it can bring to a brand, but now we're going to address the case of another client in which there was no solid starting point on which to build a good identity; there really was nothing left to save.

This is the Online Argentine Journal of Anatomy, an international scientific publication of the Argentine Association of Anatomy.

In this journal, physicians, residents and medical students from Argentina and around the world publish their work previously presented at the Argentine Congress of Anatomy, which takes place annually in various cities throughout the country.

Being a designer and webmaster of the Argentine Association of Anatomy since 2015, where I had already completely redesigned its website; in 2017 I was called to take charge of the editorial design of the Journal, which had been published quarterly since 2010, in its print and online versions.

The journal was seriously behind in its publications and had been in arrears for its editions since 2015, as the person in charge of doing so could no longer take care of them.

This person was not a graphic designer but a doctor who worked with very good intentions, but without adequate knowledge or tools, using “what he had at hand” for free and “pre-assembled”.

However, the results were not satisfactory, since the criteria and experience for designing are not included in these tools that are freely accessible to the general public.

Below is an example of the journal's editorial design.

Where to start?

The editorial design of the magazine I inherited was very poor and rudimentary, without form or identity, developed with inappropriate tools (PowerPoint) and the results were very poor.

PowerPoint is a very versatile tool for creating brief, high-quality graphic presentations in a very simple and intuitive way, but not for creating 100-page graphic editions.

The structural design grid was barely hinted at and was not respected in all publications, which took away identity, coherence, harmony and fluidity from the reading of their contents.

Furthermore, their website was designed by the same person, continuing with the problems that arose from the magazine's design.

A totally dysfunctional website, without organization, aesthetics, or any criteria, resulting in a poor user experience and totally non-existent web positioning (SEO), since the content was not optimized to be crawled by search engines like Google.

The website was developed with a very basic and poorly used amateur template, without any knowledge of web design or layout and structuring of content.

The overall design had a black background with small white font that made it difficult to read, and it was not responsive, so it did not adapt to mobile devices.

In addition, it was hosted on a cheap hosting server, with its consequent advertising banners, slow browsing and downloading, and exposure to viruses and hackers.

Reborn… a new opportunity

The journal's directors suggested that I continue with the previous model, but I proposed making a comprehensive change starting with the design of a new identity.

This would allow the magazine to reach much higher and more accurate international standards, with a professional and global perspective, and would favour its publication in various graphic and digital media, with graphic and conceptual unity and coherence.

Indeed, a Rebranding was the best option to make the journal more relevant and to recover a global position not only for the editorial product, but also for the people who make it and the institution that supports it.

The journal is indexed in various specialized international portals, where several similar publications from other countries coexist, and therefore must stand out and be at the same level as its peers.

Redesigning the identity

The previous logo had no identity criteria at all and was not even always displayed in the same way in the various publications. It was just an inappropriate typeface chosen at random.

My proposal was to start with a complete redesign of the brand, providing a solid identity with allegorical concepts to the activity it represents: Anatomy.

The brand concept is developed through a blood-red continent, strategically curved like a page, which cuts out a letter “a” (from Argentine anatomy) slightly rotated so that a drop of blood forms in the eye of the letter, and which at the same time represents the union of muscles and cartilage in the human body.

Regardless of the semantic concept that color gives it, the brand works perfectly in its monochromatic version, in positive and negative, to be used in applications that require it.

New editorial design

This rebranding is accompanied by a comprehensive editorial redesign of the magazine.

A new, clear and functional layout, where I have set out publication criteria that authors must respect in order to present their manuscripts in the journal.

My design idea was innovative and widely accepted by the board, who decided to believe in my proposal and gave me complete freedom to create a new product, and finally join the Editorial Committee as General Editor, Designer and Webmaster.

Previous covers consisted of a random collage of images taken from published works, usually dissections of cadavers.

A background color is used corresponding to each year of publication, the magazine logo is shown in different places and no identity or permanence is obtained in the memory of readers.

A new look at the concept of identity

My concept for the covers of the publications is to show how different artists from all eras and areas of art (painting, sculpture, design, photography, etc.) interpret the human body.

The result is a graphically different and innovative proposal compared to similar publications, which are illustrated with dissections and viscera.

With a minimalist, clear and uncluttered design, a place of importance is assigned to the journal's logo, strengthening its identity.

A band of uniform color represents the year of publication, highlighting the volume number and including an index of the titles published in each issue, so as to allow easy access for searching content by volume.

Major surgery

The following image clearly shows the differences in design criteria for the journal's covers, which invite the reader to a better reading experience and understanding of the works that are published.

A good layout and design of the content also favours the dissemination of its authors and allows the journal to truly be an organ of scientific dissemination and appreciation of the work of those who participate in each edition of the same.

Revista Argentina de Anatomia Online old new

Each published work has the same header design, highlighting thematic sections, authors, institutions of affiliation, country of origin, submission and acceptance dates, and highlighted abstract in Spanish and English.

Image and table sizes, reference numbering in graphics and texts, image captions, bibliographies, etc. have been standardized.

New website

For the design of the new website, I continue with the same criteria as the magazine, optimizing its identity and improving visibility and access in all the specific search engines in which it is indexed.

Publications are available for free download in PDF format, both in their full version and as individual articles.

To reinforce its international character, the website is bilingual (Spanish/English) and its contents are optimized following guidelines that favor web positioning in content search engines (SEO).

Downloadable files have optimized metadata so that they can be tracked by author names, titles or keywords, favoring the dissemination of authors and their works.

The new brand design also allows the website to optimise its online presence through the use of avatars that improve access to the site from different browsers.

You can visit the magazine's website by clicking HERE.

Revista Argentina de Anatomia Online website

A new way of being

In the example above we can see how, through conscious and strategic rebranding, developed with professional criteria, a new life has been given to a publication that almost did not exist.

They had the best product displayed in the worst way.

These are the characteristics necessary to guarantee the failure and invisibility of a publication as such, and of any other commercial, institutional, service or personal undertaking.

There is no point in having excellent content and good intentions if you lack design, organization, aesthetics, good taste, and above all, functionality that guarantees the satisfaction of your consumers and your positioning on the Internet.

Establishing a starting point

Brand redesign is always the starting point to obtain a graphic interface that provides identity and coherence to any type of product we want to develop, be it a magazine, a website, an app, social networks, videos, printed graphics, etc.

From it, we can find the color styles, fonts, design grids and all the characteristics that give "personality" to any product that aims to be recognized and accepted on a massive scale.

Just as members of a family are recognized by their genetic traits, physical appearance, their belonging to a name, their essence and their personality, the same happens with brands and the products and services they represent.

That is why they must be treated with respect, commitment and professionalism, since our brand speaks of «ourselves» as individuals and as members and representatives of the society in which we live.

Final conclusion

I hope you enjoyed this article and that it was useful to you.

My objective in this work is for you to know the differences between Rebranding and Restyling, and the benefits of redesigning a brand and the new possibilities that open up for the future of the client's commercial activity and its effective permanence in the market.

If you wanted to have your own brand and you consider that I am a suitable professional, do not hesitate to contact me.

In the Related Posts section below, you will find some articles with specific topics that complement the one you just read.

I invite you to read them, share them and leave your comments if you wish.
Thanks.

>>> I WANT MY LOGO <<<

Why have a real estate website

by Adrián Pablo Conti | Real Estate | 6 comments

Why have a real estate website

You've probably wondered why you should have a real estate website if things have gone quite well with your business up until now, or perhaps you don't have enough information to encourage you to start a new virtual business.

In this post I will show you the advantages of integrating your real estate business into the world of e-commerce and what requirements you need to get it up and running.

You will learn about many of the features and benefits that you can access and also perform a TEST DRIVE to evaluate the user experience with the website.

>>> I WANT MY REAL ESTATE WEBSITE <<<

Why is it essential for a real estate agency to have its own website?

According to recent statistics from the real estate market, almost 80% of people interested in real estate transactions look for information online about properties of interest “before” going in person to a real estate agency.

That is why more and more clients come to a real estate agency through the Internet and not in person to the point that, in fact, you no longer need to have a commercial office to develop your real estate business.

In-person vs. Virtual

Clients no longer look at the local real estate agency, or the one recommended by a friend, or the one they saw on several public roads, or in the classified ads in newspapers.

There are very few cases of people who plan to rent or buy a property who approach a real estate agency directly to ask about different options, and it is very likely that these options will not be entirely satisfactory for their search, and their consequent loss of time.

Internetizing

There are more and more clients looking for properties every day and there are also many real estate agencies competing in the market, and that is why it becomes more important for your business to have a solid and strategic online presence.

Having your own website for your real estate agency is a key point in this process and will undoubtedly be your best letter of introduction for your business, as well as helping you compete in the real estate market itself.

On the other hand, if your real estate agency does not have a website, you will miss out on the opportunity to attract potential clients and correctly display all of your property offers.

The most important thing about having a real estate website is that you do not need to have a “physical” commercial office for customer service, and the resulting costs of rent, services, employees and other expenses.
Currently, there are many real estate agencies that operate only virtually and attract their clients through their websites.

Just as an example…

First of all, I want to show you a demo of the web design for real estate that I have created so that you can experience interacting as a client and appreciate the design and communication options that I propose for your new real estate website.

SEE DEMO

The agencies shown in this demo are fictitious, as well as their address data, telephones and their agents, and that is why you will find some incomprehensible simulated texts, but they fulfill the function they are intended to demonstrate.
On the contrary, the properties published in the examples are 100% real properties in my country Argentina, with their addresses, locations, images and characteristics, and were taken from other real estate portals only as an example.
The images were edited and improved, and their texts were written to optimize and standardize the set of publications on the website.
The floor plans and virtual tours do not correspond to the properties shown and are for illustrative purposes only.

Requirements for having a real estate website

The requirements for having a real estate website are not very different from any traditional website, and are as follows:

Company name
Logotype
Web domain
Graphic designer and Webmaster
Webhosting service provider

You can read my post Requirements to have a website for more information.

To start, you must have the name of the company with its respective logo.

Then you must acquire a web domain, which is your address on the Internet (for example www.yourrealestate.com) and hire a good graphic designer who also acts as webmaster.

Finally, you must hire a web hosting service to host the site so it can be online. This is usually an outsourced service.

Generally, many of these elements will be provided to you by the designer and webmaster you have hired, who will take care of all these aspects that you are probably unaware of, and will make sure you don't have to worry about the matter.

The importance of entering the online real estate business

While you waste your time thinking about whether or not it is worth investing money in a website for your real estate agency, your competition has been gaining new clients for years with its online agency, and positioning its business in an increasingly competitive market that grows every day.

I invite you to ask yourself some questions that may resonate with you in some way and invite you to reflect…

Have you noticed the number of real estate agencies there are in each neighborhood of your city and the number of properties on offer?
Is your real estate agency up to the task?
Do people recognize and identify your business easily?
Can you make a full living off the income generated by your real estate business?
How many properties do you have to offer?
How many advertisements does your real estate agency have on public roads?
Does your business have a good corporate image in terms of logo and communication strategies?
Does your office have a good graphic and functional identity through marquees, banners and screens?
Does your business have a Google Business profile?
Does your real estate agency have updated social media?
Do you get positive reviews from customers?
Do your clients recommend you to other clients?
Do you respond quickly to queries?
Do you have qualified staff working in your agency?
How many monthly inquiries does your real estate agency receive?
Do you publish your properties on other real estate web portals?
How much money do you monthly invert on your publications ?
Are you satisfied with the current performance of your real estate business?

If any of the answers to these questions is NO, you are definitely doing things wrong.

Reinvent yourself

But I want to give you good news and assure you that many of these aspects can be improved and consolidated through a professional website for your real estate business.

A website is not just about showing properties for sale or rent and waiting for someone to call you.

A well-designed website with appropriate communication criteria transmits the values of the real estate agency, generating a solid image of the company, demonstrating professionalism, seriousness and trust.

It also enables dynamic communication with clients, which attracts new opportunities and the possibility of closing effective deals.

Selling in the digital universe

A website gives clients a modern view of your real estate business, reinforces your institutional image, your brand, your good name, your track record, responsibility and permanence in the market.

Having a professional real estate website inserts you into the universe of digital business, bringing your agency closer to those potential clients who usually only search online.

With your website you will connect with the new generation of younger customers who were educated and grew up with the Internet and who cannot imagine their lives without these technologies.

They inform themselves, buy, compare, share and study from the comfort of their cell phones.

Adapting your office, your experience and your business vision to these new types of users will allow you to reach a market of clients between 20 and 35 years old, who demand more comfort, greater speed and easier ways to communicate with a real estate agent.

They prefer to browse a website, get information and have previous contacts through digital media such as social networks, email or WhatsApp, and not wander around visiting several real estate agencies to get information and decide on their new home.

Therefore, they require a better virtual customer service and your business should be up to their needs.

Expand your offer availability

Your website allows you to diversify your real estate agency's communication channels, and will allow you to serve a greater number of clients in less time, through emails and live chats directly from your publications.

All of this will reduce calls and visits that only waste your time with undecided people who are not looking for what you have to offer, or who only ask for the sake of asking.

It will help you attract and secure more qualified visits from clients who know what they are looking for, since they themselves have filtered and discarded other options that have seemed irrelevant to them.

Advantages of having a website for your real estate business

Below, I show you some advantages and features that a website for your real estate agency offers you:

Your business is always open 365/24.
Your website is 100% self-manageable.
Very easy to use and manage.
Low maintenance cost
You don't pay commissions for publishing.
Allows you to incorporate multiple Agents.
Property classification by Categories and Featured Properties.
Friendly professional design thought with usability by the client in mind.
Allows you to display attractive photo and video galleries.
Incorporate a virtual tour that allows your clients to take a 360º tour of the properties.
Geolocation of properties using maps
Download floor plans and documents
Contact agents and schedule visits.
Share, compare, bookmark and print property pages.
Add QR codes to your advertisements
User registration, CRM management and IDX integration.

I recommend you read my article Benefits of having a website for your real estate agency where I show you and explain some of the most important advantages and benefits of having your own website.

Who seeks, finds!

As we mentioned above, just like any other type of search for purchasing products or services, the vast majority of potential customers will search “first” on the Internet.

This is to get a general idea of the current market, listing values and to know the characteristics of the properties both in supply and in demand.

For example, if a family is interested in renting a 3-room apartment, they will search on Google: “rent 3-room apartment in Palermo”, and from the results that Google shows them, they will begin to select the best options, and among those results may be your publications offered on your website.

New ways for searching and finding

The client will compare prices, look at photos and videos, analyze the neighborhood, transportation, nearby places, and evaluate all the alternatives, first making a mental image of the property and deciding if he or she sees himself or herself living there…

Then you will make a list of different properties and only then will you begin your direct contact with the real estate agents, first online to clarify your concerns, and then when you are almost decided you will arrange with the responsible agent to visit the property.

Why does this happen? Basically because the Internet is the main source of initial information that your potential client has access to for free from home or from their cell phone.

I want it right now!

We live in times where “immediacy” prevails in accessing information.

It is no longer necessary to see a real estate offer sign on the street that interests you, take note, go home and call the real estate agency during business hours... otherwise, you've already lost it!

A smart proposal from the real estate agency would be to add a QR code to the sign so that the client can scan it and directly access “the website of that property”, without any distractions and being able to contact the real estate agent immediately.

Otherwise, if the property in question does not satisfy you, you will have access to other offers from the same real estate agency, and not from others!

On the other hand, if the person does not find the website of the property they are looking for, they are a lost client!

Prioritize “usability” by the client

What is web usability?

Web usability refers to the degree of ease of accessing and navigating a web page in an intuitive, simple and fast way.

To do this, it is necessary to take into account the organization and classification of content, the optimization of images for quick downloading, the writing of texts in a simple manner and a conscious and professional design always oriented towards the well-being of the client.

This is also called “user experience” and should always be satisfactory to gain new customers.

All this is reflected in a modern design with attention to detail, prioritizing usability and ease of access to the publications' points of interest.

If a client has to click a lot to get to a property of interest… something is wrong!

How to improve the usability of your website?

You have to think about publishing content in a relevant way, so that the client has no doubts about what you are offering, paying attention to the writing of the texts and the presentation of the images and videos.

All of this also benefits SEO (content optimization for Internet search engines like Google), since this is where the “key phrases and words” that you should include in your texts come from.

If your website is not functional for the user, they will look for another real estate website that does meet all these requirements, and you will lose a potential client.

Every unnecessary click you ask the user to make to contact your real estate agency will decrease the chances of them contacting you.

Anyone should be able to find the property they are looking for on your website, without having much knowledge of the Internet.

Always choose a professional design

Your real estate agency deserves a website with a professional design that enhances and reinforces its institutional identity.

This will allow you to enter the world of digital business with a solid, aesthetic and functional platform that will allow you to optimize time and costs, while positioning your company in an increasingly competitive real estate market.

We talk about identity and we cannot ignore the care of the corporate image of your company, your brand.

That image that you take such care to display in your business premises, on bus shelters, public street signs and on your printed stationery must be consistent and of high quality on the web.

Your new website should carefully align with your identity by using your brand colors throughout the website and distinguishing your posts from those of your competitors.

No more of the same

You have probably noticed that many real estate websites are very similar in appearance, and this is because they are developed with very basic design templates, and have not been customized seeking integration with the company's image, thus obtaining "cloned" websites without their own identity.

In many cases, this is because the web designer does not offer personalized customer service, or the client rejects it in favor of a lower budget.

I propose a customized web development for your real estate agency where good taste prevails in the design, care for the identity and above all functionality and usability, both for your company and for your potential clients.

It is essential that the ads on your website fulfill the purpose of capturing the customer's attention and completing the real estate transaction.

Final conclusion

I hope you enjoyed this article and that it was useful to you.

The possibilities that having your own real estate website offers you, there are definitely no reasons not to try to start your own business.

If you want to start your real estate business online and you think I am a suitable professional, do not hesitate to contact me and I will be happy to advise you.

In the Related Posts section below, you will find some articles with specific topics that complement the one you just read.

I invite you to read them, share them and leave your comments if you wish.
Thanks.

>>> I WANT MY REAL ESTATE WEBSITE <<<

Benefits of having a website for your real estate agency

by Adrián Pablo Conti | Real Estate | 8 comments

Do you want to launch your business in the online real estate market?

In this post I want to tell you about the features, possibilities and advantages of having a professional website for your real estate business, which you can take advantage of to successfully launch your agency into the online real estate market.

You will learn about many of the features and benefits that you can access and also perform a TEST DRIVE to evaluate the user experience with the website.

>>> I WANT MY REAL ESTATE WEBSITE <<<

Benefits of having a website for your real estate agency

Below I list some of the benefits that web design for your real estate agency that I offer you, both for the Owner (administrator) and for the User (client) who visits your website.

For the owner (Administrator) of the website:

Your business always open 24/365
100% self-manageable
No commissions for publishing
Agency Management
Managing multiple agents
Creating, publishing, managing and editing property listings
Property Categories
Property description and SEO optimization
Featured Properties
Special labels
User registration and CRM management
Integration with IDX
QR Code Implementation

For the user (Client)

Friendly design + Usability
Properties advanced search
Photo and video gallery
Essential information
Description, Details and Features
Geolocation
Virtual Tour
Download floor plans and documents
Contact the real estate agent
Request a visit to the property
User Functions
- Preview
- Add to Favorites
- Add to compare
- Let Share
- Print and download

I recommend you also read my post Why have a real estate website for more information.

>>> I WANT MY REAL ESTATE WEBSITE <<<

Your business always open 24/365

Your online business is always open 24/365.

Now you can receive consultations every day, even outside of business hours.

If you don't have a real estate website, the potential client should take note of your post and "remember" to contact you only from Monday to Friday and during your business hours, and wait for your prompt response... Too many steps, right?

While your competitors who already have a website can receive instant messages directly from the post, respond immediately and attract a new customer.

Don't you think it's absurd to lose the opportunity to complete a real estate transaction because you don't have a website?

100% self-manageable

Your new website is fully self-manageable from a user-friendly and intuitive control panel that will allow you to easily manage all your publications.

You will be able to create, modify, highlight, pause and delete listings from a single place and in just a few minutes, as well as obtain data from your users, manage CRMs and customer follow-ups, administer users, agents and agencies, include IDX systems, etc.

No commissions for publishing

You own your own website and domain on the internet and therefore you do not have to pay for your listings. This also gives you complete privacy in the transactions of your properties and no one will know details of your commercial activity.

On the other hand, your publications can be integrated or linked to various massive real estate portals (such as Zonaprop or similar) that will surely have their established rates and commissions and will expand your possibilities of attracting new clients.

Agency Management

Your website can function as a real estate agency portal where you can include various real estate companies on your website, and charge them commissions for publishing on your portal if you so wish.

Multiple agencies can be included and each of them will have their own agents and their own publications that will be identified in your listings by their respective logos.

Managing multiple agents

As the owner (Administrator) of your website, you can add as many agents as you need.

Each of them will be able to access their own space using a username and password with their respective user level where their publishing capabilities and hierarchical roles are established.

This way, you will be able to create and manage your publications, which will be identified with your name and contact information.

The general site administrator (owner) will be able to access, view and edit all of their agents' posts.

Each agent profile will be able to add a resume with their position in the agency, their experience and skills, as well as their contact information and social profiles, and all this information will be accessible to the public from each of their publications on the website.

Creating, publishing, managing and editing property listings

Creating and publishing property listings is very simple and is done from the control panel, where all the property data is completed by default, including its featured image (Main), complementary images and videos for the galleries, floor plans and documents, address, surface areas, number of rooms, bathrooms, garages, descriptions and general characteristics.

All these aspects are customizable by the owner according to his/her convenience.

This data will automatically be displayed in a uniform and organized manner in the publications.
The lists can be easily edited or deleted once they are published.

Property Categories

Properties can be organized into owner-created categories based on a variety of criteria:

Type of offer: Sale, Rental, Temporary rental, etc.

Type of use: Residential, commercial, lot, land, office, etc.

Property type: House, PH, apartment, villa, cabin, duplex, triplex, loft, etc.

Geographic areas: Country, province, city, town, village, neighborhood, etc.

All these elements improve the use of the advanced property search engine and its location on geolocation maps.

Property description and SEO optimization

Your website's powerful graphical interface allows you to create great presentations for your properties, applying formatted text, headlines, colors and images, using a powerful integrated word processor.

It is very important that you spend some time writing your ads, always oriented towards what the client is looking for and try to “include phrases and keywords” that the potential client would use and that describe your property correctly. For example: “3-room house with garage in Palermo”

Not only does this describe your property, but it also helps with SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and makes your posts accessible even from outside your website.

Don't waste this great tool and clearly and concisely describe the main features of the property in the first paragraph, as this will be the text displayed in the listing preview in the general listing.
For example: If a client is looking for properties with a garage, you should clarify this in the first paragraph to avoid wasting time on useless searches.

Featured Properties

Properties can be highlighted using special tags, and these will be displayed within a special section in a privileged place on the website, in addition to the listing in the general grid of each category.
You can charge the client an additional fee to highlight their publications.

Special labels

Special labels are displayed printed on the main photo of the listing and also on the individual page of each property.

They can be used to indicate current statuses of the property, just as you would on a street sign: For Sale, For Rent, Repriced, New Price, Reduced Price, Reserved, Sold, etc.

They are used not only as relevant information about the property but also as elements of real estate marketing.

User registration and CRM management

Users can register on your website to make enquiries, compare properties, add to favourites, etc.

This allows you, as the website owner, to access certain information about potential customers in order to carry out follow-ups, create CRM (Customer Relationship Management) programs, send mailings, etc.

Integration with IDX

Your website can be easily integrated into IDX systems that allow you to automatically display properties taken from certain databases on your website.

These properties are integrated and coexist with your private publications, improving your chances of completing real estate transactions.

QR Code Implementation

Each property is developed on a separate website, and therefore we get a particular URL for each offer.

A smart proposal from the real estate agency would be to add a QR code to public street signs and other promotional pieces.

This way, the client can scan it and directly access “the website for that property”, without any distractions and be able to contact the real estate agent immediately.

Otherwise, if the property in question does not satisfy you, you will have access to other offers from the same real estate agency, and not from others!

Friendly design + Usability

Searching for properties to move into or settle in is a stressful enough situation in itself.

The offer is huge and the client is often “saturated” with too much information, much of which is not relevant or does not match their search criteria.

It is vitally important to develop a website where customer usability is the priority.

The customer must find the information they are looking for in an easy, fast, enjoyable and pleasant way.

A user-friendly design will make your customer's experience with your website more pleasant, where they can easily find exactly what they are looking for, and that also matches what you are offering.

The key is a professional-looking design, developed “with criteria” by professionals and for professionals.

This design must be sober, elegant, aesthetic, direct, functional and above all “usable” by the client, without unnecessary elements that distract their attention and make them leave the website.

A homogeneous design allows us to show a wide variety of properties with the same quality and publication criteria, whether from a large luxury apartment with a pool and sea view, to a small studio apartment in an underdeveloped neighborhood.

They should all be presented with the same care, because all clients are important and deserve the same attention and, ultimately, your real estate agency will want to complete all transactions through its website.

Properties advanced search

Your website has an advanced property search engine that allows you to optimize the results obtained with the standard search engine.

Advanced search elements are fully customizable according to the criteria you need for your business, and allow you to filter only results relevant to the client's needs, discarding all those options that do not meet the requirements and result in wasted time.

Photo and video gallery

Images are the most important and fundamental elements to attract the attention of a potential client, and they must be of high quality and show in the best possible way the most relevant aspects that could interest the client.

It is very important to choose an appropriate “featured image”, which will be the one displayed in the general grid of properties, acting as a hook for the customer’s attention and motivating them to view the entire publication.

In some cases it will be the façade of the building, and in other cases its main or most representative space.

You can add as many images and videos as you need, creating a gallery that will give the client a general idea of the property's features.

Essential information

Immediately below the image gallery, a bar is displayed with the essential aspects of the property.

This bar is customizable and should display items quickly and easily so that the customer can compare that data with other properties without having to read the entire content of the post.

These data generally correspond to the elements of the search engine: Type of operation, type of property, surface areas, age, garages, etc.

A reduced version of this information is also shown in the general property index grid.

Description, Details and Features

As we mentioned before, it is very important to have a detailed, precise and simple textual description of the property, which leaves no doubts to the client about what you are offering. This will prevent you from having to answer unnecessary questions and the consequent loss of time.

Followed by a table of details as a summary with the main aspects of the publication that allow the client to evaluate your proposal without having to read all the texts, and finally complemented with a list of characteristics and amenities that will make your publications more enjoyable and effective.

Geolocation

Geolocation is a fundamental element for the client to evaluate whether they are interested in your offer.

This way, you can know in advance the area or neighborhood of the publication and its means of transportation, proximity to places of interest, etc.

All this, combined with the possibilities offered by the integration with Google Maps, makes it a very powerful tool when choosing the location of their next property and motivates them to contact you.

Tour virtual 360º

It is very easy to include a 360º virtual tour that complements the gallery of photos and videos, and gives the client the possibility of touring the property and having a more precise idea of the spaces, distribution and characteristics of the same.

You can take a virtual tour in the following example.

Download floor plans and documents

You can add to your publications the possibility that the client can view and download floor plans and important documentation, and thus know in advance relevant information for their search and that motivates them to complete the real estate transaction.

Contact Agents

Personalized customer service is a very important added value in the real estate market.

It is very good for the client to know who will accompany and advise them throughout the process, from the search for the property to the signing of the corresponding contract.

Each property may have one or more agents in charge, who will be clearly identified in each publication.

The client will have access to your profile and will be able to contact you by email, phone call or WhatsApp chat, directly from the publication, to ask questions or queries before requesting a personalized visit.

Request a visit to the property

Once the client has decided to visit the property, they can request an in-person visit or a video call from the agent directly from the property listing, indicating their preferred date and time.

User Functions

From the property listing grid

Images in the general listing grid have small buttons that add advanced functionality and user interaction to the website.
These are: Preview, Favorites, and Add to Compare

Preview: Displays a reduced version of the property with the most relevant information, without having to access the individual page.

Favorites: Allows you to add the property to Favorites (requires user registration) to view it later.

Add to Compare: Allows you to add the property to compare it with other listings on the same website. At least two properties must be added and a comparison table will be displayed with the most relevant elements.

From the publication page

Favorites: Allows you to add the property to Favorites (requires user registration) to view it later.

Let Share: Permite compartir la publicación con otros usuarios.

Print: Allows you to print or save the complete publication information in PDF format.

Test Drive

Here you can browse a demo of the real estate website that I used as a reference for this post, where you can learn about all the benefits and features that your next website will have.

SEE DEMO

Final conclusion

I hope you enjoyed this article and that it was useful to you.

The possibilities that having your own real estate website offers you, there are definitely no reasons not to try to start your own business.

If you want to start your real estate business online and you think I am a suitable professional, do not hesitate to contact me and I will be happy to advise you.

In the Related Posts section below, you will find some articles with specific topics that complement the one you just read.

I invite you to read them, share them and leave your comments if you wish.
Thanks.

>>> I WANT MY REAL ESTATE WEBSITE <<<

How to add products into a Dropshipping online store

by Adrián Pablo Conti | Dropshipping, E-commerce | 6 comments

Dropshipping + AliExpress

In this post I will show you how to add products to a Dropshipping online store from AliExpress.

I will also give you some tips on how to choose good suppliers and products, and how to edit and publish them to optimize your online store.

If you have already read my article How to create an online store for Dropshipping, you are now in a position to follow the next step.

Organize product selection tasks

Adding products to your online store from AliExpress is a fairly easy and almost automatic process, but it can become a monotonous and tedious task.

And like most things automatic, they don't turn out to be very satisfying.

My professional experience in this type of tasks has led me to the conclusion that it is necessary to define a routine and always respect it for all products.

This way you can ensure that you maintain graphic, aesthetic and conceptual coherence throughout the store, regardless of the number of sessions you do.

It often happens that, after a period of time without publishing products in the store, we forget the criteria we had previously used.

So the best way to maintain conceptual unity in the store is to create an "almost choreographic" routine.

>>> I WANT MY DROPSHIPPING ONLINE STORE <<<

Step-by-step tips for publishing your products with AliDropship

Here is a basic routine to import and sync AliExpress products to your own online store.

The first three items are made from the AliExpress website, while the last two will be made within your WordPress store.

Choose a product that you want to add to your store

Edit the product before publishing

Add the product to the import list

Complete product edition

Share the product on your social networks

1. Choose a product

Register and log into your AliExpress account, always using the Chrome browser.
Use AliDropship's statistics tools to choose the most convenient product.

Before choosing a product, I suggest you follow the following tips:

Choose a supplier: Make sure that the supplier or manufacturer is reliable and has a good reputation, as it will become your allied partner.

Choose the best price: You will see several identical products from different suppliers with different prices. Use the Search tool.

Availability: Make sure that the product has a lot of availability in stock.
You must think that this same product is available to thousands of customers around the world and can sell out quickly.
I suggest you have a stock of more than 5000 units.

Delay time: Verify the established times for the delivery of the product to the customer.

Type of shipping: I recommend that you choose products with free shipping to the countries you sell, that will give you a greater profit margin and will be more convenient for the buyer.

In the previous image you can see identical products, from different suppliers and with different prices.

Always take care of the institutional image

AliExpress is a mega online sales platform from China, but its aesthetics are really horrible.

It is full of advertising banners that distract the customer's attention and has too much information that is not relevant to the product.

Many products of Chinese origin have a bad reputation in the rest of the world regarding their quality and originality, but there are also others that are really very good and their wholesale prices are excellent for resellers.

It is just a matter of choosing those products that you consider appropriate for resale, that are not easy to obtain in local stores in your area, and that justify the wait in terms of delivery delay.

Personalize your posts

As you can see, the products shown here look “very Chinese,” with all the bad reputation that this brings with it.

Some images may even have Chinese text or manufacturer logos that you would like to remove.

Descriptive texts are often poorly written, poorly translated and full of spelling errors.

You probably don't want to list products in your online store exactly as they are presented on AliExpress, nor would you want your store to have an inappropriate aesthetic.

That's why I advise you to take the time to edit the products before exporting them to your online store.

Download product images

While you can post the images as they are presented by the supplier on AliExpress, I suggest you edit them first with Photoshop.

AliExpress publishes millions of items from different suppliers, and this means that there is no graphic and functional coherence in all products.

But it is highly advisable that your store maintains an aesthetic, logical and personalized criterion, which will give corporate identity and robustness to your brand and your business.

That is almost impossible to achieve when the content comes from so many different sources.

That's why you should unify the graphic and textual criteria so that your products are displayed in your store as you want, and not as AliExpress tells you.

In the following image you will see what the original product looks like on AliExpress (unedited)

Now we will see the same product already edited by the seller for his own online store.
As you can see, it has a cleaner and more organized design, adapting to the general aesthetics of the online store.

The best way to edit a product is to get all the elements separately (photos, videos and texts).

I advise you to save them in a separate folder for each product on your computer and edit it according to your preferences.
Save all the images on your hard drive, both those in the gallery and those found in the product description.

Tips for editing images

Select the ones you are going to publish on your website and edit them with Photoshop.

It is advisable that they all have the same size and resolution, to speed up downloading while browsing, and to control the design grid of your website.

They will also take up less space on your web server since providers usually publish photos in large sizes that are unnecessary.

A square size of 700px at 72 dpi is optimal for displaying products on your website and social media.

Always save them using the SAVE FOR WEB option to optimize compression and facilitate online downloading.

I also suggest you install some image optimization plugin for the web.

I use WP-Optimize which is free and gives excellent results.

The following image shows the same photos from the online store published on Instagram.

Remove all manufacturer logos and Chinese texts, and if you wish, translate those you consider necessary.

Keep the images as clean as possible, as these are the ones that will define the aesthetics and quality of your own website.

I also advise you to rename the files sequentially with the name of the product. This is very beneficial for SEO.

For example: Pet Sling Bag 01.jpg; Pet Sling Bag 02.jpg; etc.

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If you decide to publish the images directly from AliExpress, they do not take place on your server as they remain on the original site, but you will not be able to edit them later or use them for other publications on social networks.
You will not be able to optimize their size and file names for SEO either.
That is why I advise you to download and use them as you wish.

2. Edit the product

Once you have saved all the edited images, you must edit the textual content of each product to adapt it to your web store.

It is very important to define here how you want to display your product on your website.

Discard what you don't need from the original post and add all the information you consider useful for your clients.

To edit a product on AliExpress you must click the EDIT button located in the gray AliDropship bar at the top of the page.

Never press IMPORT as this causes the product to be published as is in your store, and it will be more complicated to edit it later.

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All edits can also be done later, editing the product in your own online store, although some are preferable to do from AliExpress.

Edit title

Clicking EDIT opens a new window where you can modify the product information.

The first thing you need to do is choose an appropriate title that is short and concise and contains the keywords you want to search for on Google.

It is important that you think in advance about optimizing text and image content to improve SEO.

If you want to know more about SEO, read my article How to improve SEO on your website.

In the example in the following photo, the original title is: “Pet Puppy Carrier S/L Outdoor Travel Dog Shoulder Bag Mesh Oxford Single Comfort Sling Handbag Tote Pouch”

It is displayed in English because my client's store is located in the United States, but you can change the language on the AliExpress page.

As you can see, the title is very long and inconsistent and it is not in your best interest to keep it.

Let’s change the title to “Pet Sling Bag”. We define the product in 3 words.

It is important that this name is short as it is the same one that appears below the image in the general catalogue of the website and in Google search engines.

That same title must be copied in the permanent link (permalink) and that will be part of the product's URL
We also define the categories to which the product applies, which we will analyze later.

Edit description

I recommend that each product have two descriptions: a short and a long one.

The short descriptionis the one that appears below the title as a complement and is the one that is seen in Google searches, so it is important that it be short and concise.

You should try to summarize the main features of the product in a single sentence.

This description also invites the customer to continue reading the long description for more information.

Create relevant textual content

The long description is the one that appears in the body of the article and is the most important for your products.

A good description is what will distinguish your store from competitors offering the same product.

That's why I advise you to include relevant information about your products.
This will also benefit SEO and make your products stand out in Google search results.

The long description should show technical data, modes of use, specifications, general features, functionality, etc.

Additionally, this description allows you to add complementary photos and videos that will make your product look more attractive to customers.

The original textual descriptions from AliExpress are usually very bad, but you can take them as a starting point to create a more adequate description.

Take care of the details

Pay close attention to spelling, grammar, typing errors, punctuation, correct use of upper and lower case letters, etc.

It is important that you take care of the writing of these texts to provide the greatest amount of information to your clients.

This will help you avoid unnecessary questions that could delay your online purchase.

Do it strategically, trying to include key phrases that you would use to search for that product on Google.

All these well-cared-for details give quality and credibility to your store, and separate it from the low quality of Chinese publications.

Do not include HTML code

On the editing screen there are three checkboxes: Remove Text, Remove Images, and Remove Packaging Information, that allow you to control which elements to include.

I advise you not to include the images, but to choose which ones to add later in the editing in your store.

If you decide to include the texts, you should know that you can edit them there or later in your store's edition.

You can also delete them there and write them directly into your store, or however you want.

If you prefer to edit them right there, I advise you to select all the text and press the last button ERASE FORMAT.

We will return to this topic later in Complete the editing of the product section.

This causes all the HTML code on the page to be deleted (headlines, bold, italics) and you can apply your own styles later on your website.

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If you do not delete the format from here, it will be very difficult to do it later in your store if you do not have knowledge of HTML code editing.

Remove text styles

The following image shows the result after removing the style formatting from the texts.

Note that the bold type has disappeared from the title and the spacing and line spacing, if any, have been erased.

Word spacing, punctuation, bulleted text, and the final product description still need to be corrected.

You can do this from here or later by Complete editing the product.

I recommend doing it later since there you can also alternate the text with images and videos, and you will have a better idea of the final result.

Edit the photo gallery

La galería de fotos es la imagen principal que vemos al ingresar a la pagina del producto.

It can be displayed as a grid or as an image slider in your online store.

I suggest you remove ALL images from this section and upload them later to the Complete product edit section.

As I said before, if you decide to publish the images directly from AliExpress, they do not take up space on your server, but you will not be able to edit them later or use them for other social media posts.

You also won't be able to optimize file sizes and names for SEO.

Edit prices and attributes

In this section you can apply the price formulas that you have previously established in the configuration of your web store.

You can also change the attributes of the items, if they have them.
Items with attributes are those that have different versions of the same product, either in color, size, size, origin, etc.

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If you click the box APPLY TO ALL VARIATIONS, all variations of the product will have the same price. This is not advisable if your product has variations in size or design.
Therefore I suggest you not activate this option.

These versions allow you to create an individual product for each attribute, and so the customer can choose the one he wants to buy and the prices are displayed automatically.

For example: Yellow bag, large size (L)

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It is very important that you take care of the details at this stage before importing the products to the store.
Some aspects of the publication CANNOT BE EDITED later in WordPress.
Once you have imported it, AliDropship will not allow you to edit or import them again from AliExpress, showing a message in the top bar.
This is to avoid duplicate products in your store.
For this reason, I advise you to make the main edits here, and correct only the details later in WordPress.

3. Add the product to the import list

Once the product is edited in AliExpress, you can now synchronize it with your online store.

There are two ways to do it:

Add to import list (Recommended): Save the product in draft mode for later editing and publication in your online store.

Publish: Publish the product directly as it is in your store and it is visible to the public. This option allows it to be edited later in your store and republished.

The only difference between both options is that the first does not show the product in the catalog until you finish editing it, while the second shows it as it is without the final edition.
That is why I recommend the first option .

4. Complete product edition

Once the product is imported into your store, you can finally edit it and publish it.

You must log in to WordPress with your administrator account and look for the newly imported article in the Products panel.

If you have published it in IMPORT LIST mode, appears with a green label in the list that indicates that it is not yet published and is not visible to the public.

Click on EDIT and the product editing window will open.

The following image shows the product editing window.

All the elements you see here can be edited, as I mentioned above.

Here you will see the Title, Permalink (URL), Featured Image, Product Categories, and Short and Long Descriptions with Added Images, etc.

Featured image

This image is very important since it is the one that will be seen in the general catalog of your store and in the Google search engine.

If you want to highlight your product and differentiate it from other sellers, I recommend changing this image for another one from the gallery that you consider appropriate.

This way you will look different and you will not be seen as “just another one” selling the same product, even though in reality you are…

Always try to choose simple images, without text, preferably with a white or neutral background.

This allows it to stand out at “first glance” and leave no doubt about what the product is about.

Keep in mind that this will be the first image the customer sees in your catalog and on Google.

Through it you will feel motivated to click to see the rest of the information, and finally to buy it.

This image plays the same role as your profile picture on your social networks.

Its mission is to quickly identify the product and distinguish it from its peers.

You cannot configure this image on AliExpress, as it has been assigned by default.

You can only do this from your WordPress store.

To change this image for another of your choice, you must click on the photo and choose another one from your Media Library.

It is important that you complete the image metadata in a way that is consistent with the product title to improve SEO.

It is important that you complete the metadata of the image with consistency with the title of the product in order to facilitate SEO to facilitate reading for people with visual disabilities.

Product Categories

Categories allow you to organize your store's products by category and make filtering easier when searching.

It's like when you go shopping at the supermarket and you have the sections for Drinks, Meats, Dairy, Cleaning, etc.

You can assign categories to each product in the initial edition of AliExpress, or during the final edition in your online store. It is indifferent and there are no preferences for it.

I advise you to pay special attention to the definition of categories because it depends on them whether customers find products easily.

You can create as many categories as you need, but don't overdo it, as they don't look good in the store, especially on phones where the screen is very small.

It is preferable to create categories with general thematic ranges, and add more specific subcategories for better organization.

A product can belong to more than one category, for example: Dogs, cats, puppies, transport, bags, etc.

You can create a main menu using these categories to give direct and featured access to the main items of your products.

Product description

As I mentioned before in Edit the Product before publishing it, this section is very important and you should not ignore it.

It may take you a lot of time and work to write the texts, but I assure you that together with the photos they are the soul of your online store.

Here are some tips to optimize your product descriptions:

Always start the description by copying and pasting the title of the article here, and assigning it the format of Title1 (H1)
This will favor SEO since surely the name of the product contains the main keywords, and the more times they are repeated, the better positioning you will have.

Then continue with the short description, which is a text that complements the title in a few words.
You will also copy and paste this description in the SEO section and it will be displayed in Google searches.

Add the long textual description, where you can detail the characteristics of the article, technical specifications, modes of use and everything you want.
The longer the text, the more information you will provide to your customers and avoid delays in the purchase when asking questions waiting to be answered.
It is important that you understand that the success of an online purchase resides fundamentally in the immediacy.
You should not allow your potential customer to hesitate about what you offer and end up buying in another site.
Imagine that a customer has a question.
He writes you an email and you reply the next day, and in the meantime, he has already found the same product in another store … And you lost the sale!
Also, the longer the text, the more likely you are to include keywords so that your product is relevant to Google.
Make sure the text contains the phrases for which you you would look for that product on the web, and thus you will favor the positioning of your store.

Add images and videos that you can import from your media library by pressing the button ADD MEDIA
These images complement the descriptions and provide additional information to your customers.
I suggest you not repeat the images in the descriptions with those in the product gallery, unless you consider it necessary.

Edit product options

In this section you can edit various publication options that we had seen before on AliExpress, and I suggested you do it later.

Normally, you don't need to change anything except for the Gallery, Comments, and SEO.

Photo & Video Gallery

They form a slide carousel with photos and videos of the product that remains fixed on the main page of each product in your online store.

That's why I suggested earlier that all the photos have the same size, to give visual and functional harmony to the gallery.

In this section you can upload the photos you want to the gallery, change the order of appearance by dragging the thumbnails, or delete them.

If your product has a video you can also change it, delete it, or leave the AliExpress video by default.
You can change the cover image of the video by clicking on the SELECT IMAGE button and choose one available in your Media Library.

Do not forget to click on SAVE CHANGES to finish editing the gallery.

Import Comments

If you want to include the comments, ratings and reviews that users around the world have left about that product, you can do so from this configurable section.

It is highly recommended that you do so as it will increase the product rating and give it stars.

Having products with several stars on your website indicates that you sell high-quality items that are accepted by customers around the world.

This improves your store's reputation and improves your positioning compared to your competitors.

The reviews written by customers are absolutely real, and that builds prestige and trust.
I personally choose to import reviews of 4 stars or higher and that only have images.

Don't forget to click the IMPORT NOW button. Wait for the import progress and they will be published automatically on your product page.

Set up SEO

Finally, you should configure the SEO by copying and pasting the Title and short description into the corresponding fields.

You can also add a comma-separated list of keywords.
Don't forget to click SAVE CHANGES before exiting SEO.

If you want to further improve your SEO performance, I suggest you install the Yoast SEO plugin and configure the options for each product.

Finalize and publish the product

Once you have finished all the editing you must publish the product, clicking on the PUBLISH or UPDATE button of the right sidebar.
In this way, the product will be added to your store's catalog and will be visible to all users.

5. Share the product on your social networks

Once the article is published, you can share it on your social networks directly from the product page.
Click on the SHARE button and choose the network you want.

The advantage of sharing from here is that you are sharing the URL of the product.

This way, if a user clicks on your Facebook post, they will be taken directly to the product page and can purchase it, without having to search for it in the store.

In the following image I show you how to share on a Facebook fanpage.

You can post it as is or add additional text, location and sentiment to the Facebook post.

I recommend the second option, since by leaving it blank you would be wasting a good means of dissemination.

I usually copy and paste the text description of the product into the comments field and add the geographic location.

Finally, this is what the Facebook post looks like.

Final conclusion

I hope this article has been useful and clarified your doubts about How to add products in an online store for Dropshipping.

It has been a very hard job but I wanted to share with you my own experience as a web designer for this type of store and the way I found to optimize the work.

If you were able to follow the tips above, you will be well on your way to creating a professional looking and functional online store.

You already know the aesthetic differences between AliExpress and your own online store, and you have learned how to edit and publish the products.
It was worth the work, right?

If you wanted to have your store for Dropshipping and you consider that I am a suitable professional, do not hesitate to contact me and I will advise you with great pleasure.

In the Related Articles section below, you will find many articles with specific topics that complement the one you just read.

I invite you to read them, share them and leave your comments if you wish.
Thanks.

>>> I WANT MY DROPSHIPPING ONLINE STORE <<<

How to create an online store for Dropshipping

by Adrián Pablo Conti | Dropshipping, E-commerce | 3 comments

In this post I will show you how to create an online store for Dropshipping, what features it has, how it works, and the main differences with traditional stores.

If you read my previous articles What is Dropshipping ? and How to start your Dropshipping business , you will be able to develop your online store.

>>> I WANT MY DROPSHIPPING ONLINE STORE <<<

WooCommerce vs. Dropshipping

The main difference between traditional e-commerce (developed with WooCommerce) and Dropshipping lies in the origin of the products we sell.

In the first case, the seller has the products offered on his website in stock, has previously bought them, sells them and delivers them to the customer.

On the contrary, in the second case, the seller does not have in stock the products he offers and does not need to buy them previously.
He obtains them from the inventory of a supplier or wholesaler and sells them at retail prices.
He is the supplier wholesaler who ships and delivers the product to the customer.

We will see two concrete examples of both modalities where I am going to show you how the products are loaded in the store and how the stock is controlled.
Both websites correspond to my clients and have been developed by me.

Online store developed with WooCommerce

We start with an example of a traditional online store developed with WooCommerce.

WooCommerce is a free plugin that must be installed within a website designed in WordPress for it to function as an online store.

This plugin provides the web with all the necessary functionality to display the products in a catalog, see their descriptions, images and prices.
Finally, it gives the customer the possibility of buying them online.
It also manages all commercial activity, determining shipping and packaging costs, fees and taxes, discounts, offers and promotions, payment methods, product stock control, etc.

All these functionalities must be carefully configured in advance by the webmaster according to the client's needs.

Te invito a leer mi artículo Requirements to have an online store for more info.

The first case I'm going to show you is about a manufacturer and importer of silver and surgical steel jewelry.
My client has a commercial office in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and also makes online sales to wholesalers with the option of home delivery.

This client is a manufacturer and supplier of its own products.
Therefore, you must take the photographs, write the descriptive texts, establish the prices and all the necessary information for each article.



In the event that the store is a reseller of third-party products, the manufacturer or supplier must deliver that information (photos and texts) to the reseller so that it can be published in their own online store.

How to create products with WooCommerce

To add a product in a store with WooCommerce, you must access the PRODUCTS panel and add a new one.
All product data must be entered by the seller.
You must assign a name, a short description, a longer description with additional information, upload the images and indicate the sale price.
Also set the variables of size, color, size, etc. (if any)
In this way, the product is published in its corresponding categories and begins to form your online sales catalog.

In the following image we can see the WooCommerce product editing panel where all the data is entered.

I am not going to talk about traditional stores because it is not the end of this article.

I recommend you read my article Requirements to have an online store (items 5, 6 and 7) to see in detail how to create products with WooCommerce.

Stock control with WooCommerce

As we said before, in this case the seller is the one who controls the stock of products and does not depend on the supplier to display them in their store.
WooCommerce offers an excellent graphical interface to manage the publications of the products, show their availability, alter their prices etc.

In the following image we can see the WooCommerce Products panel, from where we can edit the data and control the stock and visibility in the store.

Online store developed with Dropshipping

The second example is an online store for pet products and accessories, located in Los Angeles (CA, USA).
It does not have a commercial premises for sale to the public and manages its business remotely, from Buenos Aires, Argentina.

My client has decided to work only with AliExpress providers, so we consider it advisable to use the AliDropship plugin instead of WooCommerce.



The AliDropship plugin is not free, it must be purchased and only works with some WordPress templates (themes) suggested by the same plugin.
For the specific case with which we will work in this article and the following one, I have chosen the Rubens template.
Choosing certain templates with AliDropship can limit a bit the aesthetic concept of your website design, which you could get using WooComerce.

The AliDropship plugin allows you to synchronize the products of the online store with their original counterpart on AliExpress.
So if the product has variations in stock or price, they will be changed automatically on your website without you having to deal with it.
In addition, all product data is obtained from its original publication on AliExpress, therefore we should not enter them manually as in WooCommerce.

The advantage of task automation when processing orders

Unlike WooCommerce, where we must set up all the business configuration and product delivery, AliDropship takes care of automating all the business management between the seller and the supplier.

By simply clicking the AUTOMATICALLY ORDER button, the supplier receives all the necessary data to process the order and make the shipment.
The seller and the customer can track the shipment, once dispatched by the supplier.

AliDropship also takes care of applying strategic formulas to establish very favorable retail prices for the seller, which the seller can edit at their convenience, among other things.

AliDropship is a very convenient solution for dropshippers, and it is developed by a team of AliExpress experts who know the market and how it works very well, so that you can "automatically" manage your business without having to worry about almost anything.

How to search for products on AliExpress to publish with AliDropship

First you need to be registered as a seller in AliExpress and download and install the AliDropship extension in your Chrome browser (it does not work in other browsers)
This extension allows you to connect your store online with AliExpress, import the products to your store and synchronize them so that they are automatically updated once published.

The presence of this extension is displayed with gray bars on AliExpress product pages.
The top bar allows you to connect your online store with AliExpress, import the products to your store and synchronize them so that they update automatically.

The left sidebar provides information about the rating, price evolution and reviews of each product, so that you can evaluate before choosing them.
These are fundamental marketing tools that you should consider when choosing a product.

We are going to know the functionality of this bar below.

Search Button

It allows you to know if there are better prices for that product or similar in other providers.
Clicking on the button READY! GO TO PRODUCTS! takes you to the second image where the results obtained are shown.

Rating Button

Shows the reputation of the supplier's product relative to its competitors.

Price Button

Indicates the historical evolution of the price of the product.

Reviews Button

Shows the reviews left by buyers about this product.

Final conclusion

I hope you enjoyed this article and found it useful.
Now you know everything you need to create your Dropshipping online store and the main differences with traditional stores.
If you want to know How to add products to a Dropshipping online store, I recommend reading my next article.

If you wanted to have your store for Dropshipping and you consider that I am a suitable professional, do not hesitate to contact me and I will advise you with great pleasure.

In the Related Articles section below, you will find many articles with specific topics that complement the one you just read. Thank you!

>>> I WANT MY DROPSHIPPING ONLINE STORE <<<

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