You've probably wondered why you should have a real estate website if things have gone quite well with your business premises so far, or perhaps you don't have enough information to encourage you to start a new virtual business.
In this post I'm going to 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
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.
Customers no longer look at the local real estate agency, or the one recommended to them by a friend, or the ones they saw on various 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 go directly to a real estate agency to ask about different options, and it is very likely that these options will not be entirely satisfactory for their search, and their consequent waste of time.
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.
Besides, 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 the offers for your properties.
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.
Las agencias mostradas en esta demo son ficticias, así como sus datos de dirección, teléfonos y sus agentes, y es por eso que encontrarás algunos textos simulados incomprensibles, pero que cumplen la función que se proponen demostrar.
Por el contrario, las propiedades publicadas en los ejemplos son 100% reales de propiedades en mi país Argentina, con sus direcciones, locaciones, imágenes y características, y fueron tomadas de otros portales inmobiliarios sólo a modo de ejemplo.
Las imágenes fueron editadas y mejoradas, y sus textos fueron redactados para optimizar y normalizar el conjunto de publicaciones del sitio web.
Los planos de plantas y recorridos virtuales no se corresponden con las propiedades mostradas y son sólo a modo ilustrativo.
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 provider 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.
Te invito a que te hagas algunas preguntas que quizás te resuenan de alguna manera y te inviten a reflexionar…
- 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.
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 the right communication criteria transmits the values of the real estate agency, generates a solid image of the company demonstrating professionalism, seriousness and trust, allows for dynamic communication with its clients and this 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 get information, 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 are just asking 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 I mentioned above, just as with 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 prices, 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.
The client will compare prices, look at photos and videos, analyze the neighborhood, the means of transportation, the nearby places, and evaluate all the alternatives, first making a mental image of the property and deciding if he sees himself living there...
Then he will make a list of different properties and only then will he begin his direct contact with the real estate agents, first online to clarify his concerns, and then when he is almost decided he 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, where 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 them, they have access to the other offers from the same real estate agency right there, 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 website in an intuitive, simple and fast way, taking into account the organization and classification of content, the optimization of images for quick downloading, the writing of texts in a simple way and the conscious and professional design always oriented towards the well-being of the client.
This is also called "user experience" and it must always be satisfactory in order to gain new clients.
All of this is reflected in a modern design and attention to detail, prioritizing usability and ease of access to the points of interest of the publications.
If a client has to make many clicks to reach 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 from there come the “key phrases and words” that you should include in your texts.
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 reduce the chances of them contacting you.
Anyone should be able to find the property they are looking for on your website, without having too much knowledge of the Internet.
Always choose a professional design
Tu agencia de bienes raíces merece un sitio web con un diseño profesional que favorezca y refuerce su identidad institucional.
Esto le permitirá insertarse en el mundo de los negocios digitales con una plataforma sólida, estética y funcional que te permitirá optimizar tiempos y costes, a la vez de posicionar tu empresa en un mercado inmobiliario cada vez más competitivo.
We talk about identity and we cannot ignore the care of the corporate image of your company, of your brand.
That image that you take so much care to show in your business premises, on bus shelters, public street signs and on your printed stationery must maintain coherence and 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.
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.
This is due in many cases to the fact that the web designer does not offer personalized customer service, or that 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, and where the advertisements on your website fulfill the purpose of capturing the client's attention and the completion of the real estate transaction.
Final conclusion
I hope you enjoyed this article and found it useful.
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 Articles 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.
Thank you very much.
Adrián Pablo Conti
I am a Graphic and Web Designer graduated from the University of Buenos Aires (FADU-UBA)
Since 1993 I have run Web4, my own freelance graphic and web design creative studio, located in the City of Buenos Aires (Argentina)
Me I specialize in the development of visual identity, institutional communication, web sites and online stores, editorial design, catalogs, magazines and packaging design, among others.
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