Greater Fairfield County CMLS Says OK to IDX for Agents!

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Fairfield County real estate agents can now take advantage of expanded IDX options for their personal websites. You are no longer limited to framing-in your brokers IDX solution or the awkward rDesk solution offered through the CMLS. (rDesk is also a framed-in IDX solution)

The problem with framed-in solutions is they are not user friendly (can’t bookmark or link to specific pages) and they are not search engine friendly.

Beginning Monday, August 3rd GFC CMLS Subscribers will also have the option of utilizing any of the following GFC CMLS authorized “Third-Party” IDX vendors: (with your broker’s written permission – paperwork is required)
• Advanced Access – www.advancedaccess.com
• Arran Technologies – www.arran.com
• Birdview Technologies – www.birdview.com
• Homes.com – www.homes.com
• IDX Broker – www.idxbroker.com
• iHomeFinder – www.ihomefinder.com
• MarketLeader – www.marketleader.com
• rDesk – http://www.ct-mls.com/idx
• SkyeMark Business Solutions – www.skyemark.com
• WolfNet Technologies, Inc. – www.mlsfinder.com

Real Estate Search Stats: Search behavior

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For search-engine-optimization purposes, the first few phrases in a blog post are vital in the post’s relevancy to searches, Tancer said. “If you want to talk about real estate in San Mateo Park, you want to put ‘San Mateo Park’ within those first 14 characters,” he said.

Also, there is an increasing complexity in online searches. “People are getting very, very specific in their search queries.

via Dancing with Web stats | Real Estate and Technology News for Agents, Brokers and Investors | Inman News.

Realtors up your marketing not your spending.

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Market savvy Realtors are not going on vacation until the market improves – they are aggressively marketing their listings and services. The trend of course is to put more marketing dollars into online venues and less towards the old fashioned print ad. This makes sense of course because you can get more value online plus according to NAR Home Buyer and Seller Survey

Eighty-seven percent of home buyers who used the Internet to search for a home purchased through a real estate agent, in contrast with 72 percent of non-Internet users who were more likely to purchase directly from a builder or from an owner they already knew in a private transaction.

While there is no confusion as to where and why Realtors should be focusing their marking efforts on the web, there seems to be much confusion about how to do this.

More than a few of my clients see the initiative as simply duplicating their print materials in PDF format and posting it on their web sites. This, despite the long conversations we share on the benefit of RSS feeds, widgets, SEO and so forth. I realize that while I create much enthusiasm and excitement during these consulting calls, the plan usually falls short of execution. The simple reasons: too much work, too much new stuff to remember, I shut you off when I heard you say “blog…..feed…rss…etc…and the enthusiasm was all your own”.

This is true, I have unbounded enthusiasm for opportunities on the web; The great equalizer that gives Realtors the opportunity to level the playing field. (or any small business playing against the big guys)

OK – so it’s happening again, let’s get back to the reason for this post: A simple way to cover your bases on new technologies:

Listing Syndication, RSS Feeds, Widgets, Mobile access & SMS, Email distribution, Single property websites, Craigslist and Ebay!

vFlyer is the closest thing to a one-stop real estate marketing service that I have seen. It is very easy to create virtual tours, single property sites, printable flyers, and professional content for Craigslist postings. On top of that, vFlyer automatically submits your listings to leading marketplaces such as Zillow, Trulia, Cyberhomes/AOL, Google and more. vFlyer subscriptions are affordable. I understand that most real estate agents sign up for the vFlyer Starter subscription at $12.95/month. That subscription supports up to 10 active listings. vFlyer supplements good online help with email and phone support.

Check out vFlyer

What is RSS and how can Realtors use it.

What Realtors ought to know about their websites

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What was popular for your real estate website a couple of years ago is no longer working. If you have a site that hasn’t been updated recently you can relate to this. You’ve noticed less activity, visits, leads etc. and likely a drop in your search position on Google. This isn’t about your meta tags and keywords, it’s about your content.

The good news is that you really don’t have to throw money at traditional advertising to improve your online search strategy and conversion. And while improving your content takes work, this work can take the place of other less profitable marketing strategies while saving you time and effort in addition to money.

Take a few minutes to view this video. It will help you get in the frame of mind to accept how quickly things are changing. And why you need to change your online marketing strategy to keep up.

Some people think this video is creepy or scary. Change is always a little scary and seeing how quickly technology is evolving can be intimidating but also exciting.

People surf the web to research or to be entertained. If your website is simply an advertisement about how great you are then you are missing an opportunity to connect with your visitor. You won’t be able to hold their attention because you are not meeting their needs.

Your affiliations, years in business, awards and sales volume is not content aimed at meeting the needs of your visitors. Don’t say “I’m a luxury homes specialist” prove it. Provide interesting  information about the luxury home market. Define your audience. Who purchases/sells luxury homes? What topics would be of specific interest to that demographic? Educate and engage your visitors.

Check out the following resources for writing engaging customer focused content:
“First of all, you’d better be blogging. You’ve got to join the conversation and have something valuable to say before anyone will bother acknowledging you. In the excellent business blogging book Naked Conversations, authors Robert Scoble and Shel Israel envision a day when a business that doesn’t blog will be viewed with suspicion by the public. Blog marketing has been dismissed as fad and reviled as fanciful, but the denial stage is over, and everyone is getting in on the action.”
Quoted from: Viral Copy: Trading Words for Traffic
download the full 30 page report and visit copyblogger.com for more information and articles about viral marketing and creating great content for your real estate web site.

The Customer Focus Calculator (We-We Calculator):
A great tool to illustrate whether your site is focusing on the customers’ needs…or just loves the sound of its own voice.

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