SEM For Real Estate Agents

Search Engine Marketing: What is it and how does it work for real estate agents?

We've all been keeping a close eye on the news lately, and well, it's not 2004 anymore. Declining asking prices, increased inventories, and rising interest rates are changing the marketplace in ways that we would have thought impossible just one year ago.

But these developments need not signal a decline in your sales. As competition becomes tighter amongst real estate agents, those agents with a firm grasp of search engine marketing are going to rise above their competitors by attracting more, better-qualified customers.

What is Search Engine Marketing?

So you've worked hard to get a great inventory, a fantastic local clientele, and a high-end new website. But if that website doesn't show up on the first two pages of Google (or Yahoo, MSN, or Ask Jeeves), you're not getting the exposure you need to remain competitive.

Why aren't you showing up? You may have overlooked Real Estate Search Engine Marketing (SEM). Effective SEM is about more than just optimizing your website or submitting it to the search engines for indexing. When hundreds or thousands of your competitors are competing with you on your service and keywords, just one Internet marketing technique won't give you high rankings.

Search Engine Marketing - the highest ROI for your dollar

Studies have proven what most Internet users know already - people usually do not look past the first two pages of search results. And with over 71% of homebuyers initiating their home search on the Internet (according to the National Association of Realtors), you can't afford to miss out on all of those active buyers. And if your site isn't ranked high, it probably isn't pulling in real estate leads either - leads that translate to more sales and more commissions.

In the second quarter of 2004, 40% of the almost 1 billion dollars spent on Internet advertising was devoted to search engine marketing - a clear sign that smart marketers know where the highest return on investment is.

Don't get left behind!

Real estate agents and brokers are sometimes unfairly painted as being indifferent to new technologies and business methodologies such as search engine marketing.

While it's true that much of your business relies on personal connections and face-to-face communication, real estate agents-like all business savvy professionals- know that personal connections only get you so far. And in today's increasingly competitive market, you need to go very far. Search engine marketing can help you expand your reach by promoting your business and expanding your sales pipeline across the Internet.

How does Search Engine Marketing work?

Unlike organic search engine optimization, which you (or your webmasters) can theoretically do for free, SEM requires a little financial investment to generate results. It's pay to play, but the rewards are worth it.

There are a few different ways to conduct your search engine marketing, including using sponsored (paid) listings, lead tracking, and email marketing. All of these methods work quite well and give you a high return on investment, when done properly that is. If you do not have the time or energy to invest in creating your own real estate marketing SEM campaign, you can always leave it to the experts to create a custom-designed solution for you.

Lead Tracking

Sponsored listings can help attract leads, but to truly get the most out of SEM, you will want to develop a lead tracking system to target the customers and prospects most likely to be interested in your services.

Lead tracking can help your real estate business become stronger by attracting quality leads. Lead tracking brings both short- and long-term benefits to your company - giving you instant access to information about each sales prospect while also helping to streamline and manage the sales process.

Lead tracking not only helps you attract more customers, it also tracks your return on investment, so you know exactly how much each lead is worth, how many leads convert into transactions, and your overall return on investment in your advertising dollars.

Email Marketing

So now you have high rankings on the search engines and lead tracking is bringing in numerous high-quality prospects. Now what? Email Marketing is the icing on the SEM cake - it impresses your prospects by allowing you to send them valuable information on the market and it helps you to stay fresh in their minds.

Maybe your prospect is an old client, a walk-in from your last open house, or someone who found your website through an Internet search. No matter who they are, you can increase your chances of selling to them if you occasionally send up-to-the-minute real estate news, buying or selling strategies, or developing trends in the market.

Third-party SEM providers

If you do not have the time to do a comprehensive SEM campaign, or you simply want to spend less time on the Internet and more time with your customers, you can go through a third-party provider to run your SEM campaign for you.

For example, Fidelity Assets designs custom SEM campaigns around the specific needs of you, the real estate agent. We charge you a flat fee every month for the number of visitors you want sent to your site from the search engines. Since your costs are fixed and your traffic and quality is guaranteed, there is no more guessing about how much your SEM is going to cost each month. You can start with as few as 30 visitors a month for a flat $59.95/month fee. You can buy more traffic as your business grows over time.

Fidelity Assets was created and is staffed by search engine marketing experts. Our company manages online advertising for real estate agents, and our employees are veterans of companies such as NBC Internet, Xoom.com, Infoseek, CNET and other pioneering advertising and e-commerce companies. We know the online ad space better than anyone.

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