There are about 11 million companies, organizations, and business all over the world with Facebook pages and about 9 million who have claimed their Google Places Pages. These were the figures given by Facebook and Google as of June 2012. The reason for this boom is clearly due to the massive movement of Google to go local on its algorithm. What this means is that Google will now take the locale of a business when ranking its website, blog, or any relevant content about the business on searches.
This is the new trend. Unfortunately, not all real estate and property management companies see it. That being said if you are a real estate agent or property manager still on the fence on whether to claim your Google Places Page or set up a Facebook Business Page, here are 5 logical reasons to get you over that fence and into the realm of Google Search Domination.
More Visibility
The number one reason for getting into the Local SEO picture is because you want your business, your name, and your services to be seen by your target market online, particularly on Google. With a well-placed and optimized Google Places listing or page, you can be sure that your business will show up in the top 7 ranks for the keywords relevant to your business and locale. Facebook pages may not be put you in the top 7, but it will help you dominate searches on page 1 or page 2 of the results.
More Credibility
Let's face it, with a Google+ page, a Google Places listing, or a Facebook page in a search result, you are actually giving your business, name, and brand a big boost in the credibility scheme of things. This is due to the fact that these pages will contain crucial information such as your address, contact numbers, your website link, videos, and images.
Go Mobile
Having a smartphone and using it to hook up to the Internet is the trend these days. And in a year or two, you may soon find that a larger number of people have shifted to mobile devices rather than the traditional notebooks and desktop computers when searching for stuff on the net. Well, you can ride that trend to the bank if you have a Google Places Page and a Facebook page.
More Conversions
You are seen more, your business is more credible, and you have gone mobile - what does that mean? Yes, you guessed it right - more leads, more listings, more closed deals, and definitely more money for you.
Not Much Effort in It
Local SEO isn't something that will cost you a lot of money to do. Nor will it deprive you of the quality time you need with your family. It is relatively easy to get things going. Simply set up a Google Places page by signing up for Google+. Give Google the info it needs from you and verify that the page is owned by you. Once you are done, it is all about building your presence online to strengthen that new listing you just claimed. This will entail setting up a Facebook page, getting people to submit reviews for your business or service, and having people blog about you.
Local SEO is where the whole Internet is moving into with regards to searches. In the real estate game, being seen locally (in the areas you cover) is extremely important and right up your alley, so to speak. Now is the time to grab this trend by the balls and yank hard.
Dave G. Caufield is a video SEO Guru and owns a Property Management company. He has used his expertise to help other real estate and property management companies like this property management company in Melbourne and this Palmerston North Property Management outfit in New Zealand in optimizing their operations by using online video.
The Real Estate Market in Austin, Texas
With its enticing mix of affordability, amenities and high quality of life, Austin, Texas, is one of the top opportunities in the United States for great real estate deals. The city benefits from modest home prices as well as a wealth of local amenities and attractions all conveniently situated in the heart of Texas. Whether you're a young professional looking for a starter home, a family, a retiree or anyone else in between, the Austin real estate market has plenty to offer.
Affordable Homes in a Wide Range of Choices
Austin boasts home prices well below the national average, making it a fantastic deal for recent college graduates, retirees and families alike. The city also enjoys competitive interest rates and one of the most stable housing markets in the nation, offering a safe investment even in troubled economic times.
Home choices in Austin are just as diverse and varied as the city itself. Single-family homes and modern townhouses abound in the city as do multifamily homes like duplexes and triplexes. Condos can also be found across the city, offering excellent amenities at reasonable prices. Whatever type of home you're looking for, Austin is sure to have it at a great price.
Excellent Amenities and Attractions Contribute to High Quality of Life
In addition to its robust and highly affordable housing market, Austin also offers a wealth of amenities and attractions to enjoy. The city is also one of Texas' most livable and friendliest cities.
Austin boasts excellent public and private schools as well as the flagship branch of the University of Texas. The city's economy is vibrant and strong, anchored by growth sectors like technology, business, higher education, government and healthcare. Austin also boasts a world-class transportation infrastructure that includes major highways like Interstate 35, Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and public transportation via the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Finally, the city offers a wide array of shops, restaurants and nightlife spots, a low crime rate and mild, sunny weather year round.
Attractions in the city of Austin include Zilker Park, the LBJ Presidential Library, the Austin Art Museum and the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum. The city also prides itself as "The Live Music Capital of the World" and plays host to a multitude of festivals and community events such as the South by Southwest Music and Film Festivals, the Austin Film Festival, the Austin City Limits Festival and many more.
Austin: A Great Place to Buy Real Estate
With its affordable home prices, high livability and excellent amenities and attractions, Austin is one of the top real estate opportunities in Texas. From single-family homes to luxurious condos, the real estate options in this vibrant and lively Texas city are unmatched.
4 Tips For Making A Good Real Estate Business Plan
The Makings of a Good Real Estate Business Plan
Real estate business isn't something you dive into nose first and worry about what to do later; that's a surefire way of failing from the start. On the contrary, it is something which should be approached only once you have a careful and well thought-out plan under your hand. Needless to say, the exact plan which you are going to make will be very subjective, but regardless of that there are some steps which you can take to ease the whole process and at least give yourself some sense of direction as to where to go with your business plan. Here are a few steps which you would do well to go through when making your plan.
Finding out the Why
First off, you shouldn't be going into this kind of business without having some kind of driving force behind you... something which lights your fire and keeps you going. You need to define your purpose, what you are trying to achieve with this business on a personal level; if you are only chasing money you will inevitably get bored, inattentive, and chances are you'll slip somewhere and ruin everything.
Marking your Goals
The second step in writing up your real estate business plan is to determine the goals you are going to be chasing after. The surest way to do this would be to analyze your current situation, or what you have managed to do within the year. Have you achieved the goals you envisioned yourself completing by this stage in your life? What kind of progress, or regress, are you dealing with? Basically, you will need to set certain goals (usually people prefer to set goals in terms of money) depending on how things have been going so far.
You should make two types of goals: short-term and long-term. With the long-term goals you shouldn't really hold back and think big, imagining what you want to attain five to ten years from now. When it comes to your short-term goals, remain realistic and calculated, meaning you shouldn't expect to become a millionaire in a couple of weeks.
The Plan of Action
This may very well be the hardest part of the plan as you will actually need to put together a method for making your goals reality. The first part in making a plan of action would be to give yourself some value by defining your niche and becoming a specialist in it. Valued proposition always plays a huge role in whether or not clients trust you and should never be neglected.
The next part in making a good real estate business plan is to find a way to generate leads. If you've been in this business for some time as an agent you will probably need to fine-tune the ways you already use to generate leads. If you are not, you should definitely consider various types of marketing such article directories, video marketing, or perhaps even commercials if you can afford them.
When making a business plan in real estate it is also extremely important to set up a development plan for the future. Make sure to know in advance what you are going to be researching for your business, which is good if you are looking to try some new and intriguing concepts for your business but aren't sure they are going to actually work.
Needless to say, you probably aren't going to be working alone because let's face it, a lone real estate agent won't be able to manage this kind of business by him or herself. You will need to have a team with you, and the next step in making this business plan for real estate lies in creating an organizational structure. While it may not sound like much, each member of your team needs to know what he or she is doing and how they fit into your plan.
Keeping Track of Everything
Naturally, in order to make sure that your business is right on track to achieve your goals you will need to monitor it, and one of the first things you should do is schedule expense reviews every year. In addition, you should also look into implementing a production-check plan which would allow you to monitor your progress in regards to your goals on a monthly basis. The easiest way to do that would be to look at the leads and sales generated during the month, not to mention the total profits.
All in all, making a real estate business plan is indeed a lot of work, but if you go at it methodically with a calculated mind and base everything on numbers and calculations, you should be just fine.
Learn more about building a profitable real estate business by visiting my blog below.
Marketing Strategy Vital For Property Agency Success
For an estate agency or letting agency to be successful, a carefully orchestrated and diverse marketing strategy is essential.Planning Your Marketing Strategy
Whether you're running or managing a new estate or letting agency, or you've been in the business a while and need to revitalise your fortunes, the most important thing is to have a plan and then act on it.
A well-balanced marketing strategy covers both sides of the equation - your vendor and/or landlord clients and prospective applicants. If you're already established, it's a good idea to take stock of where your marketing strengths and weaknesses currently lie, and adjust your strategy accordingly.
First and foremost, you want to increase the number of people who A) Know of your existence, B) understand what you can offer them, and C) trust you. To do these three things a varied marketing strategy is essential. Potential marketing channels include:
* Local press - ads in newspapers, on the radio, and possibly even on regional TV
* Online - Your own website, pay-per-click ads on Google and other search engines, listings directories, banner advertising on relevant third party websites, social media etc. Search engine optimisation (SEO) is also essential to ensure that your website ranks highly in the organic search results.
* Branded sponsorship, of local sports teams for example
* Business networking events, such as breakfast meetings and trade shows
* Setting up and hosting your own events to give potential clients the chance to get to know you and trust you
The latter two can be particularly powerful methods of marketing yourself, as they are face-to-face and proactive. Nothing is more memorable than actually having a conversation with someone. And when an honest and sincere personal encounter is followed up with a professionally-printed business card or other promotional material, the cumulative effect can be highly effective in converting interested parties into new clients.
Training & Consultancy To Reinvigorate Your Marketing Strategy
You can also explore specialist training courses and consultancy for your agency that don't just show you the marketing ropes, but help you develop a comprehensive strategy for growing your business.
Such marketing assistance is aimed specifically at helping you to increase the amount of interest in your business from potential clients, the number of client enquiries you receive, plus the number of actual instructions and subsequent lets achieved.
As well as an introduction to the basics of marketing, such an approach will help you to identify the all-important 'unique selling points' of your business, and incorporating these into a balanced marketing strategy.
Property Agency Training provide a range of intensive one-day courses and tailored training programmes to help develop the skills of new and established estate and letting agencies. In particular, the popular 1-day 'Bringing In The Business' course explores how to develop and apply a successful property agency marketing strategy.
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