Posts Tagged ‘web site design’
Look Over Your Website Visitor’s Shoulders for Greater Profits
Wednesday, September 7th, 2011
Ever wonder what prospects did when they visited your Website? What if you had the ability to “stand over their shoulders” and see exactly what they clicked on (whether actually clickable or not), the path their mouse took, etc. With this kind of insight chances are you would have a much better idea as to what’s working on your site, what’s not and what to do about it. Seem too good to be true? It was, until now…
Measuring Your Visitor Behavior
Website analytics (e.g. Google Analytics) provides extensive statistical data about where your visitors came from, how long they stayed, links they clicked on etc. While a powerful and necessary tool for any Web marketer, it’s not enough. Since most Websites are not static, it’s crucial that you also see how visitors react to and interact with your Website. This is called behavioral metrics and there are now a number of easy to use (and inexpensive) tools that provide detailed insights on how visitors behave on your site.
In one of my previous articles I mentioned an online service called CrazyEgg which provides “heat maps” of what your visitors view and click on in aggregate, on your site (see example heat map below —the brighter the spot, the more people clicked).
While very useful, another recent startup company, LuckyOrange, has taken behavioral metrics to a whole new level. In addition to heat maps, LuckyOrange also gives you the ability to record (like a video) what visitors do on your Website, including how they move their mouse, where they scroll, what they click on, etc. This innovative service even lets you “spy” on visitors as they are on your Website in real time!
Now before your brain starts screaming “That’s an invasion of privacy!”, it’s really not, well… in most cases anyway. The reason is that you don’t know who they are, just that they are an anonymous visitor. There is one exception however, and that’s if they start filling out a form on your Website and then decide not to hit the “Submit” button. LuckyOrange will record what they typed into the fields, whether or not they decided to follow through.
The only way to really get a feel for the full scope of what is possible with LuckyOrange is to visit their site and click the “Watch the Live Demo” button near the top. Be ready to have your mind blown as you watch recordings of actual Website visitors move their mouse, scroll, click, fill out forms and so on.
Best Practices
Like any kind of tool, LuckyOrange has no value unless used and used properly. With this in mind here are some best practices to help you get the most out of this one:
- Don’t Initiate Chat – while in real-time “spy” mode you have the ability to initiate a chat session with your visitor, ostensibly for the purpose of helping them find what they are looking for. Avoid that temptation unless you want to scare them away from your site.
- Watch what they click on (and don’t) – use the heat map feature to determine what most visitors find attractive as they vote with their mouse clicks. If they are not clicking on various parts of your site consider changing them to something more compelling.
- Watch their mouse movements – by viewing the recordings of individual visitors you will gain insight as to how engaged (or not) they are with your Website. You will find that most people move their mouse as they read, almost like using a finger to underline text as a book is read. Do they appear to be focused and engaged, or distracted? You may need to change some of your site copy to keep them on the edge of their seat.
- Watch for any hesitancy in when completing forms – you may consider redesigning your forms, adding privacy language etc. if your LuckyOrange recordings indicate visitor hesitancy to completing your all-important Website forms. Abandoned forms cost you immediate business.
As of this writing you can try LuckyOrange for two weeks free and after that it is $7/mo per Website. To get started, you (or your Web master) simply put a bit of code on each page you want to record. After that, it’s just a matter of visiting your own site and pressing CTRL + SHIFT + 1 on your keyboard to bring up your site’s LuckyOrange dashboard (after entering your email and password one time).
The more you understand your Website visitors’ behavior, the better you will be able to tweak your site to help convert them into closed transactions. And I know of no other behavioral metrics tool that does a better job of this than LuckyOrange.
NOTE: Mr. Internet®, RUSSER Communications, its staff and officers receive no compensation whatsoever from any third party vendors (unless he/they are directly involved with the creation and/or improvement of a vendor service or product), and make no recommendations as to the suitability of the products or services mentioned in this article. Always thoroughly investigate any product or service before trying or purchasing.
Mr. Internet is the alter-ego of Michael J. Russer, an internationally recognized Internet speaker, trainer, author, and strategic consultant to the real estate industry. He’s dedicated to helping real estate professionals leverage their people skills into profit on the Internet. Send your Internet questions to help@askmrinternet.com or you can visit his Website at http://www.OnlineDominance.com and Facebook page at Facebook.com/OnlineDominance
This article is reprinted in its entirety from the August 2011 issue of REALTOR® Magazine by permission of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®. Copyright © 2011. All Rights Reserved other than mentioned above. Mr. Internet® is a registered trademark of RUSSER Communications.
How to Make Interactive Floor Plans and Maps for iPad, iPhone and Android in Minutes!
Saturday, June 4th, 2011
People expect visual information when looking for real estate online. Many will leave a site if they don’t see photos, floor plans, or maps that give them an instant sense of a property both inside and out. Web sites that use interactive floor plans engage viewers and make it fun to explore a home, apartment, or commercial space. With interactive floor plans there’s no waiting for virtual tours or videos to load and you don’t need any special equipment to create one – just a good point and shoot digital camera. Here’s how you can do it just minutes…
Thanks to the popularity of mobile devices like the iPad, iPhone, and Android, more and more people are using their tablets and phones to search real estate listings, view maps and floor plans, and learn about what your company has to offer them. Now is the time to make sure your clients and customers can view your web site and all of your interactive content on their mobile devices.
Why your interactive floor plans must work on the iPad, iPhone and other mobile devices
Apple is expected to sell over 45 million iPads in 2011 alone. Add to that figure all the iPhones and other mobile devices that are out there and you have a number too big to ignore. You simply must be sure that your customers can view your interactive content on any browser they happen to be using – PC, Mac, or mobile.
Do your interactive floor plans, virtual tours, or videos work on the iPad and iPhone? If they use Flash the answer is no because Flash won’t work on iPad or iPhone and Apple says it never will. However, if you switch to a newer technology like HTML5, it won’t work on older browsers like IE7 or IE8. The solution is to use a technology like MapsAlive lets you create interactive floor plans and maps that work on both mobile and desktop browsers. That way you never have to wonder if people will be able to see what you are selling. They will!
Interactive floor plans and maps created with MapsAlive work with all modern browsers. There is no need to create a separate version of your floor plans for mobile devices – they automatically use HTML5 when running on a mobile device or Flash when on a PC or Mac. MapsAlive has special features that make your maps work the way people expect on mobile devices, like using your fingers to pan or zoom large maps.
Best practices for creating interactive content for mobile devices
Mobile devices differ from PCs and Macs in two big ways: the screens are smaller and you control them with your fingers instead of mouse. To make it easier for people to see and touch your content, keep these guidelines in mind when creating interactive content.
- Size your floor plans, map images, and photos, so that they look good on small screens.
- For large floor plan and map images, use the MapZoom option in MapsAlive so people can see the entire image and also zoom in to see detail.
- Make hotspots finger friendly by sizing them large enough to be easy to touch. Or use the MapsAlive option that creates a larger invisible touch area around smaller markers.
- Instead of displaying photos next to the floor plan, show your picture in popups that don’t require additional screen space.
- Use the MapsAlive option that prevents images from preloading so that mobile users who pay for data usage don’t incur extra costs.
- If you choose a solution besides MapsAlive, make sure it doesn’t require Flash and also works on browsers like IE8 that are still very much in use.
- If your interactive content displays instructions when it loads, use a different message on desktop browsers than on mobile. For example, say “click” on one and “touch” on the other.
- Be sure to test your web site and interactive content on a variety of devices to identify any device-specific idiosyncrasies. You can do this by borrowing phones and tablets from friends and associates or asking them to try your site on their device and give you feedback.
To learn more about creating interactive floor plans and maps for mobile devices, visit http://www.mapsalive.com/Features/Mobile.aspx.
When Ugly Wins
Sunday, May 22nd, 2011
It’s a pretty safe bet, that when you first thought about having your website built, deliberately making it “ugly” was probably the furthest thing from your mind. Yet the very first thing that top producer Mark Seiden said to me when he joined my most recent ULTRA eTEAM was: “I want to have the ugliest real estate website in the industry!” Well, he achieved his goal and here’s why he’s going to make tons more money than most of those with so-called “beautiful” real estate websites…
SellingMyHomeSucks.com is unlike any real estate website you’ve ever laid eyes on before and it took nearly 6 months of planning to make it that ugly. Also, you’ll find no IDX, no property search, no tips for buyers or sellers and it contains not one word about local neighborhoods yet I will stake my reputation on this becoming one of the most profitable websites in the real estate sales industry. And that’s even after my wife took one look at it and declared it “tacky”!
So what’s happened here? Has the market change so much that we suddenly find ourselves in a “bizarro world” where ugly is good and beautiful is bad? Well, not really. If you substitute the word “distinctive” for ugly you get at the heart of what Mark was really trying to accomplish. You see, he understood immediately that the key to success online was standing out and being as different as possible from any of your competitors.
And after about six months a rigorous planning on what would appeal to his target market of sellers who have listings that expired, he empowered “distinction” with effectiveness. What makes SellingMyHomeSucks.com so powerful is that it is designed for one thing and one thing only: to have any and all sellers who experienced the failure of not selling want to immediately contact him to take over the marketing of their home. If you put yourself in the position of the expired seller and feel their frustration, anger and confusion then look at SellingMyHomeSucks.com with those eyes, you’ll get the point.
SellingMyHomeSucks.com was “soft launched” (i.e. mostly completed but with a few minor refinements still yet to be done) on May 17, 2011. Mark sent the link to his site to a few of his friends, one of whom forwarded to a friend of theirs who was going to expire in about three days. That person immediately contacted Mark for a listing appointment. Not a bad early indicator.
The take away here is don’t assume anything when it comes to building a website. If there are any fundamentals they are: a) make sure your website speaks to the needs, wants, fears and desires of your intended target market, and b) make it stand out as much is possible from the rest of the competition.
Effective marketing is not about being beautiful. It’s about being seen, standing out and compelling your intended target market to want to do business with you. From this perspective, ugly certainly can be quite beautiful.
How to Create Dynamic Contact Forms & Calls to Action on Your Website!
Friday, April 29th, 2011
Have you ever visited a real estate website that resembles an in your face used car commercial with flashing graphics, neon colors and every sentence competing for your attention all at once? You immediately feel the urge to click off the page and avoid being pressured to “act NOW!”
On the other hand, there are those websites that seem somewhat mysterious and finding any type of contact information feels like a treasure hunt with a dead end. After a minute of trying to figure out where the real estate agent is located or attempting to contact them to ask them a question about a property, you give up and find another more user friendly site.
So where’s the middle ground? How can you grab your audiences attention without “yelling” at them? How can you provide clear information in a compelling way?
There are two simple elements that can completely change how visitors view your website: contact forms and calls to action. Let’s take a quick look.
Contact Forms
Gone are the days of merely having your phone number and email posted somewhere on your home page. Today’s consumer wants to have an easier way to contact you. Consequently, the contact form has become a staple of cutting edge real estate websites.
Here’s what you’ll need:
1. A clear, easily accessible contact page. This should be a tab on your website that is easy to find.
2. This contact page will be a fill-in form that will feed directly to your email inbox.
3. You can also put your contact information on this page, but your main focus will be the contact form.
4. State clearly near the top or bottom of the contact form that their information will be kept confidential to make them feel at ease and built trust.
5. To make it even easier, a link at the bottom of each page of your website to your contact page will allow for even more immediate interaction.
Calls to Action
Our culture has become so used to the responsiveness of social media sites that they come to expect the same thing from a website. While you may not be able to respond right away once someone has filled out a form, you can give the feeling that your site is just as interactive.
Calls to Action are words that encourage readers to take action. You’ve all heard of them, but sometimes taking the time to get to the basics allows you to look at something from a fresh perspective. Imagine if you were visiting your site. What type of call to action would catch your eye and make you take time to fill out your information?
Here are a few key elements for creating effective Calls to Action:
1. Action words will instinctively draw in your readers. Words like subscribe, call, view now, search, etc… will provide a definitive action.
2. Offer an incentive. People will not freely give out their personal information, so a “trade” will make it easier to evoke a response. Provide a free market analysis, e-book of your community, or anything else you feel would interest your audience.
3. Graphical buttons are great for calls to action. Create buttons that complement the look of your site, but still stand out on the page.
4. Limit the number of calls to action. If you have too many on your site, visitors will get overwhelmed with the amount of choices. Three to five is usually an ideal amount as it offers variety, but keeps your calls to action from crowding up your site.
5. Keep it simple, yet creative. A short phrase or sentence will draw the reader in and will force you to choose your words wisely. Creativity in the graphic and wording will be the most effective call to action.
While often overlooked on a website, these two elements are essential for creating a website that reaches out to today’s audience. If you have more questions about creating a contact form or calls to action for your website, or need someone to create them for you; let your Real Estate Virtual Assistant know!
Contact Carrie
Visit us Online at RealSupportInc.com
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Get an Online Makeover to Enhance Your Business Face
Friday, February 18th, 2011
Everybody loves a good New Years makeover; even if we don’t get around to it until February. After we lose the pounds, there is, of course, a trip to the mall to re-vamp the closet and possibly even a trip to the salon to update the old hairdo. Then, just like every makeover show we’ve ever seen or ugly duckling movie we’ve ever watched, there is that iconic moment where the “After” results are revealed and everybody stops and stares with new admiration at a person who was there all along, but didn’t get a second glance until now. As we all know, unfortunately appearance does matter.
The makeover I am talking about, however, is a little bit more complex than that. What I propose to you is an Online Presence Makeover.
Most likely, if you have been around the block as a real estate agent, you are signed up with all of the major real estate portals. However, I also know that sometimes agents have a tendency to sign up for websites on impulse, only to never return. When was the last time you updated your profile on any of these sites?
First and foremost, you need to take inventory of what you already have. I know it’s difficult to remember all of the sites that you have signed up with throughout the years, so here is a checklist of some of the main sites to get your wheels spinning and spark your memory.
- Zillow
- Trulia
- Realtor.com
- Homes.com
- Realtytrac.com
- Homegain.com
- Patch.com
- Yelp
As you all know, websites are constantly changing, making updates, and offering new features. You need to revisit them, especially if they are free, and see what new options you have as their customer.
Not only are the websites changing, but you are too! In the last year, your business may have grown, you’ve taken new pictures, perhaps changed locations or got a new phone number. Are your sites up to date? What if somebody was to find you on Zillow, call the number you have listed, only to find that it has been disconnected. You just lost a lead. What does every makeover victim need? A savvy consultant, of course!
A knowledgeable Virtual Assistant will be your best bet to give your online presence an instant makeover. While it’s a big job for a busy agent, this is a task best left to someone who knows how to navigate all these sites and portals in order to completely cover all of your bases. Whether that means enhancing your Zillow profile by adding a video resume, or getting you and your business on Patch for the first time. Imagine the before and after:
Before Picture: A fair-weather agent, possibly puts a lot of time into your own website, but have completely forgotten about all of the other real estate portals out there. A half-finished Zillow profile, an outdated picture on Realtor.com, never quite got to adding contact info to Yelp…
After a VA steps in: A fully enhanced profile on every website, filled with home video tours, links to your website and all social networking sites, fully updated resumes, and all updated contact information.
Believe me, people will take notice. We know you were there all along, but with your new look, now online consumers will start taking notice too!
If you are ready for a makeover and would like to find out more about what Real Support can do for your style, just e-mail Info@realsupportinc.com or give us a call at (847) 705-1655! We look forward to hearing from you!
Contact Carrie
Visit us Online at RealSupportInc.com
Join Our LinkedIn Group
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How to Find Out If Anyone Else Is Using Your Images Online
Saturday, January 29th, 2011
Some of us spend a great deal of time (and money) creating the best and unique look for our Website and it content. Needless to say it is just a bit annoying if others “borrow” your work to use as their own. Well, here’s a very cool, quick and free way to find out if there is and who they are…
Big Eye In the Digital Sky
Tineye.com is an extremely powerful “reverse” image lookup search engine. What this means is that if you provide Tineye.com with any image (whether uploaded from your computer or a link to it online) it will search for all likely instances of it. The operative and most powerful word here is “likely”. That’s because Tineye.com utilizes some very cool image AI (artificial intelligence) to find all images that even come close to the one you submitted.
The reason this capability is important is that someone who “borrows” your images will likely change them in some way. With TinEye it doesn’t matter, it will most likely find them. However, finding ne’er-do-wells is not the only way you will find TinEye’s unique capabilities useful, for example:
- Helping to determine if an image you use for say a blog post may be owned by someone else, thus precluding your use without permission;
- Finding similar images that may better represent the look or idea you are trying to capture.
TinEye is one of these simple, unique online tools that you may not use often, yet be glad you bookmarked it for when you do.
NOTE: Mr. Internet®, RUSSER Communications, its staff and officers receive no compensation whatsoever from any third party vendors (unless he/they are directly involved with the creation and/or improvement of a vendor service or product), and make no recommendations as to the suitability of the products or services mentioned in this article. Always thoroughly investigate any product or service before trying or purchasing.
Top 10 Elements Visitors Want to See on Your Website!
Friday, December 17th, 2010
Have you ever wondered what those visiting your website are actually looking for? I’m sure you’ve experienced the frustration of going to a site and not being able to find the information you need. You’ll look for maybe a minute or two, but when you can’t find it; you’re onto the next site to find exactly what you want to know.
We all realize your website can be a powerful tool and you want to keep people on your site as long as possible. The more they click around, the more they can see who you are and what you offer- which is vital for getting new leads!
Whether you’re very satisfied with your current website, or are embarking on a complete overhaul of your site; there are ten key elements you’ll want to be sure to include! In fact, those visiting your Real Estate website are looking for and expecting to find these things!
Alice Bredin, president of Bredin Business Information in Cambridge, Massachusetts and Kelly Cutler, chief executive of Marcel Media, a Chicago-based Web advisory firm came up with the top ten things customers want to see on a website. As you prepare for 2011 be sure to take some time to really evaluate your website. Use the “checklist” below to see how your website rates with today’s technologically driven audience and if it’s answering what they want to know!
1. How Your Business is Unique- Answer the question “Who are you?” as interestingly and compellingly (and honestly) as possible. This includes writing management bios that mention your expertise, years of experience and any unique attributes or details that may set you apart from others.
2. A Clear Sense of What Your Company Offers- Make it a point to clearly portray what you offer as a Real Estate agent. Whether you make room on your site for your mission statement or give a list of your services; make sure the visitor to your site knows exactly what you’re about.
3. Contact Information- This may seem like the most obvious, but there are clients we’ve seen who don’t have a clear contact information area. You go to their site and it may take a minute of searching to even see what state they’re in! Clear contact information is key!
4. Testimonials- Everyone wants to get feedback from a 3rd party in order to know what others thought of you and your services. Of course it’s important to put your top compliments on your site but if you’re truly daring; also include a link to your reviews on Zillow! This allows potential clients to see a variety of testimonials which they know you can’t delete!
5. Secure Socket Layer (SSL)- SSL is an encryption system that helps protect the privacy of data exchanged between a customer and a website. If you have any lead captures on your site; you’ll want to have an SSL so visitors know their email address and information is just between you and them.
6. Ease of Use and Navigation- This goes back to being able locate things on your website as well as making your site as simple as possible. Yes, you want to include as much information as possible, but if it looks cluttered and unorganized visitors will either get frustrated with navigating through it all or they won’t even try.
7. Clear Guidance on Your Processes- It’s ideal for Real Estate agents to let potential clients know what they can expect from you. Let them know what your first meeting will entail, what you’ll go over, etc… They’ll be more likely to contact you if they know what working with you will “look like.”
8. Ability to Interact- Whether it’s on your blog or a contact form on your site; allow visitors the chance to quickly ask questions or give feedback on a blog post. You want to be seen as available.
9. Clear Calls to Action- Having people sign up for a free market report or to run a search for a listing on your website are great calls to action. Be sure these are in a prominent place and are eye catching so that people are driven to them.
10. Special Offers and Personalization- It may not seem that there are many “special offers” agents can give, but this allows you to be creative! Have them print out a coupon for a free cup of coffee during your first meeting, or send a hand-written thank you note to those who sign up to follow your blog. There are many ways to make people feel like they’re “getting something” from you which will set you apart!
I hope these tips are helpful as you prepare for 2011! Viewing your website from a completely objective point of view may be challenging for some who have a hard time with change, but it’s important to do. You can always call on friends, family or those in your office to give you honest feedback on things you can change! It may seem hard to take, but getting their opinion can be exactly what you need to move forward in the new year!
Need help? We can evaluate your Real Estate website and give you a custom analysis! As Real Estate Virtual Assistants; we’re here to help boost your business in a variety of ways!
Contact Carrie
Visit us Online at RealSupportInc.com
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Putting the “WOW!” Into Web Engagement
Monday, November 29th, 2010
When a prospect lands on your Website they are going to a) bounce right out; b) take your information and leave; c) become engaged. Only one of these outcomes is going to make you money from the Web. Clearly, the more engaging your site, the more likely it will turn casual visitors into closed transactions. Now there is an unbelievably easy way to make almost anything on your Website very engaging and unique.
MapsAlive is a very clever online service that let’s you take any kind of image (maps, photos, floor plans, diagrams, etc.) and turn them into highly interactive elements in just minutes without any technical knowledge. You really can’t appreciate the full breadth of what is possible until you view the recent Online Dominance Live Group Coaching session video (click image above) we had where MapsAlive co-founder Janice Kenyon do several live demonstrations. Also in this video you will see how incredibly versatile this service is and that its application to your business is limited only by your imagination.
Interactivity Challenge…
Here’s your chance to take this great new resource, try it out and set yourself apart without spending a dime and WIN —here’s how:
- View the video above for ideas.
- Sign up for the MapsAlive 30 Day Free Trial – no credit card required, and you have full functionality. Just go to http://www.mapsalive.com/User/SignUp.aspx
- Create something interactive using MapsAlive – it doesn’t need to be placed on your Website, just make note of its URL
- Post the link to your MapsAlive creation on Facebook – post your link on the Online Dominance Facebook page.
- Get your Facebook friends to “like” your post – send a request to all your real estate friends to “Like” your MapsAlive entry (they will thank you for turning them on to MapsAlive as well) CLICK HERE for an example of the request you can send them.
VERY IMPORTANT: the person with the most “likes” on their post (by Friday December 3rd at 9:00 pm EST) will win a full year’s worth of MapsAlive access via their Plus account (a $99 value!).
You know I share a lot of great ideas with you in this blog. Here’s your opportunity to try one out without risk or cost and very little time investment. The only ideas that have value are the ones that you put into practice —snooze you lose!
NOTE: Mr. Internet®, RUSSER Communications, its staff and officers receive no compensation whatsoever from any third party vendors (unless he/they are directly involved with the creation and/or improvement of a vendor service or product), and make no recommendations as to the suitability of the products or services mentioned in this article. Always thoroughly investigate any product or service before trying or purchasing.
Seven Qualities of a High-Performance Website
Wednesday, September 29th, 2010
The vast majority of real estate sales associate Websites fail miserably to come anywhere close to achieving their full business-producing potential online. Typically these sites fail in a number of different ways. Here is a powerful way you can self assess your own site to see what works, what doesn’t and what to do about it…
It’s Not Just About Driving Traffic
Driving traffic to your site is easy. Getting visitors to engage and convert into serious clients is not. In fact there are seven major qualities that your site needs to get right before it can be a fully productive online presence:
- Targeting & Branding – This is how well your site is targeted and differentiates itself to a specific niche market. Less than 2% of all real estate Websites are targeted. In their attempt to “speak to everyone” they end up talking to no one.
- Design – Just because a site is beautiful doesn’t mean it will be effective (just ask any agent who has spent thousands on a “beautiful” site only to see it not produce a dime of new business). Design needs to take into account many factors including being consistent with the nature of your target market and branding.
- Copy & Content – The primary purpose of you copy and content is to engage the visitor and effectively answer the question “What’s in it for me?” from their perspective. It has been my experience that most real estate Web copy fails completely in this respect.
- Interactivity / Ability to Engage – Information, even great information is not enough. Your content needs to engineered to maximize engagement via irresistible offers.
- Navigation – Ease of use and consistency are the hallmarks of good Website navigation.
- “Internet Empowered Consumer” Friendliness – Reassurances of privacy throughout your site and explicitly not requiring consumers to reveal who they are when they complete a form are crucial for your visitors to feel safe and secure when using your site.
- Promotion & Tracking – How your site is promoted depends upon its target market focus. Keep in mind that some target markets will NOT use search engines to find your site.
NOTE: You can self-assess your own Website for these qualities by downloading a 40 Point Website Assessment form I use to evaluate agent sites. Just go to www.Facebook.com/OnlineDominance and click the “Cool Tools” tab at the top and follow the instructions on the assessment form.
Don’t Bother Calling a Web Designer –Yet
There is no such thing as perfect, only a constant state of refinement to continually improve a Website’s ability to generate business and differentiate you from your competition. It takes many months of planning before you even THINK about talking to a Web designer. Unfortunately, this is the exact opposite approach used by most people in the business.
Even the most gifted designer cannot make an effective Website that scores high in all of the above categories until you give them your written plan and vision for dominating a particular niche. Think of it this way: 90% planning, 10% building and execution. Once you give them your plan, the building of the site is actually fairly straightforward.
Here are some sites that score very high on the above mentioned assessment:
- www.DowntownLivingMiami.com
- www.ChevyChaseLiving.com
- FortSill.GoArmyHomes.com
- www.IntownLivingAtlanta.com
- www.SellingCantonHomes.com
- www.MilitaryMove.ca
- www.GotDreamNeedHome.com
Each of the above sites are highly targeted and required 3 – 6 months of intense planning before their owners even spoke to a Web designer. Take a few moments to examine each one carefully and you will see why they all score so high on the Website Assessment.
Improving your site’s performance starts with determining what its weaknesses are and then taking very well thought out and committed action to correct them, one at a time.
AUTHOR’S NOTE: another version of this article was first published in REALTOR Magazine Online a couple of weeks back. Despite the warning above about not seeking out a Web designer prior to planning your site, apparently that is what many people who read this article did. In speaking with Bobby Carroll of Dakno (the design firm for all of the above sites) he said their phone “rang off the hook” with agents wanting sites “just like the ones in the article”. Another example of how people look but don’t see and read but don’t get it…
Brand Your Online Photos In Just Seconds
Monday, August 9th, 2010
If you use a lot of photos on your Website or blog each one can be modified in a very easy way that will protect them from being “borrowed” by your competitors and extend your brand every time a visitor looks at them. Here’s how it’s done…
Watermarking 1-2-3
Watermarking is the process of overlaying text on top of photo. Typically the overlaid text is just barely visible yet identifiable so it performs the job of marking the photo without detracting from it. Up until recently this was typically done with a program like Photoshop by people who knew how to use it (not many Realtors fit that description). Now there is a much easier and quicker method I just discovered that anyone can use to watermark their images in just seconds. It’s called WinWatermark Standard and you can download and use it for 30 days at no cost. However, once you use it you will not hesitate to pay the very reasonable $29.95 to keep using it.
Watermarking Best Practices
Watermarking by definition is supposed to be subtle, so you don’t want to go crazy with it otherwise it will work against you. Here are some best practice tips to help you get the most out of your watermarking endeavors:
- Watermark Text – consider using the URL of your Website as in the photo example above. This marks your ownership of the photo and extends your online brand.
- Watermark Size and Position – the size needs to be large enough to be recognizable but not so much that it takes away from photo itself. Same with positioning. If you watermark your images to primarily protect them from being used by others, then consider a 45 degree upward angle orientation in the middle of the photo —this makes it much more difficult for anyone to remove it. If that is not an issue then consider using a smaller one in the lower right side of the photo using normal orientation. IMPORTANT: whichever style you use to watermark your images keep it consistent throughout your site.
- Color and Transparency – suggest you use white text with about a 22% transparency. The amount of transparency you use for each image may need to be slightly less or more depending upon the image itself. Remember, watermarking needs to be subtle, not stand out and shout.
- Keep It Simple – WinWatermark gives you many options to style your watermarks. If you go overboard with styles your watermarks will be distracting at best and a turnoff at worst.
South Beach Condo King Kevin Tomlinson is a firm believer in watermarking and uses it very much to his advantage with all the custom condo images on his site. Every GoArmyHomes site we build out has the neighborhood photos watermarked as well.
If you are putting a lot of effort into your Website you may as well protect your investment. Watermarking lets you do this and extend your brand at the same time. That makes it a powerful tool that should be in everyone’s digital toolbox.
