As a real estate digital marketing expert, I know how important it is to have a website that generates leads and sales on autopilot. In today’s fast-paced digital world, having a strong online presence is crucial for any business, and real estate is no exception.
When I first started in the industry, I noticed a lot of repetition in terms of how Real Estate websites are being structured. Most of them where solely targeted on the properties/listings with no extra features or added value for the consumer. While having a well structured listings website is essential, what most of the Real Estate Agencies were missing was the added-value information the visitor would really appreciate to receive from their Realtor.
The most important thing I had to figure out was how can my website would differentiate in order to attract clients and make them understand the benefits of us working together.
So I studied successful websites from other business segments, I did some experimentation and figured out how to grab my audience attention and make them buy my services before any of my listings. I was able to build a killer website that has been generating leads and sales on autopilot ever since.
Remember the value of your services and the problems they are solving MUST be stated very clear to your customer and there is no better place than on your website’s home page.
In this article, I’ll share with you the key elements of a successful real estate website and provide tips for designing, optimizing, and automating your own site so it can generate leads and sales on autopilot.
Designing Your Website
The first step in building a killer website is to focus on the design. A well-designed website is not only visually appealing, but mostly user-friendly and easy to navigate.
When designing your real estate website, it is important to keep your target audience in mind. Think about what your potential clients are looking for and make sure your website provides them with the information they need in a clear and concise manner.
One key element of a successful real estate website is high-quality images. Whether you’re showcasing properties for sale or highlighting the features of your local area, having beautiful, professional-looking photos can make all the difference. There is an abundance of stock images that you can use for the hero images in your website.
Here are two stock images websites I use for my own and client’s websites:
For Free images I use Pexels where you do not even need to create an account to download beautiful and high-quality images
For the more polished and rarer images I choose Shutterstock,where you can choose images and also check how many times they have been used already by other users.
Before you find your brand identity I suggest you start with the free image gallery.
Tip: Choose images that have the same tone or look and feel in all your website pages.
Another important element is a clear call to action. Make it easy for potential clients to get in touch with you by including prominent contact forms and buttons throughout your website.
The Call to Action is actually a single request you are asking your visitor to do in your website. It should be located on a strategically visible area in your website that clients can easily access.
Tip: A “Contact Us” Button without the correct text describing the benefits of your services will likely remain unclicked. Combine your call to action buttons with the right message in order to create an engaging opportunity for your clients.
When designing your website, you have to make sure that the layout is crisp and clear. Avoid information cluttering.
From my experience designing sites, I found that experimenting with different layouts and color schemes helped me find the perfect balance between aesthetics and functionality. Don’t be afraid to try out new ideas and see what works best for you!
Creating Valuable Content
Once you have a pretty well-designed website, the next step is to create valuable content that will attract potential clients and keep them engaged. As a real estate professional, you have a wealth of knowledge and expertise that can be shared through blog posts, market reports, and property listings.
When creating content for your website, it’s important to focus on providing value to your target audience. Think about the questions and concerns that your potential clients may have and create content that addresses those needs. This will build your authority and reputation as a professional, giving you a chance for more clients to choose you over the competition for the right reasons.
For example, you could write blog posts about the local real estate market – providing insights and analysis that can help potential clients make informed decisions. You could also create market reports that highlight recent sales and trends in your area.
In addition to written content, it’s also important to include high-quality images and videos on your website. Property listings with professional-looking photos and virtual tours are far more likely to attract potential clients and generate leads.
Tip: Add FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) that will minimize any objections your visitors may have, preventing them from becoming a warm audience and lead. Answer common questions that you usually receive from your clients to start with and regularly populate this section.
When I first started creating content for my own website, I found it helpful to create a content calendar to plan out my posts and ensure that I was consistently providing valuable information to my audience.
With a little bit of planning and effort, you can create a wealth of valuable content that will help attract and engage potential clients on your website.
Optimizing for Search Engines
Another important aspect of building a killer website that will generate leads and sales on autopilot is optimizing for search engines. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of improving your website’s visibility in search engine results, making it easier for potential clients to find you online.
There are many different factors that can affect your website’s SEO, including the quality and relevance of your content, the structure of your website, and the use of keywords and meta tags. By optimizing these elements, you can improve your website’s search engine ranking and attract more organic traffic.
One effective way to improve your website’s SEO is to conduct a detailed keyword research to identify the terms and phrases that your target audience is using to search for real estate services in your area. Once you have identified these keywords, you can incorporate them into your website’s content, meta tags, and URLs to improve your visibility in search engine results. This can also improve your advertising rank and reduce cost per click if you run google ads.
Another important factor in SEO is the quality and relevance of your content. By creating valuable, informative content that addresses the needs and concerns of your target audience, you can also improve your website’s search engine ranking and get more organic traffic.
This is a rather technical step into the website creation and while there are a lot of free tools that can help you get there, if you feel a little out of your water with this you can always outsource it to professionals.
We offer affordable ad-hoc technical services that can help you with your SEO – You can book an intro call in order to get more information by our experienced technical team.
But – if you are not ready to spend any money on SEO – you can try the tool we use ourselves > RankMath for WordPress < where you can start for free and then pay as you find it’s value on your own website. It comes with the highest recommendations from us and other industry experts.
*By clicking the link above you can check out RankMath via an affiliate program and use the free version as a beginner, this affiliate link does not have any cost for you but it helps us in our mission to research and create useful content like this article and thus help you stay relevant and perform better. We never recommend anything that we don’t use ourselves.- Thank you!
Last but not least, be careful: In the era of tools like ChatGPT and other LLMs, being human, covering most if not all aspects of your specific business and keeping it relevant for your target audience to come time and time again will make a bigger impact than a bunch of keyword-stuffed articles in a row that you wouldn’t possibly read yourself. Be smart about it!
Using Social Media
Besides optimizing your website for search engines, it’s also important to use social media platforms to drive traffic to your website and generate leads. Social media can be a powerful tool for real estate professionals, allowing you to connect with potential clients and showcase your properties and services.
When I first started using social media to promote my own real estate business back in the day, I found it helpful to first choose the right platforms for my target audience. For example, platforms like Facebook and Instagram can be effective for reaching a broad audience, while LinkedIn can be a great way to connect with other professionals in the industry.
Once you have chosen the right social media platforms for your business, it’s important to create a consistent and engaging presence. Share valuable content, such as blog posts and tips for new homeowners, and engage with your followers by responding to comments and messages.
Tip: You can benefit from social media trends if they suit your business, but don't chase them blindly. Otherwise, you may waste time on methods that won't help you in the long run.
In addition to sharing your own content, you can also use social media to showcase your properties and services. Share high-quality images and videos of your listings, and use hashtags and location tags to make it easier for potential clients to find you.
If you want to master the use of social media, you can also check out my Ultimate Guide to Social Media for Real Estate Agents.
Implementing Lead Capture Forms
When building a killer website, the main outcome should be the generation of leads and sales on autopilot. Once you have created a great design and amazing content then it’s time for implementing lead capture forms. Lead capture forms are an effective way to convert website visitors into leads by collecting their contact information and other relevant details.
When creating lead capture forms for your real estate website, it’s important to keep the user experience in mind. Make sure your forms are easy to use and don’t ask for too much information at once. A simple form that asks for a name, email address, and phone number can be enough to get started.
In addition to the basic contact information, you can also include fields for other relevant details, such as the type of property the visitor is interested in or their preferred location. This information can help you tailor your follow-up communications and provide a more personalized service.
Once you have implemented lead capture forms on your website, it’s important to have a system in place for managing and following up with your leads. This can include automated email campaigns or personalized phone calls to nurture your leads and convert them into clients.
By implementing effective lead capture forms on your website, you can increase the number of visitors who convert into leads and generate sales on autopilot!
Automating Your Sales Funnel
The next step in building a killer website is automating your sales funnel. By using tools such as email marketing, you can nurture your leads and convert them into clients without having to manually follow up with each one.
Email marketing can be an effective way to automate your sales funnel by sending targeted and personalized messages to your leads. For example, you could create an automated email campaign that sends a series of educational emails to new leads, providing them with valuable information about the real estate market and your services.
In addition to educational content, you can also use email marketing to promote your properties and services. For example, you could send an email showcasing a new property listing or highlighting a recent success story.
When using email marketing to automate your sales funnel, it’s important to track your results and adjust as needed. Use analytics tools to measure the open and click-through rates of your emails, and experiment with different subject lines, content, and calls to action to see what works best.
I am currently using Brevo as an email marketing tool for all my email campaigns.
*By clicking the link above you can register for Brevo via an affiliate program and use the free version as a beginner, this affiliate link does not have any cost for you but it helps us in our mission to research and create useful content like this article and thus help you stay relevant and perform better. Thank you!
Tracking Your Results
Aaaand… the final step in building a killer website for real estate is tracking your results. By using analytics tools, you can measure the performance of your website and make data-driven decisions to improve your lead generation and sales.
When I first started tracking the results of my own website, I found it helpful to focus on a few key metrics. These included the number of visitors to my site, the time they spent on my site, and the actions they took, such as filling out a lead capture form or clicking on a call to action.
In addition to tracking these basic metrics, I then used more advanced analytics tools to gain deeper insights into the behavior of my website visitors. For example, I used heat maps to see where visitors were clicking on my site, and funnel analysis to track their journey through my sales funnel.
By regularly tracking these metrics and analyzing the data, I was able to make informed decisions about how to improve my website and marketing efforts. For example, I discovered that certain pages on my site had high bounce rates, indicating that visitors were leaving without taking any action. By making changes to these pages, such as improving the content or adding more prominent calls to action, I was able to reduce the bounce rate and increase conversions.
In addition to tracking the performance of your website, it’s also important to track the results of your marketing efforts. For example, you can use analytics tools to measure the effectiveness of your email campaigns, social media posts, and other marketing initiatives. By regularly reviewing this data and adjusting as needed, you can continuously improve your marketing efforts and generate more leads and sales.
Overall, tracking your results is a crucial part of building a killer website that will generate leads and sales on autopilot. By using analytics tools and regularly reviewing your data, you can make data-driven decisions that will help you achieve success in the competitive world of real estate.
My metrics companion for all my websites is Google Analytics. It is free and Awesome!
Generate Leads and Sales for Real Estate on Autopilot
Building a killer website that will generate leads and sales on autopilot is a multi-step process that involves designing a user-friendly website, creating valuable content, optimizing for search engines, using social media, implementing lead capture forms, automating your sales funnel, and tracking your results.
By following the tips and strategies outlined in this article, real estate professionals can create a powerful online presence that will attract potential clients and generate leads and sales on autopilot. Remember to regularly review your data and make data-driven decisions to continuously improve your website and marketing efforts.
I hope this article provided you valuable insights and actionable tips for building a killer website that will help you achieve success in the competitive world of real estate.
If you feel that this was a helpful content and want to learn more about how to grow your Real Estate business through Marketing Make sure you subscribe to our newsletter (on the footer of every page) because I am regularly creating dedicated content on that matter that can help you achieve more.
May the (marketing) force be with you!
This Article was written by Lilian.
Lilian is the Founder and CEO of Propertising. She has more than 17 years of expertise in Advertising and Marketing, collaborating with large International Enterprises, and has a proven track record in Hospitality and Real Estate Entrepreneurship. She is currently focused on creating a Marketing Community that helps Small/ Medium Real Estate Businesses to grow into great companies. On her spare time, she builds Star Wars Lego and travels around the world!
