There's no question that a strong online presence is key for any real estate business. But creating and sustaining a website that ranks high in search engine results can be tricky. There are many components to Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and with search engines’ algorithms constantly changing, it can almost feel like you’re chasing a moving target. So how can you have a healthy SEO on your real estate website? How can you appear higher on the search results page? Here are our best tips specific to real estate agents:

1. Make use of keyword research

When it comes to SEO, keywords are your best friend. Research and find out which keywords are most relevant to your business and what your consumers are using on search engines so that you can use them throughout your website. The keywords should range from general ones to niched or localized ones. For instance, "Real Estate", "Realtor", and "Buy Home" are examples of general keywords related to the real estate industry. "Real Estate in [specific_neighborhood]" and "Buy a Beach Vacation Home" are two specific keywords. For keyword research and ideas, we like using Moz, SEMRush, and Google Keyword Planner.

Once you have your list of keywords, it’s time to incorporate them into your real estate website title, description, headings, and content. We also recommend utilizing the "alt" attribute. Each image on your website should have an "alt" attribute in its HTML code. So if you know how to access it, make sure to include your keywords in the image's description so that when search engines crawl your site, the “alt” tag would signal that your site has more content related to that keyword.

2. Optimize your website for mobile devices

In recent years, the number of people using mobile devices to search for real estate has skyrocketed. When I wanted to move out of my previous apartment, I searched for a new place using my mobile. This is the case for many people as well. That's why your website must be optimized for mobile devices. It's completely logical to expect people to bounce immediately when they visit your website and it's not optimized for mobile. This could mean the content doesn’t fit properly on the screen, the page load speed is very slow, or the graphics aren’t appearing correctly. To avoid that, use a responsive design, check that your website loads quickly, and include easy-to-use navigation. A responsive design means that the overall design of your website is adjusted to fit different devices. Here are some snapshots from a Real Estate website to give you a better idea of how the design changes across devices.

This is the Desktop version. The layout is completely different than in the mobile version, which has layout elements split into individual sections so they are easier to read and navigate through.

Generally, other changes include the navigation bar, size of the font, spacing, and others. The links on a Desktop version would be present, font size would be bigger, and would have larger paddings and margins. Whereas on the mobile version navigation bar link will be set into a drop menu, and the fonts, paddings, and margins are usually smaller.

This is especially important to consider for your real estate listings as sometimes the files are bulky or large and impact the mobile experience.

3. Publish high-quality content

One of the best ways to improve your website's SEO is to publish high-quality content on a blog. Easier said than done, right? However, this will not only help you attract new visitors to your website, but it’ll also help you rank higher in search results. Be sure to focus on writing engaging and informative blogs that will appeal to your target audience and elevate your real estate business. Your content should add value, showcase your expertise, and position you and your team of real estate agents as leaders in the industry. When you help someone with your content you’ll keep them coming for more which increases the likelihood of conversion while also adding to your search engine optimization authority. Planning and executing a content strategy for your blogs is one of the most common SEO tips but we know, it’s not always as easy as it sounds.

Increase Your SEO Ranking by publishing high-quality content

4. Use social media to promote your website

Social media can be a powerful tool for promoting your real estate website. Use social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to share your content and drive traffic back to your real estate website. This is important for SEO because the amount of traffic you drive to your website is one of the factors affecting where it appears in the search results. So when planning your SEO strategy, don’t forget to include social media. Once you understand the purpose and the users of each social media platform, you can share highlights from your real estate listings, share business updates, and interact with your audience. One of the most popular social platforms for real estate agents is Instagram. To make the best use of this platform, you have to understand how to utilize its features and how to target your audience properly.

5. Build links to your website

Link building is an essential part of SEO and is key for your SEO strategy. The more links you have pointing back to your website, the higher you'll rank in search engine results as this factors into your website’s authority. There are several ways to build links to your website, including publishing blog posts on other sites, partnering with local hotspots for cross-promotion, and, of course, using social media. Don’t forget to include link-building in your content strategy. Having the link to your site is just as important as providing valuable content so that when they’re on your website, you’re giving them something worth their time

6. Monitor your website's performance

It’s called search engine optimization for a reason because these SEO efforts are ongoing. That’s why it's important to monitor the performance of your website regularly. Use free tools like Google Analytics to track how many visitors you're getting, where they're coming from, and what they're doing on your website. Google Search Console is also a helpful tool to gain insights into your website’s organic performance. This information can help you fine-tune your SEO strategy and improve your website's performance page by page and based on keywords you’re ranking for. At The Inspiration Agency, we hold a monthly meeting to look into analytics. It’s important to understand that it’s hard to get everything right from the very beginning. Analytics is one way to see what hasn’t been working, what needs to be improved, and what’s working. There’s always room for improvement and listening carefully to data can help you scale your SEO strategy.

7. Getting Started Now

The simplest tip that we can give is to start now. It’s easy to de-prioritize your SEO when you have a long list of things that you should need to do, but what you have to keep in mind is that SEO is of significant importance and has a direct impact on how your website performs. So the sooner you start with SEO the better. Starting off with SEO can be overwhelming, especially if you’ve never done it before, this is why we created an SEO checklist that’ll help you get started real quick and easy.

There you have it! These are some of our best tips for optimizing your real estate website for SEO. By following these tips, you can improve your website's visibility in search engine results and attract more visitors to your website. Starting off with SEO is overwhelming and there’s a lot to learn, so if you feel like you need some help, feel free to reach out to us!

Best SEO Tips for Real Estate Websites