I am in the process of building a butt-kicking single property website for a home here in the Atlanta area (not ready to spill the beans quite yet on which one…). I have previously mentioned this here.
As I’ve put this together, I have been consulting with a small number of other agents around the country that are doing or planning similar campaigns. I think this is going to be a full step past most of what has been done previously… but that is another post…
One thing is certain is that buyers are using the internet to find homes. They aren’t looking in the classifieds in any great number. The “Little house, Little head” books aren’t really a great sales tool. Instead, Google, Realtor.com, Zillow and local brokers IDX feeds are the preferred choices.
But, most real estate agents are trying to sell properties with the same tools they were using a decade ago. Now, there certainly are places for many of the tools used then, but there are better and more effective tools available, and even the old tools are being re-invented.
I should be rolling one out in the next couple of weeks. I am building a website/blog for a single property. It will have scores of pictures. There will be video. Mapping. Dozens of links to local information. Interactive virtual floor plan. History.
There is something else that will be invisible, and built in… inseparable from the site… SEO. Search Engine Optimization. When someone looking for a home in the community does a Google search, this property will rate well within just a few days. And that is the purpose. If you are a seller, this will allow a buyer to find YOUR house. If you are a buyer, you will get more information about the house than you would have imagined from a real estate agent… or anyone else.
Right now I’m teasing… but I will announce the first of these sites
as soon as it is ready to go live.
if you aren’t already familiar, del.icio.us is a “Social Bookmarking” site. I ran across it last year, bookmarked it (how appropriate…) and then just kind of left it alone. At the same time I downloaded a plug-in for FireFox… and left it alone. I thought it was cool, but got sidetracked with running a business and building my website and logo.
I am a car guy, and I need a business excuse to go to more car shows… I can tell my wife that I am “networking”… Seriously.
So, to that end, I want to have a new feature on GarageHomesUSA. It will take a little while to spin up to full speed, but here is the plan:
My clients that move into Atlanta from other areas are car people. Many are looking for car clubs in the area. Many are also looking for cruise-ins, car shows and other events.
I’m also finding out something else… it is tough to find most of the events in the area. There are a few clubs that have calendars of their events. But, there are no central databases that seem to have up to date information.
Last year I set up a calendar on my old site. Even though I only supported it with one blog post, Google picked it up for several events… #1 placement. I’d like to get together a list of car shows, cruise-ins, autocrosses and other local events… all compiled in one place, and in front of other local enthusiasts.
I have also previously asked for local car club banners to put on GarageHomesUSA… and only had one response. It seems that some are worried that I want email lists or other info about members. I don’t. I just want to be a great resource for others iin the area that want to hang out with car people.
I was just able to get it integrated into my site. I have a new property search (IDX).
softRealty rolled out their new IDX solution just this month, and I was one of the first in line to get it. I have long wanted a better search for my clients and visitors. Not only did I want something that integrated into the site better, but I wanted something that would that would provide a better interface for anyone looking at properties. So, here are a few highlights:
As soon as I get time, I will set up a search page which will have preset searches for specific areas and price ranges, allowing a one-click search for site visitors.
Jump on over to GarageHomesUSA and click on the “Property Search” item on the tool bar.
