4 Musts to Boost Online Conversion

Posted on November 22, 2017

It’s safe to say that having a website for your real estate business in 2018 is a must, but what components of your website are necessary for successful conversions? Online conversions are when visitors perform a series of actions, outlined by you. One example of this is registering to save a listing search, going from a visitor to a new lead in your pipeline.

Below are four real estate website essentials that will boost your online conversion rates.

MLS Listings

MLS listings are the number one tool for engagement on your real estate website. Whether you drive traffic to your site from  Facebook ads, publishing hyper-local content on your blog, or any other source, MLS listings are hands down the best way to get visitors to visit multiple pages. Depending on your IDX plugin, it’s also a great way to capture lead information – allow visitors to view three listings, then ask them to fill in their information to continue. By giving them access to search active listings before asking for their contact information, you start earning their trust and increase the likelihood of converting them to leads.

High Quality Visuals

The difference between professional and lackluster photos could not only mean a difference in the quality of buyers you attract, but your ability to win additional listings because of the impression those photos make on potential sellers.

Just as you would use a professional photographer to market your listings, you should use professional photos on your website. In the digital age, your first impression is likely to be made online, on your website, and quality visuals are important.

Be sure your website offers:

  • A professional photo of yourself, your team, even your office.
  • Photos of past clients with any testimonials you showcase on your website – studies show testimonials accompanied by corresponding photos resonate better with those reading them.
  • Quality virtual tours of your listings to help people better visualize themselves in those spaces.

Improve the User Experience

Design your website for the user and nothing else. A good interface allows clients and prospects to navigate your site, sign up for your newsletter, viewing listings, and engage with the valuable content you share. People have certain expectations about navigating on a website. Clearly designed categories and secondary links allow the user to access information.

Navigate your site from a consumer’s perspective to identify strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement. Be sure your contact information is easily accessible from every page, and every page has an opportunity for a visitor to solicit more information. Your website should be full of helpful information and resources – a search for more information is what brought the visitor to your site to begin with. Be sure to use this to your advantage and offer as much value as you can to earn their trust, increase their time on your website, and increase your online conversation rates.

Google Analytics

While Google Analytics might not explicitly affect the components of your website a visitor engages with, they are what allow you to improve and optimize your website, behind the scenes. You can track the performance of each page, who your visitors are and how they end up on your site, how much time people are spending on each page, and more.

Analytics basics

Audience: This is who your visitors are and how they are engaging with your website.
Metrics to track:

  • Sessions: The number of visits a page gets.
  • Users: The number of people who have visited the page at least once.
  • Page views per session: How many pages a visitor looks at during their visit.
  • Session duration: The amount of time a visitor spends on your site.
  • Bounce rate: The percentage of visitors who leave your site without engaging with it or spending time on it. This indicates whether or not your site offers them what they were looking for; the lower the bounce rate, the better your website is performing.

Acquisition: Where your visitors coming from and what is directing them to your page.
Metrics to Track:
All Traffic >> Channels:

  • Organic Search: Visitors that came to your website through a search engine, like Google or Bing.
  • Direct: This traffic comes to your website directly by typing your URL into their browser.
  • Email: Visitors that came to your website through an email you sent out.
  • Social: Visitors referred from social channels. Are you sharing content that lives on your website on your social channels? This is where you track how many people are clicking your links.
  • Paid Search: If you’re running any online ads, this is where that traffic will show up.

Use Google to optimize your website to provide the best user experience, which will increase your conversion rates and help you stock your pipeline.