The thought of search engine marketing can be rather mind-boggling, especially considering the staggering number of seemingly “secret” methods employed by the professional search gurus. There are, however, quite a few basic techniques that EVERYONE can use to boost your search engine results organically. Keep the following things in mind when trying to create effective organic search engine rankings:

1. META Tags
META tags are part of HTML but exist for the sole use of search engine spiders. These tags contain various information that the site owner wants to deliver to these spiders. Meta Tags include, but are not limited to:
a. Site Title
Title refers to the META/HTML tag that contains the page title, which SHOULD be determined by the contents of that page. Many designers pay little attention to the page content versus the title.
b. Keyword Tag
This tag generally refers to any word or phrase the user might search for in order to find a website or a page. Each variation of a keyword, such as the plural form of the word, is treated like a separate keyword. Phrases (i.e., a string of multiple keywords) are generally used interchangeably.
c. Description Tag
Refers to the information contained in one of the META tags that holds the description of the page and/or website. As the information contained in this tag is the information that is displayed immediately after the main link on many search engine results, it's a good idea to make this text “sell” the page or site content.

2. HTML Navigation
Most people like to use JavaScript or Flash for the main navigation on websites for the simple reason that you can include many links without taking up a lot of space on your page. While technically this method will work, JavaScript and Flash are not readable by the search engines. Create your navigation using HTML to ensure that the search engines can read your navigation and follow the links to your content pages.

3. Place Keywords in Your Page Content
Search engines scan your website for keywords. Including your keywords in your site content will help ensure that your site is “Content Rich” and more likely to be ranked higher in organic search engine rankings.

4. Use Flash Sparingly
Flash is very popular due to the visually appealing presentation one can achieve with its use. However, Flash cannot be read by search engines and, if used too frequently, can actually hurt your optimization efforts.

5. Submit Your Website to the Search Engines
After you have optimized your website, you need to let the World Wide Web know that it is up and running! Submit your website URL (address) to directories such as Google, Yahoo, MSN and DMOZ.

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How does a good Realtor become a great Realtor? Becoming a Realtor is the easy part. Get the books. Take the classes. Show the properties.
But what does it take to stand out from the crowd?
Bob Smith showed my wife and I what it takes to be a great Realtor. Here are three reasons why I think Bob is the best of the best:

1) He cared about our needs. I think first and foremost a great Realtor has to care about the customer's needs. If a Realtor is in the business just to make money, and they make no connections with their customers, why would the customers recommend them to their friends?
Bob Smith showed time and time again that he cared about building a trusting relationship with my wife and I, and it has paid off for him in spades, because we have sent numerous referrals to his door. And we continue to have a relationship with him today because we know that we can call him with any question.
For more information on Great Customer Relations, go to: http://www.learningcenteradvantage.com/guestseries

2) He knew his business. Bob had an answer for every question we threw at him. How old is this neighborhood? Was an addition added to this house? Would I be able to add onto this house if we bought it? Who is a good mortgage agent, house inspector or handyman? He had answers for all of it or he got the answers for us.
For school & local neighborhood near you, search: http://www.homes.com/Content/Neighborhoods.cfm

3) He remained diligent. We went through ten purchase offers with Bob over a four month period, and Bob never showed a hint of frustration. We got frustrated numerous times, but he never did. He may have, but we never saw it.

There are those who choose to be great in whatever they do, and Bob is that kind of guy. But his pursuit of greatness is not driven by selfish reasons. He has become a great Realtor because he has chosen to help people.

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My first impression about real estate professionals is that they have nice cars. They take care of their cars. They drive prospective buyers around and the car must be neat and clean. The car is a tool to help the real estate professional sell their listings. Their computers are also a tool to help them sell their listings. They use the computer to find listings, edit documents, upload photos, email, and a lot more. However, the computer is never really serviced until something bad happens. The performance will suddenly slow to a crawl or the computer will not even boot up. There are some basic tools and techniques everyone can do to keep their computer performing satisfactorily.
The Dos and Don’ts.
1. Always shutdown your computer the right way. Yes there is a right way. On Windows the procedure is to click the Start button and then Shutdown. Turn off your computer when it says it is safe to turn off the computer. Do not just reach over and hit the power off button. You can also press the Ctrl+Alt+Delete keys at the same time. This will pop up a window and in that window will be a shutdown button.
2. Use the Windows ScanDisk and Disk Defragmenter every week. These programs come with Windows and are in the Accessories menu section under System Tools. ScanDisk will scan your hard drive for logical and physical errors. Scandisk can also repair those areas that are damaged or mark them so they cannot be used. The Disk Defragmenter will free up space on your hard drive. It rearranges the files so there is less movement in the hard drive to get to the data. Less movement means less wear and tear.
3. Get a battery backup with a surge suppressor. Having your computer turned off by lack of power is the same as just turning the power off. Make sure you get a battery backup that can keep your computer going for at least 30 minutes. This gives you time to finish what you are doing and shutdown the computer the right way. Even if you have a surge suppressor, you should turn off and unplug your computer when it is storming outside. The surge protector might guarantee your equipment but not your data.
4. Backup your files to an external drive. External drives are cheap and having a second place for your data is essential. You do not want to lose that important contract.
5. Last but not least, get Anti-Virus software and sign up for the updates. Not only do these prevent viruses from infecting your computer but they also look out for spyware. This is the one item that is a must for all computers.

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Exposure, exposure, exposure…
In this day and age, where do you start?
Print, online or direct marketing?
How does it work?
Where do I put my marketing money?
These are all important questions to ask yourself, especially in today’s market. Our world is changing day by day shrinking every second right in front of our eyes with the invention of the internet. These changes may not be tangible, but they are nevertheless revolutionary.
Like any type of marketing, it all comes down to your return and the amount of buyers who make it to you and your properties.
In today’s society we get instant information from our personal computers, our PDAs, our internet connections and even our cell phones.
And buyers are more educated than ever.
With that education and instant access to information, today’s buyers purchase homes dramatically faster.
Like any business, it comes down to the numbers. For every ten prospects, four will be lookers and one or maybe two will be qualified clients. There is no silver bullet to marketing, but there are smart and efficient marketing solutions.
Find places that give you the maximum exposure.
At Homes.com use our free directories.
Trulia, Google Home Base, Harmon Homes, and Yahoo are just a few.
Get that exposure that your clients and the property deserve.
It could take as little as five minutes a day to cut and paste information about your properties, and we will export them to our partners. It’s a small effort on your part and it could bring big returns in form of a commission check.

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What is the advantage of hiring a professional Realtor? A realtor can help sell or buy your new home, a tract of land or a piece of commercial property, but anyone can do that on their own if they are so inclined, so what are the benefits to hiring help?
Here are some reasons why you should hire a pro:

* Realtors do this for a living, so they have a great deal of experience selling homes (more than most of us do).
* You open yourself up to a greater volume of exposure to prospective buyers, since Realtors find homes for buyers for a living. This exposure increases
your chances of finding a buyer that matches your needs and subsequently speeds up the selling process.
* A Realtor is required to be familiar with up-to-date market values and will work with you to set a competitive asking price.
* Window shoppers will be deterred from wasting your time; the Realtor will be predominantly dealing with serious prospective buyers.
* Realtors are skilled in reading contracts and will be sensitive to any fine print that you may have dismissed as unimportant.

This is a short list, but it gets right to the point. Realtors make your life easier, help to increase the potential price, help to decrease the price you may pay and assist you with a wealth of information along the way.

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A friend of mine is an agent with a site that needs a little TLC. He’s currently using a template-based site from a competitor, and in my attempt to help him “see the light,” I decided to give his site a relatively simple make-over. The results are shown below along with a step-by-step listing of my thought process as I moved from “before” to “after.”

Before:


After:


And the Changes:

1. 
   Fixed the odd vertical line alignment. Apparently the “Comfort Creek” logo is too wide for this template to handle. Consequently, it is pushing the content area to the right, and the thin, black, vertical lines no longer connect. Rather than try to reduce the size of the logo, I chose to remove the vertical lines altogether.
   


2. 
   Left some items as they were. Some elements of the design seemed to be working fine. I chose to leave the main beach photo, font for “Barry Bevis…” and the Featured Listings box alone.
   


3. 
   Strengthened the branding. The logo was tweaked a little and placed in the upper left area above the photo of the country road. Moving the logo into the header also gives the brand a small boost and helps the header area emphasize Barry Bevis. I also moved the top navigation bar down underneath the header section to added emphasis to the brand.
   


4. 
   Made the navigation links look more clickable. I’m a sucker for tabs. They are so helpful for organization. Adding a tab-based menu clarified which page is currently being viewed.
   


5. 
   Consolidated the redundant left-side links. After a quick review of the top navigation and the left-side navigation, there seemed to be unnecessary redundancy. By eliminating the duplicates (Home, My Listings, and Search MLS) and by consolidating the other links into one “Resources” page, the complexity of choices on the page was greatly simplified.
   


6. 
   Cleaned-up the left side a bit more. After moving the logo up into the header and removing or consolidating the side navigation links, there wasn’t much left inside the blue-gray side bar. I moved the “Tell a Friend” link over to the right side under the Featured Listings box because it seemed more likely that I’d be telling a friend about a particular listing that I saw. I then replaced the blue-gray background color with white and moved the “Bert Bevis Realty” text up under the “Barry Bevis” text in the header.
   


7. 
   Added some additional emphasis to contact. With the left bar now empty, I moved Barry’s photo over and added his phone number and an email link.
   


8. 
   Reduced the “visual density” of the content area. By changing the font color from black to olive and by adding some line spacing, the content area began to feel less heavy. I also removed the thick black outline on the “Comfort Creek” logo and changed the coloring to from black to olive for a better tie-in.
   


9. 
   Centered the design and softened the left and right edges. The center design helps the page fill the browser window more nicely. The gradient blend on the edges help the page feel more open and less boxed in by left and right margins. The color blend added the background of the content area is mostly just for kicks. It feels optional, but I decided to leave it.
   

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If you are in business for yourself, it is crucial to understand that we are constantly surrounded by current and potential customers, yet it is easy to forget. In the real estate world, you may have covered all your bases with print ads, websites, sign riders and car magnets, but don’t forget the sea of customers around you everywhere you go.

They surround you as you go throughout your day-to-day activities, and you have the potential to market yourself and your abilities to many people everyday.

Have you ever been stuck in a slow-moving line at the drugstore or your local grocery store? Here is the perfect opportunity to strike up a conversation with the potential customer standing in line with you. Turn on that winning smile and making a quick friend.

Starting a conversation is easy as long as you remember to keep your opening comment or question a broad topic. Some great broad topics are the weather and current events. And remember that people love to talk about themselves. Pay them a compliment. You can always find one nice thing to say to a stranger. Once you have the door open the conversation will start freely and you will soon find yourself going through business cards!

The next time you have 15 minutes waiting for a table at your favorite restaurant, turn to someone next to you and say: “I love coming here. My first choice is always the chicken curry. What’s yours?”

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What is a domain name? A domain name, also know as a web address, is the name you type into the address bar of your internet browser (such as Internet Explorer or Firefox) to visit a site on the internet.

You can register a domain name through the registrar or registrar re-seller of your choice. A registrar is a company that is accredited by Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to register Internet domain names. TIP: Always be sure to keep a record of your registrar and the login information. You will need this information to access your domain name in the future.

When you register a domain name, you own the right to use that name for a defined period of time. Many domains are initially registered for a 2-year period, but can be registered for a total of 10 years at a time. After a domain is registered, you will have to pay a renewal fee once your initial registration period expires. If you do not renew in time, you risk losing control of the domain name and causing your website to be offline. However, as long as you continue to renew the registration of your domain it is essentially yours to do what you want with!

What's the status of your domain name? Does it need to be renewed? Not sure? Visit a “whois” search like www.BetterWhois.com and enter your web address to find out. TIP: When you search a whois for your domain, always be sure the contact information associated with your domain name is correct. The “admin email” is typically where your registrar will send domain name renewal notifications.

Owning a domain name also gives you the ability to have a more personalized email address. So, if you own the domain janesmith.com, instead of using janesmith@hotmail.com, you can now have the email address jane@janesmith.com!

If you are a Homes.com member, our Customer Service department can answer any questions you might have regarding your domain name or assist you in setting up personalized email at your domain name as well.

So, on your own – or with the assistance of your website hosting company, stay on top of the renewal of your valuable domain name and setup your personalized email address today!

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We celebrate Valentine's Day as a day of love and romance today, but what were the origins?

Click here for a concise blog post about the history of this wonderful holiday written by Donna Dosch of Ormond Beach, Florida's Century 21 Sundance Realty.

 

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Customer service is important in any industry. However, service in the real estate world is different, more important and more involving than in other professions simply due to the enormity of the transaction involved.

For buyers, the agent is advising them through the biggest purchase of their lives. One that comes with a 30-year signed and legally binding commitment. No pressure, right? For sellers, they are giving up a place they once called home. In addition, it’s likely they want that home sold.

nderstandably, the buyers and sellers are scared, nervous, excited, thrilled, anxious and worried. I’m sure that quite a few are ill tempered as well. I won’t get into whether or not that is understandable but, either way, they often are. As the agent helps the client navigate the journey, somewhere there must be the realization that they are part agent, part counselor.

Through no scientific analysis, I believe the great agents are the ones who pay close attention to, and yes, maybe even coddle their clients. Depending on how success is measured, it could simply be the referrals that get passed along when an agent is not only industry-aware but also helpful and understanding. Or perhaps, it’s in the personal knowledge of having made a tremendous difference in a tremendous event in the lives of the people represented. Whatever the measuring stick, never underestimate the difference the agent makes to those they guide.

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