Real Estate Marketing & Beyond
Every real estate business worth its salt has its own website. It's an invaluable marketing tool in the digital age, as having the details of your office available on the internet means you'll be easier to find in a web search. At the same time, a website provides opportunities to showcase listings and provide value to your visitors in other ways, such as home improvement or landscaping tips.
Yes, having a website is a no-brainer. However, even if you have an award-winning real estate site, your digital marketing campaign still might not be firing on all cylinders. Unless your website is optimized for visitors from mobile devices, you're missing out on a massive opportunity to increase your sales.
The truth is that more people than ever use mobile devices to get their everyday business done. The shift from desktop use to mobile use has been well underway for over a decade. Increasingly fewer people rely on their desktops for browsing the internet; in fact, a recent study found that in 2017, a full 63% of average website visits came from mobile devices instead of desktop or laptop computers. This figure is only going to rise, with estimates that 2 out of every 3 website visits will be from mobile sources by the end of 2018.
With practically two-thirds of every visitor to your real estate site coming from a mobile source, it's more important than ever to ensure those visitors get the best experience they can from your site. While the desktop computer isn't going away any time soon, the writing is on the wall: you simply can't ignore the need to incorporate mobile web design into your real estate website.
With the prevalence of mobile devices today, websites designed to look good and be easy to navigate on those devices are naturally more effective than those that are not. Search engines like Google prioritize mobile links when users search on mobile devices, and research shows 48% of users start their internet searches on their phones or tablets.
But getting to the top of the search engine results page is just half the battle. You'll need to ensure your visitors stay on your mobile site long enough to get invested with your content. An attractive, responsive mobile site will keep visitors engaged longer than sites that are poorly designed, and capturing the interest of your visitors will increase the number of sales you're likely to make.
Finally, having a mobile-friendly real estate site is beneficial for potential home buyers. These individuals can benefit from having access to the details of a property they're considering right in the palm of their hand in an easy-to-understand format from wherever they are, not just at home.
Nothing is quite as frustrating than trying to look up the address of a listing or get information about a property from a website that's cumbersome to use on a tablet or smartphone. Users simply won't use real estate sites that don't offer them the options they need, so take steps to ensure your site is mobile-friendly and therefore attractive to as many potential home buyers as possible. That's how a good mobile site will increase your real estate sales.
Half a year ago, we also optimized our website for mobile use, as our traffic already amounts to approx. 30%.
Chris
Mobile platforms are not only important for real estate agents but also property valuers. More clients find valuers this way than ever, and the bank valuers now use mobile platforms to try and reduce turnaround times after an inspection. Speed and convenience are the drivers it seems.