How to Tune Your Real Estate Website

Jonathan Galpin, MCSD

2007

Get them through the Door!

• From this I mean – get them to view search results and view listings …..

with ONE click

• It sounds simple, but most sites do a poor job…

• Some examples of how NOT to do it

Example 1

3 Clicks, then a Form

This door is closed

• This is a site that will not be searched much.

• Lets take a look…..

First Click

Second Click

Third Click

Fill out the Form!

This is a Closed Door

• By the time your site visitor reaches the form, you have most likely lost them…..

• Only hard-core visitors will fill out the form.

What is an Open Door?

One click!

Example – Open Door, One Click

One click to see listings!

Know your Site Search Statistics

• This is the health of your site

• It will tell you what visitors are searching for……

• Here are some statistics …………..

Sample Size

634,000 searches

(Century21Palm 2006-2007)

Only 23% used the search form

77%

of all searches were

ONE Click

77% to 23%

Proof that you lose most of the browsing public if you ask them to fill in a form!

Just what are visitors searching for?

Take a look at a pie chart of these statistics

One Year - 634,755 searches2006-2007

The Power of One Click Searching

• 21% by Neighborhood• 11% by Street• 9% by Just-Listed• 9% for 3 bedroom homes• 8% for 2 bedroom homes• 5% for pool homes

• Only after all the above searches did users venture to use the search form!

Know Your Site Statistics

• Do you know which Neighborhoods were searched for the most?

• Do you know which Streets were searched for the most?

• More on that shortly……

Back to your Front Door

Know your Website

Conversion Ratio’s!

First Key Conversion Ratio

% of folks who visit and then end up viewing search results AND view listings

The more your listings are seen, the more real estate you will sell

• Here are some statistics……

A Good Website should see

8 out of 10

VisitorsView Search Results and Listings

78% is a great conversion Ratio

This Front Door is OPEN

Total Site Visits to Search Results/Listings

(Century21palm 2006-2007)

Search Results + Listing Views

Total Site Visits

=

Visit Conversion Ratio

877,950

1,121,976

=

78%

Another ExampleNice site, but the door is closed

Example of the worst kindHere the viewer has to provide Name and email

before they can even search

Ok, you now have an Open Door

How do you keep them there?

How do you get them to view the listing detail?

Give them more One Click options when the search results run out

When viewing Listing DetailGive them more One Click options

Convert them from Searching to Viewing the Listing Detail

• Do not show a lousy set of search results!

• The web is visual, use it.

This is Lousy!

This is Better

How many folks who look at Search Results view the

Listing Detail?

Second Key Conversion Ratio

A Good Website should see

One Listing Viewed

for every

Two Search Result Page Views

Listing Views/Search Results(Century21Palm 2006-2007)

282,171 / 595,779 = 47%

Know your site statistics!

They will tell you if your site is healthy!

Which Neighborhoods are being searched for?

Which Streets are being searched for?

There are many more statistics one should keep track of.

But…….

In Summary, just do two things…

Open your Door!

And keep track of your

Conversion Ratio’s

And you will know

how wide Open your Door is,

and

how well your Website serves you

Bottom Line

You will sell more Real Estate!

The Comparative Website is

http://www.century21palm.com

Jonathan Galpin is a software developer

In conjunction with John Frank, the owner/broker at century21palm, the Palm website was built about nine years ago, and has been re-tuned

constantly since then.

In the 2006-2007 year, century21palm sold 456 homes in a small market (New Port Richey, Florida) in part due to the high number of

leads that the website generates.

Jonathan Galpin can be reached at:

813 263 8006jonathan@iqzero.net (call first, as most email goes to spam)