{"id":5542,"date":"2018-09-28T09:21:36","date_gmt":"2018-09-28T16:21:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/?p=5542"},"modified":"2019-03-02T10:38:42","modified_gmt":"2019-03-02T18:38:42","slug":"real-estate-seo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/real-estate-seo\/","title":{"rendered":"Why You Need to Think About SEO When Selling a Home"},"content":{"rendered":"

You\u2019ve created a property listing with your real estate agent, and you think it\u2019s looking pretty great. You\u2019ve got professional images, and crafted an appealing home description that should get buyers hitting the contact button.<\/p>\n

But how will buyers find this page among the billions already populating the web?<\/p>\n

Time for you and your real estate agent to get familiar with real estate SEO<\/b>.<\/p>\n

\"real-estate-seo\"<\/a>
Source: Rawpixel)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A 30-second explanation of search engine optimization (and why you should care)<\/h2>\n

SEO\u2014or search engine optimization\u2014is all about making your page easy to find online. \u00a0Since 99.9% of the world finds stuff online through sites like Google, you need to help them see your page as a great match for people typing in certain words and phrases.<\/p>\n

These days, home listings are at buyer\u2019s fingertips, anywhere at anytime. Without a strong digital presence, you could be missing out on a huge opportunity to get your home sold quickly at your initial asking price.<\/p>\n

According to the National Association of Realtors Home Buyer and Seller Generational Trends 2017 report, over 50% of buyers from all generations frequently used the internet to search for their home<\/a>. On top of that, over 93% of buyers 36 years and younger said that they frequently used the internet during their home search process.<\/p>\n

Then there\u2019s SEO for real estate websites<\/h2>\n

Similar to Google, real estate websites act as a search engine that help buyers quickly find the home of their dreams. Two great examples include the MLS and Zillow:<\/p>\n

The MLS, or the multiple listing service, is an electronic database that offers up-to-date information about home listings<\/a>. A real estate agent can use MLS as a search engine to identify homes on the market and match the needs of their buyer. By typing in keywords, home listings that mention these features will appear.<\/p>\n

Zillow, the most highly trafficked consumer real estate website, acts as a search engine for home buyers. When a buyer goes to the Zillow homepage, they can type in a desired geographical area then use filters to help narrow down their search.<\/p>\n

If a buyer filters for 2+ baths and additional keywords like \u201cpool\u201d and \u201cgarage,\u201d Zillow will serve up listings accordingly.<\/p>\n

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Source: (Zillow)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The good news is: you can work with an agent to optimize your home listing to boost your listing\u2019s visibility on the web and drive buyers to it.<\/p>\n

Keep in mind that in SEO, if you\u2019re not first you\u2019re last<\/b>.<\/p>\n

In fact, studies indicate 71% of searchers will click on a result on the first page<\/a>. Of that, 33% of those people click on the page that ranks in the first position, and 15% click on the second ranking page.<\/p>\n

Here are 3 things that will boost your real estate SEO in no time<\/h2>\n

There are a variety of factors that influence whether property achieves that top spot in search results, so many factors go into the algorithms these days that even Google engineers can\u2019t tell you exactly why someone ranked the way it did.<\/p>\n

But here\u2019s what we know works because we\u2019ve seen it time and time again:<\/p>\n