Since getting in the real estate business, I have heard multiple Realtors tell me that personal websites for real estate agents are dying, and to every single one of them, I’ve had to politely disagree. There are many reasons for this, but in this article, I’ll just list the main 7 reasons why Realtors MUST have a website.
1) You Completely Control It
From Zillow and Truila to Homes.com, they can all get you leads, but at the end of the day, you have to compete against other agents. Your own personal website gives you a true home base online. It gives you a place online where you’re the only agent they can contact, and you’re the only agent they are seeing over and over again. Add this plus your ability to add your own touches and style to the site, and a personal website starts looking pretty appealing.
2) It Makes You Unique In Your Marketplace
From what we’ve seen, personal websites for Realtors have never really caught on. Because of this, having a professional, good-looking website will set you apart in the marketplace. People have complimented us for our incredible website, and truthfully, it’s something we threw together in a few days when we first started. It’s nothing special, but we are one of the only real estate agents/teams in our market that has a personal website. For this reason, we stand out.
3) All Leads Are Your Leads
Going back to being the only person featured on the site, another major advantage to having a personal real estate website is the fact that when someone contacts you about a property on your website, the lead will always go to you. No matter whose listing it is or what company it is with, you will get the lead. This is something many people don’t even consider when thinking about a personal website.
4) It Gives You Something To Promote
Having your own website gives you a place to send your online marketing. If you’re a modern Realtor, you are most likely running Google Ads, Facebook Ads, and maybe even YouTube ads. Having a website of your own gives you a place to link these ads to that is 100% yours. You will have no risk of losing these clicks to someone else. They will be controlled by you.
5) The Marketing Opportunities Are Endless
From content marketing to social media marketing to SEO (search engine optimization), the opportunities to market your website and get clients are endless. Content marketing, for example, would allow to write blog style content which you can them optimize with SEO and share on social media to draw more attention to you, your properties and the fact that you are a real estate agent.
6) You Can Take It With You Everywhere You Go
More often than not, when an agent switches brokers, they lose a lot of their marketing, and if they don’t lose their marketing, it is an extremely stressful and expensive process to get everything switched over. With a website, it’s easy. You change some logos and some wording, and you’re good to go! All it costs you is time, and you’re leads keep coming in during the entire process. The transition is seamless.
7) A Great Tool When Pitching For Listings
The ability to say, “We’ve got our own website that your home will be featured on.” during a listing meeting really makes sellers feel special. No one else they’ve talked to has mentioned that, and if you play it right, you could throw some impressive traffic numbers at them to seal the deal. A little goes a long way for getting listings, and for some Realtors we’ve talked to, their website is that little thing.
Overall, the choice is yours. As you may be able to tell, this is a topic I’m rather passionate about. I couldn’t imagine being a Realtor and not having a kickass website, but that’s just me. For many, they’ve never needed them, and in their opinions, they don’t need them now. My goal with this article was to open your mind and maybe help you consider the upsides of starting a website for yourself, team, or if your a broker, firm.
