Real Estate Blogs – How To Correctly Use Permalinks And Why

Real Estate Blogs – How To Correctly Use Permalinks And Why

Permalinks – short form for permanent links – are another integral part of real estate blogs (or as I like to call them, “21st century websites”) that will not only assist in gaining the attention of the search engines, but of your specific niche market too.

Ok, so first of all, what are Permalinks?

Permalinks are fixed urls (or domain LINKS) that will never change (ie., PERMANENT) which are created for each post and page that we create within our blogs.

permalinks - how and why they are important in real estate blogsWhy are they so important?

Imagine there’s a puzzle which consists of three pieces.  If one of them is missing then the puzzle is not complete and, therefore, unfinished.  Your permalinks is one of those puzzle pieces.  The other two are your

  • Blog Post Titles, and your
  • Keyword Phrases

All three of these pieces of the puzzle are intertwined and affect each other in a very unique way.  Here’s how:

  1. When writing your new real estate blog post, make sure that when POSSIBLE and SENSIBLE (or in otherwords, natural), you use one of your keyword phrases within the 70 characters allowed within the title.  Don’t add them just to keyword stuff – it probably will sound ridiculous and completely unnatural – the opposite of a well-written blog post.
  2. Since the title may contain one of your keyword phrases, you should also use it within the first sentence (or 160 characters) of your blog post content and/or derivatives of the keyword phrase – for example if “real estate blogs” is your phrase, a derivaties may be another keyword phrase you are trying to be found on (the almighty) page one of Google, such as “real estate blogging“.
  3. Your blog title will determine what your permalink will be (if set up correctly – see video below!), which is what your readers will be directed to via backlinks of the post you add to your social networking sites, and bookmarked for future reading (for example).

How do I correctly set up my Permalinks?

Here’s the important part – how to make sure you have your permalinks set up properly. There are many tasks you have to complete when setting up a new self-hosted blog, one of which is getting your custom-structured permalinks in place.  Here’s a short how-to guide on completing this task in about 30 seconds:

As mentioned in the video, you can read more about the details behind permalinks, the difference between “ugly”, “almost pretty” and “pretty” permalinks, and how they are created on wordpress.org‘s website. Was this information new to you?  Let us know in the comments below!

Is your name working for you in your real estate blog?

Is your name working for you in your real estate blog?

You’ve finally decided to embark on the awesome adventure of starting a brand new real estate blog.  Congratulations!

But wait.  Stop right there.  You’re now thinking of what you should use for your domain name, right?  I’m here to tell, and in the video below explain, why your own name shouldn’t be used within your blogsite domain name.  Ok, if you’re a superstar, like Madonna, then be my guest, but otherwise, skip the name and dig a little deeper into the much more rational and SEO friendly domain name selection.

Here’s why your name should be omitted from your real estate blog domain and what you should use instead:

Takeaways from this video include:

  1. Don’t use your name in your url!
  2. I repeat, don’t use your name (or your nickname) in your url!
  3. Use Google Adwords Keyword Tool for research purposes
  4. Think outside the box

Need some help with direction when it comes to the name of your real estate blog? Let’s brainstorm!

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The Ultimate Hub: WordPress Self-Hosted Real Estate Blog

Are you still using your traditional website for generating business? SHAME ON YOU!

Ok, I take that back, IF you are actually getting business from your website, then bravo! You’re one of the very few!

If you haven’t heard already, the hub of all your online marketing and social networking should actually be on something that will bring you business and something that you actually own yourself! There is only one way to go to maximize the perfect hub and integrated network: through WordPress self-hosted blogs (ie. hosted on your own server through Godaddy for example).


“But why do self-hosted real estate blogs work better than a traditional website (such as point 2 agent or a la mode)”?

Because blogs are (or at least should be!) constantly changing and giving the search engines something new to index, whereas a website is basically a static site – one that does not change after it is created (except for your new listings that you may or may not add).

“Ok, but what does that do”?

Being found on the first page of search engines is what makes your site succeed. Properly setting up a blog, consistently updating it with relavent, interesting information and using well researched keywords are the three major components to successfully being found by the search engines and getting your blogsite ranked on page 1. Sounds simple enough, right?

No? Need some help to get the job done? Send me an email below and let me know where you are in the process. You’d be surprised to know how many others are in the same boat as you!

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Top 10 Reasons You MUST Have A Real Estate Blog

Top 10 Reasons You Must have a Real Estate Blog

Lately, my favorite saying has been, “Websites are SO last year!“  And it’s SO true!   With the inception of social networking over the past few years, a real estate blog is essential to ensure you to get your expertise out there to the millions and millions of eyeballs and will help you become an authority that people know they can trust.   A blog is one way of getting information out in a conversational way without all the hype of advertising.

So why do you need a real estate blog? Here are our Top 10 Reasons:

1.  A real estate blog is your HUB of all your online presence.  It’s NOT your website!!  By linking your blog to all your online profiles and pages (such as Facebook Fan Page, Twitter, and LinkedIN) your audience has now gone from minimal to phenomenal! I could talk about this reason for weeks – maybe that will be a future post…

2.  A real estate blog containing relevant and hyper-local information which is updated regularly, will get great rankings in the search engines. When people search for a real estate agent in your area under the keyword phrases that you are using, this will get them to quickly to find you.

3.  Blogs are probably one of the easiest things for your readers (and potential clients) to subscribe to, making it automated for your readers to receive your new blog posts directly emailed to them as they are written. Get the plug-in for an RSS feed if it is not already built-in.

4.  As stated, a blog needs to have fresh content when readers go to check it out. With a self-posting blog (or scheduled blog), you can write something or post a message and have it post when you want it to in the future. This is especially handy for the holidays or while you are away at a seminar.   It will show readers that you are on top of things, consistency in your blog posts will continue and no gaps will be present in your readers updates.

5.  A real estate blog is one of the easiest things to set up and maintain.  No html or fbml coding experience is required and there are hundreds of great resource websites out there (such as our other company over at Tech Savvy Agent) to help you along the way.

6.  Do you have something that you sell that is related to your chosen profession? An e-book with tips on buying or selling a home or any number of real estate related products can be explained on your blog.  Then put it on a widget to direct them to the place where it can be purchased.

7.   Consistent posting is a necessity. When you have a real estate blog, you will get followers who will go there everyday to read what you have written. The more you post, the more people will go to see what you are talking about on any given day.

8.  You can backlink to your main website from your blog (if, of course, your blog is not your main site already), therefore, driving additional traffic to your other online lead generator too.

9.  Selling the real estate services you provide is imperative if you are going to make it in this profession.  When you construct a real estate blog, people can learn more about you, your exemplary services, why you are different from the rest, etc.,  Passion is key!

10. Your blog will basically put across the impression that you are available and can state information the consumer will find helpful in not only buying or selling a home, but information about your local community in general – such as upcoming events and attractions.  This is your opportunity to shine!

Having a real estate blog will cut the competition – as Krisstina Wise from The GoodLife Team recently (and in our opinion, accurately) stated in an interview with Chris Smith at Tech Savvy Agent,your ROI will be evident in whether or not you will be in business in 5 years from now“.  Social networking, which most certainly includes your blog, is the new online lead capture tool.

Need more reasons?  Leave us a message and we’ll be happy to give you more!

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