In the 452nd episode of Mail Right Now, Robert Newman and Jonathan Denwood delve into cutting-edge SEO techniques for the real estate industry to boost listings, attract clients, and dominate search results. Robert Newman is the founder and CEO of Inbound REM, an inbound marketing company that provides real estate website development, SEO consulting, and services directly to agents and brokers. Jonathan Denwood is the joint founder of Mail-right, a CRM and lead-generative platform that creates fantastic-looking websites through WordPress.
Keyword Strategies
Creating content without search intent can be a waste of time. If there is no demand for the topics, the effort you invested may fail to create desired outcomes. Therefore, it is crucial to research what the audience wants to ensure the content aligns with their interests and needs. In local markets, identifying search intent can be challenging. Many standard tools may not provide sufficient data, but researching the national trends can offer valuable insights and guide you in creating content.
Most agents, unless working with agencies or professionals, struggle to rank in the top 20% for effectiveness. For example, a search query like “best places to find a home in Los Angeles” often shows an AI-generated overview at the top of the results page, featuring links and attributions to credit content creators. Alongside AI snippets, Google frequently includes the “People Also Ask” section, offering more content discovery opportunities.
Google determines the most relevant pages for various topics and directs users based on their search. Google has been encouraging the creation of longer, more in-depth content. Commonly searched questions, such as “Where is the best home in Los Angeles?” or “Where is the cheapest and safest place to live?” reveal key phrases users often search when looking for homes in the area.
New content creators can focus on identifying a broad topic of interest, exploring its related subcategories, and creating content that aligns with those areas, whether in written, spoken, or video format.
Content Strategies
User engagement has become an important aspect of effective SEO strategies as their algorithms now prioritize rewarding high-quality content with high visibility and traffic. Creating impactful content requires genuine passion, which resonates with audiences and drives engagement. Industry professionals like Krista Maysior show how unique, relatable approaches, such as humor in videos, can boost interest and success. However, true engagement comes from focusing on your passions and turning them into meaningful, lifestyle-oriented discussions.
In real estate, lifestyle is key to connecting with clients and engaging online audiences. For professionals unsure about topics to share, reflecting on your reasons for choosing real estate can provide clarity and help create compelling topics to share online. Empathy also helps in understanding and addressing client needs. It’s not writing about your achievements. It’s about putting your mind in the minds of your clients. Identify topics that matter to clients, analyze competitors’ content, and create valuable material addressing the concerns of buyers and sellers.
Furthermore, immerse yourself in environments where potential clients are present by visiting open houses, model homes, and developer sites. These visits allow you to observe, engage, and ask insightful questions to understand buyers’ and sellers’ needs. Spending time at the brokerage and preparing thoroughly enables meaningful interactions when clients seek help. Direct outreach, such as surveys, can provide valuable insights into buyers’ or sellers’ experiences and challenges, helping you address client needs effectively and gain a competitive edge over other realtors.
Google has specialized local search and real estate divisions, integrating advanced features such as IP tracking and content localization, supporting the implementation of Local Service Ads (LSAs). In competitive metropolitan markets, LSAs place agents against numerous competitors but offer one of the most cost-effective methods for client acquisition. On average, participating agents secure one or two leads annually, making LSAs a worthwhile investment.
For those with limited resources, prioritizing local SEO or YouTube is advisable. Local SEO is particularly accessible and requires minimal ongoing effort—about two hours per month—to achieve significant results.
Technical SEO
Google evaluates approximately 200 factors when analyzing a webpage. These factors remain relevant, but how they are measured and ranked has evolved. Previously, link building was a critical ranking factor, but its importance has diminished by about 80% as it is primarily a technical signal. Today, user behavior has become the most significant signal for web page ranking.
Creating engaging, clickable content is now essential for improving SEO performance. Internal linking, page structure, and other technical SEO practices are crucial for ensuring that Google’s crawler can navigate the site effectively and easily access secondary pages. Technical SEO largely focuses on making the signals readable to search engines.
WordPress is highly recommended for real estate websites due to its SEO-friendly nature when implemented correctly. Additionally, using Google Search Console, a free tool provided by Google, is strongly advised. Once the website is created, a Google Search Console account will be set up, allowing Google to index the URL. If significant indexing issues arise, Google will send notifications to the associated Gmail account. Addressing these issues promptly is critical, especially when Google flags them as urgent. This ensures the website operates effectively and remains visible in search engine results.
User Experience
To optimize a website for search engines, attracting visitors and providing them with engaging content is important. The ease of navigation also plays a critical role in retaining users. If the website is difficult to navigate, users will be unlikely to explore additional pages. Search engines like Google monitor user behavior closely, making user experience a key factor in SEO success. When a visitor arrives at a specific piece of content through a search, Google assesses whether they engage with other parts of the website. The longer a visitor stays and the more pages they explore, the more Google views the website as a valuable resource, improving other content’s ranking in search results.
YouTube SEO
Video content dominates online user consumption, with 80% of last year’s viewed content being video. YouTube is a leading global platform aside from Netflix and provides opportunities for creators to generate revenue.
Effective video optimization is essential for success on YouTube. By employing 13 to 14 critical techniques, creators can enhance Google’s ability to categorize videos accurately, gaining a competitive edge over those who neglect optimization. This approach forms the foundation of YouTube SEO, which is more complex than blog post optimization but offers higher potential rewards. However, due to the time-consuming nature of tasks like manual captioning, even seasoned YouTubers often don’t do these strategies.
One of these strategies is manual closed captioning, which earns higher recognition from Google than automated tools like Rev. Although automated services save time, manual efforts are rewarded for authenticity. This meticulous approach distinguishes comprehensive YouTube SEO practices from automated processes, particularly in specialized niches like real estate SEO.
Another one is location tagging and metadata alignment. Tagging videos with precise latitude and longitude enhances credibility within Google’s algorithm, connecting video content to Google Maps data. This ensures the content appears trustworthy and relevant.
Video descriptions also play a critical role in engaging viewers and boosting rankings. Although most viewers may not read descriptions, well-crafted, visually engaging descriptions that include emojis and other standout elements can make a significant impact. Avoid relying on standard templates listing social channels. Instead, create creative descriptions tailored to the content to improve visibility and user experience, increasing the video’s appeal and ranking potential.
