Search engine placement, guaranteed
Can you guarantee your site will be listed on the first page of search results?
The answer is yes. But maybe not the way you think.
Pay per click is a type of Internet marketing where you tell a search engine what you're willing to pay for a website visitor. For example, you might be willing to pay 15 cents for a website visitor searching for “Austin real estate”.
If that "bid" of 15 cents puts you among the eight to 10 or so top bidders, your link will appear on the first page of search results -- separate from the "organic" results.
Why do pay per click?
The attraction of pay per click is that you don't pay for exposure. You only pay when a searcher actually clicks the link to your site. Just think if you only had to pay the post office for the number of people that actually responded to your last “Just Listed” postcard. Pretty good deal, huh?
It's also a smart marketing plan because pay per click qualifies customers better than almost any other type of marketing. Someone searching for "homes for sale Reno Nevada" isn’t just some random visitor. They're interested enough in homes for sale in Reno to be searching on the Web. That’s as qualified as a web lead gets.
What are the drawbacks?
If you're not careful, you can start paying for clickthroughs you don't want. It should go without saying that if you have a real estate practice in Cleveland, Tennessee, you want to be careful about bidding too high for the search phrase "Cleveland real estate." The vast majority of people searching that term are going to be interested in property roughly 600 miles north of your territory.
Another thing you’ll want to be sure of is that your website is in tip-top shape. Once you’ve spent money to get traffic to your site, you’ve got to have engaging content, listings, and consumer tools to turn your bid into a transaction.
Which pay per click programs are right for you?
There are literally dozens of pay per click programs, including on news sites like Newsweek.com. But the largest ones, and the ones you’re probably the most interested in are:
If you're just starting a pay per click advertising program, it's best to start with one of the big ones.
How can you make it work for you?
If you’re new to pay-per-click, start with the basics: Do some searches on Google or Yahoo that you think might lead people to your site, and see what other agents or companies you’re up against
When you start bidding, be sure to choose the search terms you're bidding on wisely. The search terms you bid on should be the same that your target market is likely to search with. If you're willing to pay for help, a tool like Word Tracker can be invaluable.
Also remember to choose terms to bid on that are general enough to attract as many searchers as possible, while still being specific enough to qualify them. Bidding on “real estate” will be massively expensive, while “homes for sale on Manchester Street in Aurora, Ohio” is probably more specific than most searches would get.
It’s up to you to decide if pay-per-click makes sense for your business, but one thing is for sure. More consumers than ever are using the internet to buy and sell homes, and pay per click is the only way to guarantee a top ranking in any search engine.
