Internet Marketing for Real Estate Professionals
Monday, September 10, 2007
Avoid the Google Content Network - At least at first
I find that when everyone gets started on Google and advertising with Google PPC (Pay Per Click) they either leave all the check boxes checked or start checking as many boxes as possible. This can make your first campaigns not as effective and can make them very costly to you. I want to make sure that you avoid the hard times of advertising on Google and make sure that you get the results that you desire. One setting that I encourage people (read into that tell them) to turn off when they get started is advertising on the Google Content Network.
The settings by default encourage you to advertise on the content network. Now don't get me wrong there is nothing wrong with the Google content network it is just a different kind of ad that you would want to run on it.Think of it this way. The Google Content network is literally thousands upon thousands of websites that run Google Ads. So a user may be reading an article on say the New York times on real estate and they might also see an ad for real estate. So this potential buyer is not looking for real estate info exactly they are reading an article. Your ad would have to make them not want to read the article anymore and visit your website or page instead. This is possible and there can be great traffic to be found on the content network but you shouldn't start there. You should start with only Google Search and I like the Search Network as well. That means your ads will be shown when someone is searching Google or one of their affiliate search engines. These are potential buyers that are seeking information out and these are the ones that you want to attract first as they already show a willingness to look for your information.
So when you are just getting your first Google PPC (Pay Per Click) campaigns started start with just Google and their search partners and stay of the content network until you determine how things are working. Good luck!
Labels: Google, Google Adwords, google analytics, google pay per click, Google Webmaster Tools, pay per click, real estate pay per click
Friday, August 17, 2007
Google Changes its Ad Formula & Why you need to know
If you have a Google (R) adwords account we hope that you have logged in to it in the last several days. What you noticed is a message announcing a change to how Google will determine which ads appear above the search results. So what did they do and most importantly how will this affect you and your ads.
- The maximum price you are willing to pay for a click will now count! - This is known as Max CPC. Prior to this change your Max CPC did not affect (directly) where you were in the placement. It related only in comparison with your competitors. So the higher you are willing to pay for a click will now add greater weight to were you are placed. You will still only pay more than the person below you and won't necessarily pay your max. You will also never be charged more than your Max CPC.
- Quality Score still matters the most - This is the secret Google formula. They determine a quality score for your ad. Hint though the better your CTR (Click Through Rate) the better your quality score is going to be. So even if you are willing to outspend all of your competitors if you can't write a quality ad you still will not be placed above them.
So now you can have better control to get the top spot. Now just because you can get the top spot doesn't always mean you should get it. Remember you have a greater likely hood to get more clicks at the top although sometimes it isn't the quality that you would want. There are many times where spot 3-6 are 50% less or more than the top spot and generate you quality traffic and more important customers who are willing to purchase. Keep that in mind as you make changes to your Google Adwords accounts. Good luck and may you achieve your results!
Labels: Google, Google Adwords, google search, Google Webmaster Tools, keywords, real estate pay per click
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
3 Tips to Improve Your Search Results by Google!
Succeeding in organic results in Google, may be time consuming but it doesn't have to be a total mystery! Google, has a wonderful webmaster center where you can learn many of the tips to succeed. Now...hold on....you are saying "I am not a webmaster, I am a real estate agent", that's ok! These tips can be passed on to your webmaster (because they don't always know what to do) and many of them you can do yourself!
- Submit your site to Google -sounds obvious, but I know many who forget or just don't know how. - http://www.google.com/addurl.html.
- Sitemap - Put a simple page on your website that points to places within your website that you would like people to know about.
- Quality Content - Make sure your content is original and is focused on a particular subject area. Remember these pages are for humans to read, not search engines :)
These are just 3 small tips to think about, but Google actually has put up an excellent page on webmaster guidelines that states what to do and definitely what not to do so you can be successful with your real estate internet marketing.
Labels: Google Webmaster Tools, real estate internet marketing, Sitemap, webmaster guidelines
Thursday, July 5, 2007
SEO Efforts with a Sitemap = Success in Search Engines
In order for you to succeed with your SEO efforts, you will want as many of your pages visible to Google, Yahoo, MSN and the other search engines as possible! Now, you have probably read that the search engines have "spiders" constantly searching the web for new pages, but they won't always get to all of the pages on your website. So...how do you ensure that the search engines see more of your web pages?
Answer: Create a Sitemap
Creating a Sitemap using FREE tools can help the search engines see over 90% of your website! This little used feature will give your website more exposure in the search engines, because more of your pages are visible to them!
A wonderful Free Tool to create your site map is http://www.xml-sitemaps.com/ . By simply inputting your web address you can create your FREE XML Sitemap.
Once you complete your Sitemap, you will want to upload it to Google's Web Master Tools, or to Yahoo's Site Explorer! Getting your web pages visible using the Sitemap will get you maximum impact for your SEO efforts as a Realtor!
Answer: Create a Sitemap
Creating a Sitemap using FREE tools can help the search engines see over 90% of your website! This little used feature will give your website more exposure in the search engines, because more of your pages are visible to them!
A wonderful Free Tool to create your site map is http://www.xml-sitemaps.com/ . By simply inputting your web address you can create your FREE XML Sitemap.
Once you complete your Sitemap, you will want to upload it to Google's Web Master Tools, or to Yahoo's Site Explorer! Getting your web pages visible using the Sitemap will get you maximum impact for your SEO efforts as a Realtor!
Labels: Google, Google Webmaster Tools, SEO, Sitemap, Yahoo, Yahoo Site Explorer
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