I have been to several MLRs, and what I have seen and been a part of is nothing short of impressive. The Local Reputation Summit (MLR), organized by the Chicago Real Estate Board, is one such conference. It brings together industry experts and thought-leaders from around the world to share their collective wisdom regarding real estate marketing and technology. The speakers and attendees alike are passionate about what they do; they love teaching and sharing, and they want to see the industry grow and develop. What’s more, the attendees have taken the time to build and grow their personal brands around the principles and messages of the summit–they want to be known for being experts in their field and thought-leaders in real estate technology.
Given my experience and involvement with the real estate industry, it’s no wonder that I’ve chosen to position myself as the go-to person for real estate marketing and marketing technology for my blog. And you know what? I’m pretty sure that I’m not alone. If you’re reading this, I assume that you’re either a real estate agent, buying or selling a house, or somewhere in between. If you’re new to the industry or even to blogging, then read on.
Why Blogging?
Blogging is an excellent choice for real estate agents because it enables us to connect with our audience wherever they are. When they aren’t physically next to us in person, we can bring them closer with virtual mentorship and guidance. Further, the content that we post—whether it’s an informative blog article or an entertaining podcast episode—gives us the opportunity to connect with our audience through a common interest or challenge.
Blogging is also a fantastic choice because it’s so easy to set up. All you need is a free WordPress.com account and you can start blogging in less than five minutes. With other forms of content, such as video or podcasts, you need a microphone, a quiet room, and some recording software. Not to mention that you need someone to listen to and critique your work. Having a blog makes everything else easy—all you need is an audience and you can begin to develop your skills and knowledge in your chosen field.
The Three Pillars Of A Successful Blog
There are three pillars that I believe make up a successful real estate blog: content, community, and conversion. Let’s examine each one.
Content
Content is king and queen. If you want to see your blog succeed, you need to invest in quality content that is going to be valuable and of interest to your target audience. Unfortunately, content can be expensive. Whether you’re paying for content with ads or through affiliate sales, you’re going to want to develop a content schedule that generates revenue. Since we’re already on the subject of blogging, it’s a good idea to examine some of the more popular and profitable blogs out there. We’ll use Bluehost as an example, as they offer a free domain and hosting for new bloggers. For those looking to climb the proverbial ladder, Bluehost is one of the best values in web hosting.
As you may have guessed, Bluehost is popular because of its top-notch content. To start, they have an inhouse team of professional writers who produce authoritative and useful content daily. What’s more, their content is frequently updated and curated. Finally, let’s not forget about their commitment to supporting and developing their community. To this day, Bluehost continues to invest in new products and features that they deem valuable for their audience. They know that one of the best ways to attract and retain customers is by providing them with value.
Community
If you’ve been around the block a few times, you know that community is paramount in the world of social media. You can’t just connect with your readers and expect them to come back. We’re humans, and as such, we crave connection and community. For those looking to establish a real estate blog, it’s critical to build a community of people who share your interest in real estate. You can take this one step further by inviting your audience to participate in your blog’s activities. For example, you might ask readers to join your email list and receive daily or weekly emails containing useful information, tips, and tricks about blogging. Alternatively, you could offer a weekly giveaway to attract new readers and encourage them to engage with your blog.
Building a community means creating an environment where your audience feels comfortable expressing their opinions, sharing their knowledge, and engaging with you and your blog. With that comes trust and credibility. You can’t expect your audience to connect with you if you don’t demonstrate that you’ve done your homework and have their best interests at heart. When you’re establishing a blog, it’s a good idea to examine the communities that you’re already a part of. By doing this, you’ll have the opportunity to discover the types of content that they value and enjoy. This, in turn, will help you establish your blog’s identity and niche.
Conversion
You might be thinking that you need to focus on conversion if you’re looking to succeed as a blogger. After all, your goal is to get people to click on the links that you promote, right? Well, yes and no. First of all, the key to successful conversion is through a combination of both word and image. Second, you need to ensure that the content that you promote is relevant, useful, and of high quality. Finally—and this is the most important point—you need to measure the results of your efforts. Unless you’re actively getting in the habit of measuring and analyzing the performance of your blog, you’re going to struggle to succeed as a blogger.
A common mistake that first-time and even some experienced bloggers make is to focus solely on getting visitors to their site. While getting traffic is certainly important, it’s only the first step in the process. What you want to do is turn that traffic into leads and then into customers. To that end, you need to determine both the top and bottom of the funnel to identify where your efforts are falling short and where you’re converting at a good rate. Essentially, you want to know what is and isn’t working so that you can refine your strategy and improve your results. Community building and content creation are both essential, and you can’t have one without the other.