I like what Tim has to say for the most part, so today I’m giving you a link to watch his video for free on How to Build a High-Traffic Blog Without Killing Yourself.  This is a long video, but it has some good information on how to increase the traffic to your real estate blog.  Parts of the video are a bit too technical for me, and if they’re too technical for you too, just ignore them.

You’ll note that Tim uses Wordpress as his blog software.  That’s the blog software I highly recommend you use for your real estate blog.  If you want a reasonably priced Wordpress real estate blog created for you, go to www.sizzlingblogs.com.  Sizzling Blogs creates the best real estate blogs that look great and bring in a lot of leads.

One more thing I want to mention.  In my last post on real estate blogging, I told you about Matt Cutts, Google’s SEO guru and one of the most influential people on the internet.  You’ll notice that Tim talks about “Matt” in the beginning of this video.  He’s referring to Matt Cutts.  Oh, and by the way, Matt agrees with Tim that Wordpress is the best blog software to use. 

If you have any questions about the information Tim shares in the video, or anything else about blogging, just post a comment here, and I’ll answer fast.

To boosting traffic to your real estate blog.

Kathy Goughenour

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So, here’s the definitive answer on who the expert is on ranking well on Google.  His name is Matt Cutts.

Who is Matt Cutts? 
Matt Cutts is the head of the webspam department at Google.  I know that department name sounds odd, so let me make it easier.  He’s THE Google expert on search engine optimization. 

Cutts is Google’s direct line of communication to the public and he tells us exactly what Google want us to do – and how they want us to do it.  Sometimes his suggestions can be a bit vague, but usually he speaks in plain English that we average web users can understand.

Here’s a link to an article with Search Engine Optimization Tips for Bloggers from Matt Cutts.

Have questions about how to get your real estate blog or website to bring in more leads?  Ask them in the comments.  I promise I’ll answer you personally.

To boosting your real estate internet marketing leads,

Kathy Goughenour

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“You are an individual with your own strengths and weaknesses. If you’re a great speaker, you may consider doing teleseminars or in-person events to market. If you are a shy hermit who wants to stay behind a keyboard, those options may not align with your personality. For you, sending out newsletters or writing articles may be better marketing options. Don’t try and be someone you’re not.”

I’d like to add one suggestion to Susan’s idea.  If marketing your real estate business is important to you, and there’s a method you’d like to try that isn’t easy for you to do, consider outsourcing it.

For example, I know that adding video to my website and blog is a great idea.  But I don’t know how to do that and don’t want to invest the hours and hours it would take me to learn how.  Instead, I’m outsourcing the video creation process to a Virtual Assistant who is an expert at creating video.

Here’s another example.  Do you want to market your real estate business by blogging but don’t know how?  You can learn how for free by downloading my guide Blogging 101:  A Real Estate Agent’s Guide to Building Business and Generating Tons of Leads Online.  Just fill out the simple form on that page (the form is on the right-hand side about halfway down the page).

If you already have a blog but are struggling to write the blog content, consider becoming a member of my Lead Booster Club.  As a member, you receive 20 pre-written, easy-to-customize blog posts each month for only $29.95.

To marketing your real estate business your way,

Kathy Goughenour

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“Whether they choose to distribute these content nuggets as articles, blog posts, postcards, part of a newsletter or ‘drip campaign’ tips, they’re easy to customize with the agent’s personality and local references,” says Goughenour, whose Lead Booster Club provides 20 content pieces a month as a benefit of membership in the program.  “With this timely, well-researched material on everything from saving money on home maintenance to pricing strategies for an economic downturn, an agent comes across as caring and knowledgeable – without having to spend time coming up with facts and ideas.” 

Goughenour is the author of Blogging 101: A Real Estate Agent’s Guide to Boosting Business and Getting Tons of Leads, which is available as a free download from www.leadboosterclub.com.

For the $29.95 monthly membership fee, Lead Booster Club members also receive articles on generating more and better leads, expert interviews on real estate marketing and publicity, and candid reviews of products and services relevant to real estate agents, in addition to the 20 customizable content pieces.  For more information on the program, real estate agents can visit www.leadboosterclub.com.

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You don’t blog enough.  But you want to.  You know all the good reasons – better Google rank for your real estate blog – the increased traffic to your real estate website – building a reputation with your readers.

But still, you’re so busy you don’t know how you’ll squeeze out another blog post.

This post is NOT going to tell you how to manage your time, where to buy real estate blog content, or even try to motivate you to write more.

I’m going to tell you to surrender.

Leave your real estate blog alone.  Go check your email.  Take the next message from a friend or colleague that you respect and admire, and invite that person to write a guest post for your blog.

You may even know about guest posting.  But something stops you from asking.

I have a hunch it’s one or more of these show-stoppers

• My blog is personal
• My blog will look inconsistent
• I may not like what my guest writes

If you’re sweating blog upkeep, you deserve a truth that will set you free.  The truth is — what may be holding you back is treating your real estate blog content like it’s personal. I’m going to challenge you to re-think these objections one by one.

Objection #1: My real estate blog is personal.  Rethink:  If you want your blog to increase in popularity, think of it as a team effort.  Marketing expert Seth Godin just described the “Death of the Personal Blog” in his blog. He observed that the top blogs (rated according to authority by blog search engine Technorati) are all maintained by teams of writers.  His point – to rise to the top, “your tactic needs to be to have a team of people doing the work” of posting very often.

Objection #2: My real estate blog will look inconsistent.  Rethink: Indeed, the voice and writing style may vary from post to post.  But if you consistently act in the best interest of your readers, that principal will unite everything.  Serving your target reader will keep your real estate blog feeling consistent, and valuable.  Don’t worry about the variety of voices.  Variety is the spice of life.

Objection #3: I may not like what my guest writes.  Rethink:  This is a great opportunity.  Feel free to disagree – with respect.  State your own view.  Congratulations, your next post topic has arrived, painlessly.

Re-casting your real estate blog as a team effort has all these advantages – and more you can probably see for yourself.  Such as –

• Your guest author may send friends to read your blog – more traffic for you.
• You may get an invitation to be a guest writer yourself.  Another chance to link to your real estate blog!
• You get more time to develop great high quality posts, because you take the pressure off having to write more often than is workable for you.

Thanks, Kathy, for giving me this great opportunity to be your guest on your Lead Booster Blog!  Wishing every reader a wealth of guest posts for the New Year….

Joanne Masterson
BlueJProjects Web Design

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“In an economy where everyone is watching their dollars, blogging stands out as both inexpensive and effective,” says Goughenour.  “In the same month, both Marketing Sherpa and the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® presented the case for blogging as a great way of reaching customers looking to buy or sell a home.”

In simple language suitable for beginners, Blogging 101 explains the benefits of blogging, why it works, how to get a blog set up, how to submit a blog post, what to write about, and how to make sure the blog builds trust with potential clients over time, along with tips for coming up with blog content.

For real estate agents who want to join the blogging trend but can’t spare the time to write blog posts, Goughenour’s membership program Lead Booster Club offers a customizable blog post service.  For a modest monthly fee, the service provides informative real estate-related blog posts into which subscribing real estate agents can insert local information and their own professional perspective.  Then they post the content to their own blog.

“Members get timely, well-researched material, such as ideas for reducing expenses for home maintenance and home energy, as well as easy-to-follow instructions for making the content relevant to their local community,” notes Goughenour.  “This way, blogging isn’t a burden even for an agent who’s very busy.”

For a free copy of Blogging 101: A Real Estate Agent’s Guide to Boosting Business and Getting Tons of Leads or more information on customizable blog posts for real estate agents, anyone can go to www.leadboosterclub.com.

To boosting your leads,

Kathy Goughenour

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Because so many potential clients begin the process of buying or selling a home through the internet, your blog may be the first impression you make on them. You will generate leads through your blog when its message and tone resonates with your readers.

Most people are now suspicious of big business’ pushy marketing.   Today’s potential clients want to know the individual behind the name of the company. They want to get to know your personality, what makes you tick and if you can be trusted to do what you say you will.

What does your blog say to your readers? Does your personality shine through your words and topics? Can your readers tell that you love what you do and the area in which you live and work?  Do you want them to believe you are the leading expert in your field? If your personal message isn’t shining through, change it so it matches your goals.

To do this, make sure your articles sound the way you talk. Blog writing style is conversational, not corporate.

The easiest way to make sure your articles sound like you talk is to read them out loud.  Make changes to anything that sounds false.

Through your blog, you can give potential clients a glimpse of your personality and your expertise and most importantly you can build trust. Use this to your advantage and use your blog to enhance your real estate internet marketing and generate leads.

Learn more about how to generate real estate sales leads through blogging by downloading my free guide Blogging 101:  A Real Estate Agent’s Guide to Building Business and Generating Tons of Leads Online.

To boosting your leads with real estate internet marketing,

Kathy Goughenour

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Here are some rules you need to follow in each post.

1. Abbreviations. You may think everyone understands an abbreviation that you use regularly.  Do not assume that.  Spell words out completely so the meaning is clear.  Abbreviations are appropriate when text messaging or instant messaging but not in a blog.
2. Avoid run-on sentences. Run-on sentences happen when you stick too many ideas into one sentence instead of breaking them down into smaller pieces and these are very hard for people to read and they don’t look right. See what I mean? Shorter is always better for online readers.
3. Proper spelling. Don’t worry if you occasionally misspell words. No one is giving you a score for your writing, but there is no excuse for regular spelling errors. Most blog services offer a spell check, as do most word processing programs. If you are in doubt about a word, look it up. When you find misspellings in previous posts, go back and correct them.
4. Subject Verb Agreement. This is a fairly simple rule that makes a world of difference in the sound of your writing. Look at these two sentences:

Johnny kick his ball across the street.

Johnny kicks his ball across the street.

Plural subjects get singular verbs. When in doubt, read your post out loud before publishing it.

A well-written blog will boost your ratings and generate more real estate internet marketing leads than one that’s just thrown together.

Do you want to know more about how to write great blog posts to pull in hundreds of real estate sales leads? Download my free guide Blogging 101:  A Real Estate Agent’s Guide to Building Business and Generating Tons of Leads Online now.

To boosting your real estate internet marketing leads,

Kathy Goughenour

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Throw these English writing rules out the window when writing your blog posts.

1. Starting a sentence with “because” or “and”. Don’t get into the habit of starting all your sentences with these words, but don’t write yourself into an awkward paragraph because you don’t know how else to phrase something. And sometimes starting with “and” just sounds better.
2. Ending a sentence with a preposition. Don’t waste another minute worried about how to end your sentences. It’s perfectly acceptable to end a sentence with “to” or “for” as long as it helps your blog posts sound authentic.
3. Sounding like a conversation. Blog posts need to be easy to read, and posts written like a conversation between two people are easy to read. They’re also more fun to read. After you write a post, read it out loud and see if it sounds believable.
4. Use “you”. See rule 3. Blog posts should not be written in corporate speak. Save that for employee manuals. Your blog needs to address your readers’ needs. Using “you” will help make your readers part of your blog and keep them reading.

Your blog can be a fantastic tool to generate leads, stay in touch with past clients and make your real estate internet marketing more effective. The best blogs are those with the most authentic voices. Keep practicing your writing and keep your focus on letting your voice shine through.

Do you want to know more about how to write great blogs to pull in hundreds of real estate sales leads? Download my free guide Blogging 101:  A Real Estate Agent’s Guide to Building Business and Generating Tons of Leads Online now.

To boosting your real estate internet marketing leads,

Kathy Goughenour

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When homeowners go online for help in buying or selling their homes, their first stop is often a search engine.  For the real estate agent in, let’s say, Homewood City who wants to maximize the odds that the searcher who types in “Homewood City real estate” lands on their site, a free new beginner’s guide explains how to snag traffic through blogging.

“The least expensive, most productive method for real estate agents to get relevant traffic from search engines is blogging,” says Kathy Goughenour, author of Blogging 101: A Real Estate Agent’s Guide to Boosting Business and Getting Tons of Leads Online.  “But when I surveyed real estate agents about blogging, I found most didn’t know much about blogging and couldn’t imagine what to blog about.”

In simple, non-technical language, Blogging 101 explains the advantages of blogging, how to get a blog set up, how to submit a blog post, what to write about and how to make sure the blog continues to serve as a trust builder with potential clients over time.  Its contents include:

• Ten different ways a blog boosts business for real estate agents
• The three key steps for getting started in blogging
• How to identify the best keywords to use and precisely where and how to use them
• Why links to other sites add value to blogs, with an important warning about which sites never to link to
• Free online resources for blog content ideas
• Twelve general categories of ideas for what to blog about
• Five ways to increase the popularity of your blog
• And more, including several clever ideas for making the process of blogging even easier

Besides having authored Blogging 101, Kathy Goughenour is the founder of Lead Booster Club, a membership web site that provides practical tools and know-how for real estate agents to attract more customer leads and triumph over the competition – even in today’s challenging real estate market.

Real estate agents can download their free copy of Blogging 101: A Real Estate Agent’s Guide to Boosting Business and Getting Tons of Leads Online simply by going to www.leadboosterclub.com and filling out the request form on the home page.

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