Category: Real Estate Agent Websites

  • 16 Best Real Estate Agent Websites With IDX

    16 Best Real Estate Agent Websites With IDX

    Do real estate agent websites with IDX perform better?

    There isn’t a quick answer. But, listing feeds like IDX appeal to agents because they’re quick and easy ways to get the most out of your listings on your website.

    IDX has become a standard piece, and in many cases, listing feeds have gone from a nice feature to a necessity to stay with your competition.

    We all know home buyers and sellers are searching the Internet as their number one source of education. They know how to browse from website to website, and they know what they want to see from each website they visit.

    They’re quick to leave if a website doesn’t offer exactly what they expect.


    What, though, when they visit your real estate agent website, are they (and everyone else, for that matter) expecting?

    Well, they’re probably expecting to find some information about your real estate business and you personally, testimonials promoting your service, and, perhaps most importantly, house listings.

    If you neglect any of these elements, your website will likely have a higher bounce rate and lower lead volumes.

    The digital world is that simple.

    While some online naysaying articles — like Why It’s Time to Look at Real Estate Websites Differently — claim that you don’t need IDX integration on your website, we here at Carrot think they’re wrong.

    Before we dive into the 16 real estate agent websites with IDX options, let’s talk about IDX quickly.

    What Is IDX?

    IDX stands for Internet Data Exchange. That sounds complicated. Though, it isn’t.

    With IDX integration, real estate agent websites can pull house listings up natively on the real estate agent’s website.

    Here’s what this looks like on one of our Carrot real estate agent websites, for example.

    real estate agent websites with idx

    That’s what IDX looks like on the surface, at least. On the back-end, IDX works by automatically pulling from the MLS and collecting location-qualified listings to publish on your website.

    What is IDX?

    16 of the Best Real Estate Agent Websites With IDX (With Examples)

    You understand what IDX is and why it’s essential for real estate marketing.

    But where can you find the best IDX tool for your website? 

    Here are 16 great options for adding IDX to your real estate agent website — with a summary, features, pricing, and examples. 

    1. Ballen Real Estate Websites

    Website Description

    Ballen Real Estate Websites were built by agents, for agents real-time in the field, and without any contracts! These websites are optimized for lead generation and lead capture. With new design options, integrated tools for calls to action, and built-in optimization. Based on years of testing and measuring of what works in the real estate industry with hundreds of agents using the platform, our BREW is always evolving so you can get more leads online and best of all, you own it.”

    Features

    Here are some of the main features.

    • Complete WordPress Website
    • IDX Integration
    • Property Search
    • Real Estate Lead Capture
    • Community Showcase Pages
    • Buyer, Seller & Hyperlocal Blogs
    • Home Valuation Form
    • Built For SEO
    • CRM Available

    Pricing

    Starts at a one-time payment of $1,495. Plus ongoing monthly costs of at least $149 per month. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    Ballen Real Estate Websites

    2. IDX Broker HOME™

    Website Description

    Each IDX Broker HOME website begins with an exclusive, premium WordPress theme. From there, our team will work with you to personalize any of our mobile-responsive, visually stunning designs, ensuring your REALTOR® website looks unique and up-to-date.

    We will include your logo and favorite photos, adjust the color scheme to mirror your branding, and add featured listings to create a personalized and professional website.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features.

    • Simply & Effective Search
    • Fully Customizable
    • Lead Metrics
    • Protect Your Site With SSL
    • IDX Plugin

    Pricing

    Their plans start at $50 per month and go up to $150 per month. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    IDX Broker HOME™

    3. Carrot

    Description

    We serve over 7,000 real estate investors and agents at Carrot. As a part of that, we offer high-converting websites with IDX for real estate agents.

    Features

    Our features include… 

    Pricing

    Here are the website builder’s pricing options… 

    • Standard Website Subscription: $89/mo
    • Add-ons range from $29 to $69 per month

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool. Scroll down through the page to see it fully.

    4. iHomeFinder

    Website Description

    The IDX search you’ve been looking for. Fast, sleek property search with advanced lead capture technology. Keep visitors coming back with a search experience they’ll love. Display listings anywhere on your site with the search criteria you select.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers.

    • Property Search & Lead Capture
    • Market Stats & Reports
    • Email Marketing
    • Blog Content
    • Real Estate CRM
    • Real Estate Agent App
    • Integrations
    • Custom IDX Data API

    Pricing

    Pricing starts at $59.95 per month and goes up to $199.95 per month. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    iHomeFinder

    5. IDX Central

    Website Description

    “Regardless of which IDX Solution you select, there will always be something that doesn’t quite work/look the way you expect it. These issues will require some code modifications. We can save you time by knowing just how to fix those issues and offer creative ways to make them even better.

    We can also provide you with code we have used in the past to help speed up your development/integration time. Even if you are an experienced programmer or have one that manages your site, our knowledge and experience can save you time from experimentation/trial and error.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers. 

    • Advanced IDX Property Search
    • Map and Polygon Search
    • Lead Generation Forms
    • Lead Nurturing App
    • Automated Market Reports
    • Real Estate CRM
    • SMS Autoresponder
    • Email Marketing Automation
    • SEO Friendly with Indexible Listings

    Pricing

    Pricing for IDX solutions starts at $44.95 per month. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    IDX Central

    6. BoomTown

    Website Description

    Expert lead generation, IDX websites, intelligent CRM, lead management services, and more, come in flexible packages that scale with your success. See why BoomTown is the #1 user-rated real estate CRM year after year.”

    Features

    Here are some of the main features this tool offers. 

    • Success Assurance
    • Consumer Website
    • Lead Generation
    • Predictive CRM
    • Success Management
    • HomeSearch Now
    • Coaching

    Pricing

    Can’t find pricing on their website. Looks like you have to book a demo to learn more.

    Example

    We couldn’t find any examples of websites they’ve built. But they have a lot of success stories over here.

    7. Real Geeks

    Website Description

    IDX websites that convert. Real Geeks offers highly optimized, easy-to-use websites, designed to generate the highest conversion rate in the industry. Our Property IDX is updated every 15 minutes, so your Real Geeks website has the most up-to-date property data available.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers.

    • Mobile Optimized
    • Fully Responsive
    • Easy-to-Use
    • High Return Rates
    • A/B Testing
    • Fast Load Times
    • High Conversion Rates
    • Search Engine Friendly
    • Custom Landing Pages
    • Fully Editable Pages
    • Built-in blog

    Pricing

    Can’t find pricing on their website. You need to request more information. 

    Example

    Can’t find an example of their website. But they have a lot of success stories over here

    8. Placester

    Website Description

    Get the website you’ve always wanted! Placester is the best option for agents & brokers who want a unique website but also need speed and the flexibility to adapt as the market changes.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features this tool offers. 

    • Responsive Website
    • Site Editor
    • IDX Listing Display Tools
    • Simple CRM
    • Unlimited Posts & Pages
    • Online Support

    Pricing

    Pricing starts at $64 per month and goes up to $1,250 per month. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool. 

    Placester

    9. Agent Image

    Website Description

    Agent Image creates the best real estate websites for REALTORS®, agents, and brokers. We have launched over 20,000 sites for top producing companies in the country and we’re proud of our long list of loyal clients. Whether you’re looking for an affordable agent website built on WordPress or looking for a custom design for your brokerage office, we’ve got you covered. Put our 20 years of experience to the test.”

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers. 

    • Hosted WordPress Site
    • Mobile Optimized
    • Fully Response Design
    • IDX Search Features
    • Listing Display Features
    • Property Details
    • Lead Generation
    • SEO Friendly

    Pricing

    They don’t have pricing on their website. You need to contact them if you want to find out more. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool. 

    Agent Image

    10. Showcase IDX

    Website Description

    Make your site sticky with a portal-quality search for agent and brokerage websites. Modern search options that buyers and sellers love. Showcase IDX’s proprietary indexes to let you search seamlessly across multiple MLS feeds. The Fastest, easiest way to search.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers. 

    • IDX Search & Results
    • Real Estate Listing Pages
    • State-Of-The-Art Mapping IDX
    • CRM Tools
    • Premium CRM Integrations

    Pricing

    Pricing starts at $59.95 per month and goes up to $99.95 per month. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool. 

    Showcase IDX

    11. AgentWebsite

    Website Description

    First impressions matter. Showcase your services. Promote your listings on your own real estate website. One that’s easy to update and optimized for search engines.

    Generate qualified leads. Impress sellers, and catch buyers early in the process.

    We make it easy. Agents are always telling us how easy AgentWebsite is to use. Expect fast activation and competitive features. Toll-free help is available every day, right here in the USA.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers. 

    • Free 15 Day Free Trial
    • Website & Hosting
    • Free Domain Name
    • Free Property Search (IDX)
    • Toll Free Support
    • Control Panel
    • Search Engine Optimized (SEO)
    • Buyer & Seller Articles
    • 1 Email Mailbox
    • CMA Lead Page
    • Relocation Lead Page

    Pricing

    Pricing starts at $29 per month, not including the set-up fee. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    AgentWebsite

    12. Ylopo

    Website Description

    Our mobile-optimized IDX home search website is the hub of your buyer’s home search activity.  Delight your consumers with a clean and beautiful site design, as you gather 24/7 intelligence on their search behavior to hone in on exactly what each buyer wants to see.”

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers. 

    • Mission Control
    • IDX
    • Branded Website
    • Lead Generation
    • Listing Rocket
    • Lead Nurture
    • CRM

    Pricing

    Pricing isn’t mentioned on their website. You have to request a demo if you want to learn more. 

    Example

    They don’t have any examples on their website. But they do have some case studies on their homepage. 

    13. Union Street Media 

    Website Description

    We build award-winning websites for real estate professionals. Our sites are IDX-integrated and responsive, meaning they will always be up-to-date with the latest MLS listings and will look great and perform well on any device or screen size.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features this tool offers. 

    • Search Tools
    • Lead Dashboard
    • Neighborhood Reports
    • Automated Home Valuation Tool

    Pricing

    Pricing isn’t mentioned on their website. You’ll need to request a demo if you want to learn more. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    Union Street Media

    14. Luxury Presence

    Website Description

    A brand-new home search experience for your clients. Our IDX tool provides award-winning design, cutting-edge search features, and compelling use of data and lead capture functionalities.

    Our IDX home search experience provides two things: an exceptional search experience for your visitors and a high-converting lead generation platform for your business.

    With multi-feed support, fully-responsive designed, spiderable and organic IDX, and lightning-fast multi-field search capabilities, our home search tools give your visitors an experience they’ll love.

    Pulling from your MLS feed, our control center allows you to layer high-resolution photos, videos, and virtual tours on top of your MLS listing date to create stunning featured listing pages for your website.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers.

    • Split-Screen Map
    • Lead Capture
    • Saved Searches
    • Multiple-MLS Feeds
    • Saved Listings
    • User Accounts
    • Multi-Field Searches

    Pricing

    Pricing isn’t mentioned on their website. You’ll have to request more information if you want to learn more. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    Luxury Presence

    15. Sierra Interactive

    Website Description

    We only build real estate websites. Our platform has evolved over the past decade to become the most powerful content management system for real estate websites in the market.

    The Sierra search tools separate us from our competitors and you from yours. We are always improving these features and keeping ahead of the curve.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers. 

    • Real Estate Websites With IDX
    • Real Estate CRM
    • Real Estate Ad Management

    Pricing

    Pricing starts at $299.95 per month and goes up to $499.95 per month. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    Sierra Interactive

    16. Pro Agent Websites

    Website Description

    Our designs are responsive for a pleasant user experience from desktop to tablets to mobile. Each design is created with the agent in mind. Your photos, logos, and artwork will be incorporated into the design. Designs can be built with any requested modifications.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers. 

    • Extremely Fast Search Results
    • Interactive Map Search
    • Industry Best Lead Capture
    • New Listing Email Alerts
    • Price Change Email Alerts
    • All Listings Available on Search Engines
    • Save Searches, Save Properties
    • No Framing or Wraps, Totally Integrated
    • All Lead Activity Tracked

    Pricing

    Pricing starts at $79.95 per month and goes up to $149.95 per month. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    Pro Agent Websites

    Why Do Real Estate Agents Need IDX?

    ON THE OTHER HAND, without IDX website integration, visitors have to go somewhere other than your website to view house listings.

    And when prospects leave your website to browse through homes, there’s naturally a lower chance of them choosing to work with you.

    Ideally, you want them to stay on your website as long as possible — searching for potential homes and learning about your business.

    Then, those visitors are more likely to work with you instead of the competition- thus improving your credibility!

    Of course, there are no stopping prospects from regularly visiting Zillow and Realtor.com, and other massive MLS websites.

    This is exactly why some online thought-leaders believe IDX is outdated — there’s no way, after all, that you can compete with the giants of MLS.

    Still, at Carrot, we believe IDX is a must for serious real estate agents. And that isn’t just an opinion built on smoke and mirrors.

    Here are four specific reasons why the best real estate websites for agents have IDX integration and tend to perform better than the competition.

    1. Prospects Stay Where You Want Them — On Your Website

    Property listings are the foundation of your real estate business and ultimately, you want people who visit your website to work with you. With the most accurate property data and photos, your IDX can cover 99% of MLS listings.

    But, of course, the story doesn’t start there. Most people, for instance, start by educating themselves on the house-buying process. Then, they might look at some listings to get an idea of what price-point they can afford.

    Eventually, they’ll start seeking out an agent to work with.

    There’s no better place for them to be during that entire process than on your website.

    Unfortunately, you have very little time to grab and keep their attention. One study by the Nielsen Norman Group found that most internet users stay on a website for less than 59 seconds.

    That’s not very long.

    Why do people leave so quickly, though? Well, in the words of Cody Ray Miller over at The Daily Egg, one of the main reasons is that “Users leave your site when they don’t get what they expect.”

    Imagine if you were looking to buy a house and stumbled upon a website that didn’t have listings.

    What would you do? Would you stick around and see what this website has to offer?

    No. You wouldn’t. You’d leave within the first few seconds of arriving.

    The point is, when people visit your website, they naturally expect certain things. If you don’t give them what they expect, they’ll bounce.

    What, though, do visitors to your real estate agent website expect to see?

    A few things.

    Visitors expect to see…

    1. An agent bio of who you are and why you’re fantastic.
    2. A clear CTA for how they can get in contact with you.
    3. Social proof (testimonials, case studies, and reviews) of why they should work with you.
    4. House listings.

    Think about it. What’s the first thing you would do on this website?

    real estate websites with idx roseburg oregon example

    First, you’d view the featured listings a bit down the page.

    idx featured listings

    If you saw something you liked, then you’d probably look into it more. If you didn’t, then you’d likely go to the search bar, enter the information, and click “Search.”

    real estate agent website builder with idx

    Which would then bring up something like this.

    realtor websites with idx

    Or maybe you’d first spend a bit of time learning about the realtor, only after that diving into the listings on their website.

    Either way, house listings tug on the visitor’s attention and encourage them to spend more time on your website.

    And that’s a good thing.

    After analyzing 948,286 visitors to our Carrot member websites over a three-month period, a compelling fact revealed itself: the longer someone spends on your website, the higher chance that they’re going to convert.

    The average session duration of converters was 6:39 and the average session duration of non-converters was only 1:25 — a whopping 471% difference.

    Still, most people leave a website in just under a minute. Unfortunately, that doesn’t give them much time to convert.

    So how does IDX integration help solve this dilemma?

    With real estate listings on your website, people spend more time browsing and less time bouncing, increasing the chance that they’ll become a paying customers.

    It’s not a complete solution. But it’s a simple strategy for keeping visitors right where you want them — on your website.

    Plus, visitors expect to see house listings on your real estate agent website. You don’t want to disappoint them.

    2. You Can Quickly Promote Remarkable Listings

    Maybe you’ve already noticed, but not all IDX plugin solutions are equal.

    Some real estate IDX providers allow you to “list” — if you can call it that — houses on your website… except that the listings aren’t really on your website.

    Instead, with these low-level tools, the IDX integration sends people to another MLS site to view the listing — which, of course, kind of defeats the purpose of IDX in the first place.

    Ideally, you want to use an IDX integration tool for your website that has the following four features.

    1. Visitors should be able to search natively on your website for house listings in your area of operation.
    2. Visitors should be able to view each house listing on your own domain as an individual page, rather than traveling to a 3rd party listing website.
    3. The entire experience should be seamless. You don’t want visitors to feel like their viewing someone else’s listings, photos, and house descriptions on your website. You want them to feel as though each listing is unique to your business.
    4. You should be able to easily choose properties to feature on your website using the IDX integration.

    Carrot’s real estate agent websites with IDX include all of the above features. That way, you never fall behind the competition.

    And on the fourth point, no house sells like a featured house.

    Here’s an example of what this can look like when you’re able to easily choose featured properties from your IDX integration for the front page of your website.

    real estate agent website idx feed

    More than likely, you’re busy enough contacting prospects, answering questions, and meeting with customers to show them houses. Frankly, you don’t always have the time to create a listing on your own.

    With IDX integration, you can simply choose a website to feature and, in just a few clicks, that property is on your front page.

    If nothing else, IDX saves you time.

    But, of course, time is money.

    Pro-tip: When choosing featured properties for the front page of your website, try featuring some of your most expensive properties. That way, people see those first and then perceive other high-priced listings as less expensive (because they see the price relative to the featured houses they saw). In sales, this is called the contrast principle.

    3. Each Listing Gives You Another Opportunity To Rank Your Real Estate Website In Google

    With high-quality IDX integration on your website, each house listing becomes a new page.

    And each page, as you probably know, becomes another chance to rank in Google.

    However, I know what you’re thinking: “There’s no way I can compete with Zillow and Realtor.com in search engines!”

    Related Content: How To Beat Zillow in Google With Your Real Estate Agent Website – Case Study + Guide

    You’re right. There’s no way you can.

    But, there’s another benefit to having those SEO-ready houses on your website beyond just trying to beat Zillow and Realtor.com.

    Namely, when people search Google for your real estate name and an address, you’ll show up.

    Like this, for example.

    google search for real estate websites

    Why would they ever do that, though?

    Let’s imagine that there’s a certain prospect named Joe. From his friends, Joe has heard some really great things about you and he’d like to work with you in the future. But you don’t know this yet because Joe hasn’t contacted you.

    One day, Joe drives by a house for sale that he really likes and he wants to see the inside of — or, at least, some pictures.

    Since he knows about you and he knows about the house listing, he types in “4000 Awesome Avenue [your real estate business].”

    Whose website comes up?

    That’s right. Yours!

    Joe clicks the result, views the house, decides he wants a tour and gives you a call.

    If Joe had viewed the house on Zillow or Realtor.com — if he hadn’t arrived at your website first — then he might have seen an ad for another realtor and chosen to contact them out of convenience.

    And the realtor who gets the first contact usually wins the prospect.

    In other words, IDX integration allows you to attract prospects that you might not even know you had. Sure, this type of prospect might be few and far between — but each client can generate tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars for your business.

    You don’t want to lose that much money because your website didn’t show up when someone typed in your name and an address into Google.

    4. You Can Send More Personalized Follow-up Emails with IDX

    What if you knew that person’s desired price point, number of bedrooms, and square footage for each person to visit your website?

    How would that kind of immediate information change your marketing strategy?

    For one, you’d probably send increasingly personal listing updates and recommendation emails to your prospects.

    Which is a good idea. The click-through rate on personalized emails is 14% higher — and conversions, 10% higher — than their impersonal counterparts.

    And, generally speaking, personalized emails also have six times higher transaction rates.

    But that dream of knowing your website visitors by house preferences is just… well, it’s just a dream, right?

    Wrong. At least, not if you use IDX.

    With some IDX services on your website and Google Analytics, you can track visitors’ listings and even exactly what they search for.

    In fact, one real estate website tried to capture my email like this when I searched for a property on it.

    real estate website listing tracker

    Then, you can either set up an automatic and personalized email update system to contact prospects with relevant house listings. Or you can do so manually.

    Either way, you’re now contacting prospects with things they care about rather than trying to shotgun blast one (or several) listings to loads of people who may or may not be interested.

    Of course, this isn’t a new strategy. Many real estate agents do this. Here’s one real estate email script, for instance.

    Hi Cindy,

    I noticed you recently registered for e-Alerts on my website. I’m glad you signed up as this is the quickest way to receive up-to-date information on listings in your area. Since our website is refreshed every hour on the hour you will be the first to know when a home that fits your preferences hits the market.

    Over the past 7 years, I have worked in the area selling homes and helping buyers find the perfect property. Buying a home is an exciting time and I am here to help you navigate through the process. Below I have linked to one of my blog posts about preparing to buy a home and how it is different this year over the others.

    Have a lovely day,

    Annie Agent

    IDX just makes doing this a whole lot easier and more streamlined than it would be otherwise.

    Conclusion

    If there’s one thing that visitors to your website are expecting to find, it’s house listings.

    You’re a real estate agent, after all. People go to your website to learn about your business and view houses. That’s pretty much it.

    You need to let them do both of those things as quickly as possible.

    Now, you understand how IDX can help and you understand why you need a real estate agent website builder that includes IDX integration.

    Namely, because, with IDX integration, prospects stay on your website longer, you can easily promote featured properties on your front page, each listing helps you rank in Google, and you can send more personalized email updates to prospects.

    However, some online critics believe differently — that real estate agent websites with IDX have an unnecessary crutch.

    What do you think? Let us know in the comments!

  • 15 Best Real Estate Agent Website Builders

    15 Best Real Estate Agent Website Builders

    You’re here because you fall into one of two categories.

    1. You need to use a real estate agent website builder but you either don’t want to botch it or you think you don’t have the time.

    Or…

    2. You are unsatisfied with your current real estate agent website design and want to fix it or create a new one.

    In both cases, you’re not alone: 72% of real estate agents are unsatisfied with the number of leads that their current website generates. That’s not because their real estate agent websites can’t generate leads (at Carrot, we’ve generated over one million leads for investors and agents — all online), but, more often than not, because their website isn’t optimized for it.

    There’s a HUGE difference between having a website and having a website that works. 

    This is exactly why you’re here — to find out what works.



    Real Estate Agent Websites – What’s Important?

    Real Estate Agent Websites | What's Important?

    15 Best Real Estate Agent Website Builders

    You’re a real estate agent, not a web developer. 

    So where are you going to find great user-friendly software to build a high-converting website? Fortunately, you’ve got a lot of options. 

    And we’ve laid them all out for you below… starting with our very own software designed specifically to help real estate agents like yourself grow their businesses!

    Let’s dive in!

    1. Carrot

    Description

    We’ve built literally tens of thousands of websites for real estate professionals at Carrot — not just any websites… websites that convert like clockwork and help grow our member’s businesses. 

    We’ve also got data to back it up. We recently conducted a survey that showed that leads that come through a Carrot site convert 7x better and are 2.5x more profitable than non-Carrot leads (learn why over here). 

    Our tech stack even outperformed WordPress, GoDaddy, Wix, Weebly, and Squarespace in a third-party test

    Cool, right? 

    Take a demo over here to learn more!

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that a Standard Carrot Subscription comes with:

    • High-Converting Website
    • Carrot Lead Manager
    • 3 Campaign Tracking Links // to help you track how well your marketing channels are doing
    • 3 Keywords to track // to help you track how well your target search terms are performing
    • Basic website analytics
    • Visual Editor and Landing Page Builder
    • Chat and Email Support

    The SEO Tools add-on will help you research, plan, and executive effective SEO and SEM:

    • Keyword Rank Tracker // track 25 keywords in your Carrot dashboard
    • SEO Dashboard // the most important SEO data at your fingertips to help you might the right adjustments to your strategy
    • On-page SEO recommendations // to help you make faster, better decisions in SEO

    The Content Tools add-on will unleash AI and Automation to save you time when scaling your content marketing.

    • Automated Content Library // to help you Build Authority in your market through content
    • VideoPost // transcribe your videos into Authority-Building content
    • AI Rewrite Tool // rewrite your content to help you create content faster and stand out in your market
    • Niche Authority Builder // launch multiple Authority-Building blogs on a single niche per month
    • 25 Auto-Location pages // scale your SEO lead gen by creating location pages for your surrounding markets

    Pricing

    Here are the website builder’s pricing options… 

    • Standard Website Subscription: $89/mo
    • Add-ons range from $29 to $69 per month

    Example

    Here’s an example of the website builder’s templates…

    When you’re choosing between different real estate website platforms, there are seven things you need to take into consideration. The best real estate agent website builders have:

    1. Does it offer website hosting?
    2. Is there a Content Management System (CMS)?
    3. Does it offer IDX integration?
    4. Is it designed to maximize lead generation?
    5. Is it optimized for Search Engines?
    6. Will it notify you when you get leads?
    7. Will it integrate with your CRM?
    Carrot real estate agent website example

    2. Placester

    Description

    Placester is a website builder that’s specifically designed for real estate agents. It comes with built-in lead capture and CRM tools, as well as custom templates and design options to help you create a professional website quickly and easily.

    The Pros: 

    • Excellent lead capture and CRM tools 
    • Lots of design customization options 
    • No need to hire a separate web developer

    The Cons: 

    • Limited template selection 
    • Some users find the design customization options overwhelming

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this website builder offers…

    • Lead capture forms 
    • CRM integration 
    • Customizable templates 
    • Easy to use drag and drop interface 
    • No need to hire a separate web developer

    Pricing

    Here are the website builder’s pricing options… 

    • Monthly plan – $49/month 
    • Yearly plan – $468/year (save $132) 

    Example

    Here’s an example of the website builder’s templates…

    Placester website example

    3. Propertybase

    Description

    Propertybase is a comprehensive CRM and website builder for real estate professionals. It offers everything from lead capture and management to IDX search integration and automatic website updates.

    The Pros: 

    • Comprehensive functionality 
    • Strong customer support 
    • Automatic website updates 

    The Cons: 

    • Steep learning curve 

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this website builder offers…

    • Lead capture and management 
    • IDX search integration 
    • Automatic website updates 

    Pricing

    Here are the website builder’s pricing options… 

    • Basic: $49/month 
    • Professional: $99/month 
    • Enterprise: Contact for pricing 

    Example

    Here’s an example of the website builder’s templates…

    PropertyBase website example

    4. IDX Broker

    Description

    IDX Broker is a website builder specifically for real estate agents. It integrates with your MLS to give you access to property listings from all over the country (or even the world).

    Pros: 

    • Integrates with your MLS 
    • Great customer support 

    Cons: 

    • Not as many templates as some of the other builders

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this website builder offers…

    • Agency Management: easily manage all of your listings and agents from one central location. 
    • Lead Capture and CRM Integration: capture leads directly on your website and automatically sync them with your CRM software. 
    • Responsive Design: make sure that your website looks great no matter what device it’s being

    Pricing

    Here are the website builder’s pricing options… 

    • Free: get a basic website with limited features. 
    • Paid Plans: start at $39/month and include more features and support.

    Example

    Here’s an example of the website builder’s templates… 

    IDX Broker website example

    5. InCom

    Description

    InCom is a website builder that’s specifically designed for real estate agents. It offers an easy-to-use platform with all the features you need to create a professional website, including lead capture forms, property listings, and more. Plus, it integrates seamlessly with InListings so you can manage your online presence and marketing efforts all in one place.

    Pros:

    • Easy to use
    • Integrates with InListings

    Cons:

    • No customer support phone line
    • Pricing model is subscription-based

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this website builder offers…

    • Lead capture forms
    • Property listings
    • IDX integration
    • One-click listing posting
    • Customizable templates

    Pricing

    Here are the website builder’s pricing options… 

    • Starter: $49/month
    • Professional: $99/month
    • Elite: $199/month

    Example

    Here’s an example of the website builder’s templates…

    InCom real estate website example

    6. BoomTown

    Description

    Boomtown provides lead generation tools and a customer relationship management (CRM) system for real estate agents. It gives you the ability to generate leads through its many online marketing tools, including search engine optimization (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, and social media.

    Pros:

    • Lead Generation
    • Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system

    Cons: 

    • May be too expensive for some agents
    • Can be difficult to use

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this website builder offers…

    • A customizable website builder
    • Lead capture forms
    • Listing syndication
    • Drip marketing campaigns
    • Property search tools

    Pricing

    Here are the website builder’s pricing options… 

    • Starts at $59/month for the basic plan. 

    Example

    Here’s an example of the website builder’s templates… 

    BoomTown real estate website example

    7. Squarespace

    Description

    Squarespace is a website builder that offers users a simple drag-and-drop interface. It’s an easy way to create a beautiful website without any prior experience or design knowledge.

    Pros: 

    • Squarespace offers a wide range of templates that are all optimized for mobile devices.
    • You can try out Squarespace for free before committing to a paid plan.
    • Squarespace provides 24/seven customer support.

    Cons: 

    • Some users find the interface to be confusing and difficult to use.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this website builder offers…

    • Websites
    • Ecommerce Features
    • Marketing Features
    • Analytics
    • Templates

    Pricing

    Here are the website builder’s pricing options… 

    • Personal – $14 Per Month
    • Business – $23 Per Month
    • Commerce – $27 Per Month
    • Advanced – $49 Per Month

    Example

    Here’s an example of the website builder’s templates…

    SquareSpace real estate website example

    8. Duda

    Description

    Duda is an easy-to-use drag-and-drop website builder for real estate professionals.  You don’t need any coding skills to create a beautiful website with Duda. 

    Just choose from one of their many templates, customize it to match your brand, and add your listings.

    Duda also offers some great features specifically for real estate websites, such as IDX integration and mortgage calculators.

    Pros:

    • Very easy to use – no coding required
    • Lots of templates and design options are available
    • IDX integration and mortgage calculator built-in

    Cons:

    • Not as customizable as some other builders
    • Some users have complained about the customer service

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this website builder offers…

    • User-friendly drag and drop editor
    • Mobile responsive design
    • Over 280 templates specifically designed for real estate websites
    • IDX integration
    • Lead capture forms
    • SEO tools

    Pricing

    Here are the website builder’s pricing options… 

    • Free plan with limited features
    • $14/month billed annually for the Standard plan, which includes all the features listed above.
    • $24/month billed annually for the Pro plan, which includes everything in the Standard plan plus additional features like unlimited pages and bandwidth, Google Analytics integration, and more.

    Example

    Here’s an example of the website builder’s templates…

    Duda real estate website example

    9. Wix

    Description

    Wix is one of the most popular website builders on the market. It’s easy to use and offers a wide variety of templates to choose from. Plus, it’s free to get started!

    Pros: 

    • Wide range of templates available 
    • Very user-friendly 
    • Free to get started

    Cons: 

    • Some templates are a bit dated 
    • Limited customization options available

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this website builder offers…

    • Templates
    • Design Freedom
    • SEO Tools
    • Mobile Optimized
    • App Market
    • Unlimited Fonts

    Pricing

    Here are the website builder’s pricing options… 

    • Combo – $14 Per Month
    • Unlimited – $18 Per Month
    • Pro – $23 Per Month
    • VIP – $39 Per Month

    Example

    Here’s an example of the website builder’s templates…

    wix website template for real estate agents

    10. WordPress

    Description

    WordPress is a popular content management system that helps you easily create and manage your website’s content. It’s user-friendly and relatively inexpensive, making it a great option for small businesses.

    Pros:  

    • User-friendly
    • Inexpensive
    • Great for small businesses

    Cons: 

    • It may require some web development knowledge to use effectively

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this website builder offers…

    • Themes
    • Mobile-Friendly
    • Plugins
    • Everything You Need to Build a Website

    Pricing

    Here are the website builder’s pricing options… 

    • Personal – $4 Per Month
    • Premium – $8 Per Month
    • Business – $25 Per Month
    • eCommerce – $45 Per Month

    Example

    Here’s an example of the website builder’s templates… 

    Wordpress websites for real estate agents

    11. GoDaddy

    Description

    GoDaddy offers a website builder that is simple to use and helps you create a website quickly. It includes templates for real estate agents, as well as SEO tools to help your site rank higher in search results.

    Pros:  

    • Simple to use
    • Includes templates specifically for real estate agents
    • SEO tools included

    Cons: 

    • Not as many features as some other website builders

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this website builder offers…

    • Email and social media marketing
    • One-time appointments
    • PayPal payments
    • SSL certificate to keep your site secure
    • 24/7 customer support
    • Branded content creation with GoDaddy Studio

    Pricing

    Here are the website builder’s pricing options… 

    • Basic – $6.99 Per Month
    • Standard – $10.49 Per Month
    • Premium – $13.99 Per Month
    • Commerce – $14.99 Per Month

    Example

    Here’s an example of the website builder’s templates… 

    GoDaddy websites

    12. Ylopo

    Description

    Ylopo is a website builder that’s specifically designed for real estate agents. It comes with all the features you need to create a beautiful and high-converting website.

    Pros:  

    • You don’t need any coding or design skills.
    • A library of beautiful real estate templates to choose from.
    • 24/seven support from a team of experts

    Cons: 

    • Ylopo is relatively new software, so there are still some features that are in development. 

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this website builder offers…

    • Customizable templates
    • Lead capture and CRM integration
    • SEO optimization
    • One-click IDX integration

    Pricing

    Here are the website builder’s pricing options… 

    • $75/month for the Pro plan
    • $150/month for the Agency plan

    Example

    Here’s an example of the website builder’s templates…

    Ylopo websites

    13. AgentFire

    Description

    AgentFire is a website builder specifically designed for real estate agents. It comes with built-in lead capture and CRM tools, as well as custom templates and design options to help you create a professional website quickly and easily.

    Pros: 

    • Easy to use
    • No design or coding skills needed
    • Custom templates and designs specifically for real estate agents

    Cons:

    • Limited customization options outside of the pre-made templates

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this website builder offers…

    • Custom templates and design options
    • Built-in lead capture and CRM tools
    • Mobile responsive
    • SEO optimized

    Pricing

    Here are the website builder’s pricing options… 

    • The most basic plan starts at $29/month.
    • The top-tier plan is $49/month.

    Example

    Here’s an example of the website builder’s templates…

    Agentfire websites

    14. Union Street Media

    Description

    Union Street Media is a website builder created specifically for real estate agents. With this platform, you can easily create a beautiful and professional website in just a few minutes – no technical skills are required.

    Pros: 

    • User-friendly platform 
    • Beautiful and professional templates 
    • Integrated lead capture forms and CRM software 
    • SEO optimized for maximum visibility 

    Cons: 

    • Limited customization options

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this website builder offers…

    • User-friendly platform
    • Beautiful and professional templates
    • Integrated lead capture forms and CRM software
    • SEO optimized for maximum visibility

    Pricing

    Here are the website builder’s pricing options… 

    • $39/month or $348/year for the Basic plan 
    • $59/month or $588/year for the Professional plan
    • Custom Enterprise pricing available

    Example

    Here’s an example of the website builder’s templates… 

    Union Street Media Websites

    15. Luxury Presence

    Description

    Luxury Presence is a website builder that’s perfect for luxury real estate agents. It offers an easy-to-use drag and drop editor, as well as professionally designed templates to help you create a stunning website in minutes. Plus, it comes loaded with features like lead capture forms, photo galleries, and property search tools.

    Pros: 

    • Beautiful and professional templates 
    • Advanced customization options 
    • Integrated lead capture forms and CRM 
    • Built-in photo galleries and property search tools 

    Cons: 

    • Limited integrations with other software platforms 

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this website builder offers…

    • Drag and drop editor
    • Professionally designed templates
    • Lead capture forms
    • Photo galleries
    • Property search tools

    Pricing

    Here are the website builder’s pricing options… 

    • $49/month for the Basic plan
    • $99/month for the Professional plan
    • $199/month for the Enterprise plan

    Example

    Here’s an example of the website builder’s templates…

    Luxury Presence Websites

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    Your Real Estate Agent Website Builder Must-Have’s:

    Think of real estate website hosting like the building that people walk into to visit a store. If the building is clean, crisp, and fast, people will stick around longer. If it’s dirty, cluttered, and unattractive, then people will leave.

    Particularly, I like this parallel that Salman Mehdi makes:

    “Consider a situation: you are called as a guest to someone’s house. The host serves you with a cheap, rotten, and unhygienic food. What will be your reaction? You would simply not like the experience you have with your host.

    You feel uneasy and there is a sense of you being insulted with the kind of food served to you. You will have a bad opinion about your host. Same is the case with website hosting.

    When you start facing problems with your cheap host, you feel that your money is lost. Your efforts went in vain. You know that you have a bad experience with your so called cheap host.”

    Said another way, website hosting impacts the way that people perceive your website, business, and credibility.

    But it impacts more than that. In fact, choosing the right website host is critical for four reasons.

    1. Support

    There’s no such thing as a perfect website. You’re going to need help at one point or another. Maybe it’s because your website crashed or your DNS records are out of whack or your load speed took a sudden hit.

    Whatever the case, you need people who are on your team, ready to help.

    In the words of Darren Dahl over at Inc,

    “Nobody can prevent glitches 100%, so if and when you find yourself in the middle of one, its best to have someone you can call on to get immediate resolution.”

    This is why, at Carrot, we aim to have a world-class support team.

    With most cheap website hosting options, you’re not going to receive that kind of attention.

    Here’s just a couple of what our 6000+ members say about our support team:

    “James has been extremely patient with helping me fine-tune my website – He responds to all my emails same day and answers all of my questions” – Linda

    “Great support team and awesome features. We had a custom site for years and recently migrated it over to Carrot. We’re very happy with our results so far! thank you” – Omer

    You need to find a company that’s going to help you when you need it, is familiar with industry patterns, and can knowledgeably discuss website changes you can make to drive more traffic and convert more visitors.

    2. Speed

    You need a fast website.

    This is important for several reasons. First of all, most people will outright leave your website if it takes more than two to three seconds to load. End of story. Bye, bye forever, potential lead.

    Second, and equally important, is where you rank in search engines.

    With Google — which accounts for 67% of search engine queries — even milliseconds matter.

    average page load speed vs google position

    (Image Source)

    And a large determiner of how fast your website runs is where and how the website is hosted.

    The easiest way to see if a hosting option produces fast-moving websites is to run one of their websites through this speed tester.

    Here’s how one of our AgentCarrot websites performed, for instance.

    carrot real estate website page speed

    Ideally, you want to be in the green.

    And at Carrot, that green color is completely intentional.

    Here’s what our CTO, Chris, has to say about how we made that happen:

    “The first step for us was moving all of your site assets to a distributed CDN (content delivery network). This means once your website is loaded by a visitor, all the images you have uploaded to your site are served from an additional server located close to your visitor.

    This is faster because we are using a system built for speedy image delivery, and we are spreading the load of serving the whole site onto multiple systems.”

    But tech-speak aside, the best real estate websites for agents have hosting that keeps the website fast so people (and search engines) give the website the chance that it deserves.

    Don’t just take our word. Check out this page speed study done by Fresh Chalk.

    3. Scalability

    I’m willing to bet that you have some ambitious dreams for your business. This year, you probably want to do more deals than last year. You probably want those deals to be bigger, and you probably want to drive more revenue, overall.

    But, all of those dreams mean something to your website. Namely, if you do it right, more people will visit your website and more people will take action on your website.

    As you grow, though, all of those demands can cripple unprepared hosting options.

    This is why it’s important that you choose website hosting that’s going to scale with you.

    Cheap options usually won’t.

    When website hosting is remarkably cheap, it’s often because the company uses traditional shared-hosting. This means your website is hosted on the same server as hundreds or thousands of other websites. That, in and of itself, isn’t a bad thing. But it becomes bad when cheap hosting companies don’t carry the necessary integrations to organize and streamline the demands on your website.

    Here’s how TechTarget puts it:

    “Although shared hosting is a less expensive way for businesses to create a Web presence, it is usually not sufficient for Web sites with high traffic.”

    At Carrot, we use app clusters to split up and clean up the demand on our customer’s websites.

    Once more, here’s Carrot’s CTO, Chris:

    “The first step for us was moving all of your site assets to a distributed CDN (content delivery network). This means once your website is loaded by a visitor, all the images you have uploaded to your site are served from an additional server located close to your visitor.

    This is faster because we are using a system built for speedy image delivery, and we are spreading the load of serving the whole site onto multiple systems.

    Next, we took that same idea and applied it to the initial load of your website – spread that job of serving carrot sites out to a cluster of servers.

    Finally, we implemented a system to control the size of our application cluster, so no matter how many visitors (or bots) are hitting your site at any time, we can keep up with the demand and scale up/down our number of servers accordingly.”

    But, not all website hosts are so scalable. Before committing, make sure that the host is ready to grow just as fast as you are.

    4. Security

    There are a lot of reasons that your website needs to be secure. First off, you don’t want visitor information to get stolen because you didn’t take the necessary security precautions.

    After all, nothing will kill trust faster than a visitor getting their information stolen while on your website.

    Second, you don’t want your own information to get stolen.

    And third, SSL certification (also known as the HTTPS in front of a URL) has some correlation with search engine rankings.

    https google rank positions

    (Image Source)

    So yeah, having a secure website is crazy important — for you and your visitors. However, you probably don’t know the first thing about hacking or website security.

    You’re not alone.

    One report found that the primary reason a WordPress website gets hacked is because of something remarkably simple: outdated plugins.

    That’s why, at Carrot, all websites automatically have SSL certification and our in-house development team is constantly fighting ferocious hackers for you.

    You don’t have to do it yourself and you definitely don’t have to go to college to become a cyber attack specialist.

    Whatever website hosting you choose, make sure it’s equally prepared to protect you from cybercriminals.

    Your Real Estate Agent Website Builder Must-Have: A Content Management System 

    The last thing you want to do is get locked out of your own website.

    I can’t tell you how many people I’ve talked to that had a designer create a website for them and then said, “Yeah, the website looks great… but I can’t change anything because I don’t know how to code.”

    Ideally, you should build your website on a CMS (Content Management System) that is easy to use and allows you to make changes to content whenever you want.

    WordPress is easily the most popular CMS — accounting for about 25% of all websites — and that’s for good reason. WordPress is one of the most user-friendly CMSs around.

    It allows you to easily add content to your website, includes video and images within that content, and organize all of that content within a dashboard.

    This is exactly why we chose to use WordPress as the CMS foundation for our customers. Of course, we also added some of our own flairs to make things even simpler and more efficient.

    We allow you to view all your website stats…

    carrot real estate leads

    A dashboard with information on recent leads…

    real estate agent website stats

    And we even have a system for automatically transcribing your videos and turning them into written blog posts to gain SEO ranking.

    Carrot videopost feature

    That’s not to mention how easy we make it is to add listings to your website, feature some of those listings, and optimize every single page for search engines with our built-in SEO tool.

    Note: We don’t allow our members to install WordPress Plugins on their websites as a traditional WordPress website would. This is for several reasons. Most importantly, it ensures that your website will remain fast, secure, and consistent. If you do want to make additional changes to your website, then don’t hesitate to contact us — we’d love to help you however we can :-)

    Here’s Shawn Moore from CMS Critic:

    “Third-party plugins are required in many CMS platforms. While seemingly convenient, they can be both a pro and con at the same time. Plugins may save hours of development time and even money in the short term.

    But they can also be developed by a third party who may or may not continue to support the tool consistently or at all, which could leave you in a vulnerable position.

    Plugins can also be a major security problem — even well-established plugins like Yoast, a widely used Google Analytics plugin, can be exploited by hackers.

    In fact, the more widely a plugin is deployed, the more attractive it may be for hackers to go after it.”

    When I asked Danni — one of Carrot’s Customer Success Heroes — to comment on Carrot’s CMS, she said,

    “I feel like our system is crazy simple to use. It’s also a huge perk that the content is fully customizable and fully optimized, and that customers can do their own thing with it if they want to.

    Tyler Ford [a Carrot member] was telling us that he has gotten in a habit of doing a few additional tweaks to his content each week and the dude is crushing the rankings with the help of our blog content.”

    Before choosing a real estate agent website builder, explore the CMS a bit. What does it look like? How does it feel to use? Is it easy to navigate or difficult? If you wanted to make some changes to a blog post, how easy would it be?

    In the end, you want a CMS that allows you to make changes quickly and easily. If the CMS doesn’t allow for that, then find a different CMS.

    Your Real Estate Agent Website Builder Must-Have: Allowance for IDX Integration

    When people land on your website, there are only a few things that they could possibly want to do. Often, browsing through house listings is one of those things.

    Of course, you don’t have time to manually add house listings to your website.

    This is exactly why you’ll probably end up wanting a real estate agent website builder with IDX at some point.

    IDX automatically updates your website with house listings pulled from 3rd partly listing websites. The best part is that you don’t have to do anything to update this system once it’s set up on your website.

    IDX will update automatically and it will even host the listings natively on your website.

    Here’s what IDX allows you to do on a website: view and search for house listings.

    Real-estate-agent-website-idx

    You’re a real estate agent, so you probably should have house listings on your website — IDX is the easiest way to do that.

    This is why we recommend choosing a website builder that at least has the option to use IDX.

    At Carrot, we offer IDX integration to all of our real estate agent customers. You don’t have to use it, but many of you will want to.

    In the words of our most famous Tech Support team member, Jake,

    “Adding IDX to any site is a giant pain in the ass… Having someone you trust to help you submit all the paperwork and get the IDX added to the site itself is a huge burden taken off of a business owner.”

    In other words, don’t just choose a website builder that allows you to use IDX, choose a website builder that helps you along the way. That’s what we do at Carrot and we think everyone else should be doing the same thing.

    Your Real Estate Agent Website Builder Must-Have: A Design Proven to Convert Visitors Into Leads

    Many website builders aren’t niched specific.

    WordPress and Squarespace and Wix are all great website builders, but the theme you choose isn’t necessarily designed to convert visitors. Sure, it might look pretty and navigate easily, but that doesn’t mean that traffic is going to convert once they arrive.

    Here at Carrot, we are niche specific to real estate. This means that we’ve run lots of tests to determine what makes people convert on a website in the real estate industry.

    You’re not going to find that kind of expertise anywhere else.

    And unless you know how to manually design a website that converts, with most website builders, there’s no guarantee that your visitors are going to take the action you want them to take.

    In fact, 40% of salespeople said that prospecting is the most difficult part of the sales process, 36% said closing and 22% said qualifying.

    What if you had a website that helped you sell rather than hindered you?

    Regardless of if you choose to work with Carrot, let me walk you through some of the ways our websites are built to turn visitors into leads. That way, if you do go off on your own, you’ll be better prepared.

    When designing a website that’s built to convert, you really only need two things:

    1. Simple usability.
    2. Compelling credibility.

    In terms of the first, consider that 38% of people will outright leave a website if the content or layout is unattractive.

    And in terms of the second, consider that people said honesty and credibility are the most important factors when choosing a real estate agent.

    This is exactly why we’ve baked these two elements into all of our member websites.

    real estate website credibility

    As you can see, our goal is to build immediate trust with people who land on our customer’s websites. We don’t want them to visit the website and think, “Hmm… is this legit?” We want them to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that they’re in the right place, on a trustworthy page.

    The contact information in the upper right corner is particularly important — 44% of website visitors will leave a website if there’s no contact information or phone number.

    Then, as I scroll down the page, you can see that we include easy navigation elements and an un-intrusive “Write a review” CTA that will help build credibility down the road.

    real estate website navigation menu

    Then, the customer has included a video to help make all of it seem more real, and some credibility-building facts to show industry expertise.

    real estate website credibility building

    Then, they share their story, mission, and vision, which further personalizes their business.

    Real estate website mission

    And finally, they end with a testimonial, a friendly note from the realtor, and a CTA.

    real estate website page layout

    Those, of course, are just the homepage elements. There’s a lot more to see on G.Stiles blog and other pages, but those will have to wait for another time.

    The point is this, though: Make sure your website (1) builds credibility and (2) is easy to use.

    Without those two elements, your lead-generation strategy will suffer.

    Try visiting your website as though you’ve just seen it for the first time and ask yourself these questions.

    • What draws your eye first and is that where you want the visitor’s attention?
    • Is your CTA noticeable?
    • How easy is your website to navigate?
    • When you land on the website, does it feel trustworthy? If not, what can you do to change that?

    Your Real Estate Agent Website Builder Must-Have: Search Engine Optimization

    If you want to be one of the best real estate agents in your area — which you do — then there’s no question; you must rank high in search engines.

    Today, Google receives 63,000 searches every single second.

    And the first result in Google receives 33% of that traffic. On the other hand, clicks drastically decrease the further your result falls.

    This means that the higher your website ranks in Google for certain keywords, the more traffic and leads you’re going to generate. Period. End of story. The winner takes all.

    But how the heck do you rank on the first page instead of the 10th, 100th, or 1,000th?

    Well, SEO has a lot of moving pieces; keywords, backlinks, domain authority, internal linking, second-tier links, and anchor text are just a few players. What you need is a website builder that can help you optimize each page to rank in Google.

    Because when someone types in, “Real estate agent in [your city],” you want to be at the top of the page.

    How can a website builder help you, though?

    The sad truth is that most won’t. But, at Carrot, this is how we help our members rank.

    First, we have an SEO tool for all of our members that tell them if their keyword strategy is likely to perform well in Google.

    Carrot SEO Tool

    We even offer a more detailed breakdown telling you what you need to do in order to increase the likelihood of pulling a first-page result.

    We also automatically integrate SSL (or HTTPS) on our customer’s websites, which increases how much Google trusts your domain.

    HTTPs on real estate website

    Then, we keep our customer’s websites crazy fast and mobile-responsive to decrease bounce rates and increase time on page (thus increasing your Google ranking).

    Most website builders wouldn’t even go this far, but we go one step further. We even write monthly blog posts for your website (depending on the plan you choose) that are already optimized for search engines (websites with 51 to 100 pages generate 48% more traffic than websites with 1 to 50 pages).

    In other words, more blog posts equal better rankings which equals more traffic and leads.

    real-estate-agent-websites-blog-posts

    Now I know what you’re thinking. That’s all fine and dandy, but what’s the ultimate result? Does all of that search engine optimization actually work?

    Yes. Yes, it does.

    As you can see below, G.Stiles Realty is the first result after Zillow and Century21.

    real estate agent website Google Rankings

    If your real estate agent website builder doesn’t help you rank in Google, then consider going somewhere that will. Because all of that passive traffic from SEO can quickly turn into passive lead generation — which makes running a business a whole lot easier.

    Your Real Estate Agent Website Builder Must-Have: Lead Notification

    When I asked the team at Carrot why lead notifications is so important for real estate agents, Grady — a Customer Success Hero — said,

    “With all the other agents vying to get prospects as leads, being able to instantly respond to a new lead is key for real estate agents. If the leads bounce to another site where they opt-in and get a response quicker, most likely they’ll go with that company.”

    And he’s right.

    American companies that contact a lead within the hour are seven times more likely to have a meaningful conversation with a decision-maker than companies that wait the full hour. In fact, lead qualification drops ten times when salespeople wait just five minutes to respond, and an additional 400% when they wait ten minutes.

    Plus, 35% to 50% of sales go to the vendor that responds first.

    Sadly, over 50% of companies don’t respond to queries within even five business days.

    Naturally, that’s no recipe for success.

    And it illustrates exactly why you need a website builder that offers a function for notifying you of leads when they happen.

    At Carrot, we offer our customers exactly that. And it’s dead simple to set up.

    real estate lead notifications

    This will then send you a text message when you receive a new lead. This means that within seconds (rather than minutes, hours, or even days) you can contact the lead and increase your chance of turning them into a deal.

    And if our customers are really ambitious, they can even add Olark to their websites and chat with visitors live.

    Chat live with leads

    You need a website builder that offers similar features or integrations. You need to follow up on leads immediately, which means you need to know about leads immediately.

    Your website should help you do that.

    Your Real Estate Agent Website Builder Must-Have: CRM Integration

    Two years ago, I bought a car from a salesperson. I still remember the experience with fondness. Not just because he did a good job during the sale, but because he calls me about every six months to chat.

    Normally, I’d be annoyed and ignore the phone call altogether. But with him, I’m not.

    When he calls, he only ever talks for about five minutes, he asks me relevant questions about things going on in my life and he never pitches me on anything.

    At the end of the phone call, he’ll sometimes say, “And if you know of anyone looking for a car, let em’ know I’d love to help.” I tell him I will and we go our separate ways to chat again in about six months.

    To be honest, he doesn’t feel like a salesperson so much as he feels like a faraway friend.

    How does he pull that off?

    Well, he always uses my name, he always knows what’s going on in my life (if I just had a baby or bought a new house, for example, he’s always sure to ask me about it) and he always keeps it short and friendly.

    And it’s no secret that he’s more than likely using a CRM to keep track of my information.

    Perhaps there’s no better illustration of how powerful and applicable CRM software can be for your business. It allows you to track prospect information (from a phone number and email to interest level and talking points) and then leverage those when communicating with your prospect.

    That’s why you need a website builder that integrates with CRMs and doesn’t block you from all of that follow-up potential.

    In fact, the average ROI for a CRM is nearly $9 for every $1 spent and effective organizations are 81% more likely to consistently use a CRM or some other sales-record system than their ineffective counterparts.

    At Carrot, we have a simple CRM-type tool for all of our customers.

    real estate leads dashboard

    You can use it to tag certain leads as being in different parts of your funnel and track lead-specific information (email, phone number, and address, for instance).

    following up on real estate leads

    For more serious real estate agents that need a dedicated CRM, Carrot easily integrates with Podio, Soho, and more!

    Make sure the website builder you choose offers similar integrations so that you can follow up and convert leads like the friendly car salesperson that calls me every six months.

    Conclusion

    The vast majority of real estate agents are unsatisfied with their website’s lead generation. Either it’s not generating traffic as they want it to or it’s not converting that traffic as they want it to.

    In the end, though, it’s all the same: they don’t generate leads with their website and their business potential suffers.

    We don’t want that to happen to you.

    At Carrot, we’re passionate about helping entrepreneurs build the businesses of their dreams. This is why — regardless of if you choose to work with us — you should consider these seven things before choosing a real estate agent website builder:

    1. Where will the website be hosted?
    2. What is the content management system like?
    3. Does it allow for IDX integration?
    4. Is the design proven to convert visitors?
    5. How easy will search engine optimization be?
    6. Will it notify you of incoming leads?
    7. Does it have or integrate easily with a CRM?
  • 16 Best Real Estate Agent Websites With IDX

    16 Best Real Estate Agent Websites With IDX

    Do real estate agent websites with IDX perform better?

    There isn’t a quick answer. But, listing feeds like IDX appeal to agents because they’re quick and easy ways to get the most out of your listings on your website.

    IDX has become a standard piece, and in many cases, listing feeds have gone from a nice feature to a necessity to stay with your competition.

    We all know home buyers and sellers are searching the Internet as their number one source of education. They know how to browse from website to website, and they know what they want to see from each website they visit.

    They’re quick to leave if a website doesn’t offer exactly what they expect.


    Is your website lost among the clutter?

    Going with a “cheap” website could cost you thousands. Stand out from your competition with Carrot.

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    What, though, when they visit your real estate agent website, are they (and everyone else, for that matter) expecting?

    Well, they’re probably expecting to find some information about your real estate business and you personally, testimonials promoting your service, and, perhaps most importantly, house listings.

    If you neglect any of these elements, your website will likely have a higher bounce rate and lower lead volumes.

    The digital world is that simple.

    While some online naysaying articles — like Why It’s Time to Look at Real Estate Websites Differently — claim that you don’t need IDX integration on your website, we here at Carrot think they’re wrong.

    Before we dive into the 16 real estate agent websites with IDX options, let’s talk about IDX quickly.

    What Is IDX?

    IDX stands for Internet Data Exchange. That sounds complicated. Though, it isn’t.

    With IDX integration, real estate agent websites can pull house listings up natively on the real estate agent’s website.

    Here’s what this looks like on one of our Carrot real estate agent websites, for example.

    real estate agent websites with idx

    That’s what IDX looks like on the surface, at least. On the back-end, IDX works by automatically pulling from the MLS and collecting location-qualified listings to publish on your website.

    What is IDX?

    16 of the Best Real Estate Agent Websites With IDX (With Examples)

    You understand what IDX is and why it’s essential for real estate marketing.

    But where can you find the best IDX tool for your website? 

    Here are 16 great options for adding IDX to your real estate agent website — with a summary, features, pricing, and examples. 

    1. Ballen Real Estate Websites

    Website Description

    Ballen Real Estate Websites were built by agents, for agents real-time in the field, and without any contracts! These websites are optimized for lead generation and lead capture. With new design options, integrated tools for calls to action, and built-in optimization. Based on years of testing and measuring of what works in the real estate industry with hundreds of agents using the platform, our BREW is always evolving so you can get more leads online and best of all, you own it.”

    Features

    Here are some of the main features.

    • Complete WordPress Website
    • IDX Integration
    • Property Search
    • Real Estate Lead Capture
    • Community Showcase Pages
    • Buyer, Seller & Hyperlocal Blogs
    • Home Valuation Form
    • Built For SEO
    • CRM Available

    Pricing

    Starts at a one-time payment of $1,495. Plus ongoing monthly costs of at least $149 per month. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    Ballen Real Estate Websites

    2. IDX Broker HOME™

    Website Description

    Each IDX Broker HOME website begins with an exclusive, premium WordPress theme. From there, our team will work with you to personalize any of our mobile-responsive, visually stunning designs, ensuring your REALTOR® website looks unique and up-to-date.

    We will include your logo and favorite photos, adjust the color scheme to mirror your branding, and add featured listings to create a personalized and professional website.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features.

    • Simply & Effective Search
    • Fully Customizable
    • Lead Metrics
    • Protect Your Site With SSL
    • IDX Plugin

    Pricing

    Their plans start at $50 per month and go up to $150 per month. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    IDX Broker HOME™

    3. Carrot

    Description

    We serve over 7,000 real estate investors and agents at Carrot. As a part of that, we offer high-converting websites with IDX for real estate agents.

    Features

    Our features include… 

    Pricing

    Pricing for our agent websites starts at $99 per month and includes everything you need to get your business off the ground. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool. Scroll down through the page to see it fully.

    4. iHomeFinder

    Website Description

    The IDX search you’ve been looking for. Fast, sleek property search with advanced lead capture technology. Keep visitors coming back with a search experience they’ll love. Display listings anywhere on your site with the search criteria you select.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers.

    • Property Search & Lead Capture
    • Market Stats & Reports
    • Email Marketing
    • Blog Content
    • Real Estate CRM
    • Real Estate Agent App
    • Integrations
    • Custom IDX Data API

    Pricing

    Pricing starts at $59.95 per month and goes up to $199.95 per month. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    iHomeFinder

    5. IDX Central

    Website Description

    “Regardless of which IDX Solution you select, there will always be something that doesn’t quite work/look the way you expect it. These issues will require some code modifications. We can save you time by knowing just how to fix those issues and offer creative ways to make them even better.

    We can also provide you with code we have used in the past to help speed up your development/integration time. Even if you are an experienced programmer or have one that manages your site, our knowledge and experience can save you time from experimentation/trial and error.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers. 

    • Advanced IDX Property Search
    • Map and Polygon Search
    • Lead Generation Forms
    • Lead Nurturing App
    • Automated Market Reports
    • Real Estate CRM
    • SMS Autoresponder
    • Email Marketing Automation
    • SEO Friendly with Indexible Listings

    Pricing

    Pricing for IDX solutions starts at $44.95 per month. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    IDX Central

    6. BoomTown

    Website Description

    Expert lead generation, IDX websites, intelligent CRM, lead management services, and more, come in flexible packages that scale with your success. See why BoomTown is the #1 user-rated real estate CRM year after year.”

    Features

    Here are some of the main features this tool offers. 

    • Success Assurance
    • Consumer Website
    • Lead Generation
    • Predictive CRM
    • Success Management
    • HomeSearch Now
    • Coaching

    Pricing

    Can’t find pricing on their website. Looks like you have to book a demo to learn more.

    Example

    We couldn’t find any examples of websites they’ve built. But they have a lot of success stories over here.

    7. Real Geeks

    Website Description

    IDX websites that convert. Real Geeks offers highly optimized, easy-to-use websites, designed to generate the highest conversion rate in the industry. Our Property IDX is updated every 15 minutes, so your Real Geeks website has the most up-to-date property data available.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers.

    • Mobile Optimized
    • Fully Responsive
    • Easy-to-Use
    • High Return Rates
    • A/B Testing
    • Fast Load Times
    • High Conversion Rates
    • Search Engine Friendly
    • Custom Landing Pages
    • Fully Editable Pages
    • Built-in blog

    Pricing

    Can’t find pricing on their website. You need to request more information. 

    Example

    Can’t find an example of their website. But they have a lot of success stories over here

    8. Placester

    Website Description

    Get the website you’ve always wanted! Placester is the best option for agents & brokers who want a unique website but also need speed and the flexibility to adapt as the market changes.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features this tool offers. 

    • Responsive Website
    • Site Editor
    • IDX Listing Display Tools
    • Simple CRM
    • Unlimited Posts & Pages
    • Online Support

    Pricing

    Pricing starts at $64 per month and goes up to $1,250 per month. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool. 

    Placester

    9. Agent Image

    Website Description

    Agent Image creates the best real estate websites for REALTORS®, agents, and brokers. We have launched over 20,000 sites for top producing companies in the country and we’re proud of our long list of loyal clients. Whether you’re looking for an affordable agent website built on WordPress or looking for a custom design for your brokerage office, we’ve got you covered. Put our 20 years of experience to the test.”

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers. 

    • Hosted WordPress Site
    • Mobile Optimized
    • Fully Response Design
    • IDX Search Features
    • Listing Display Features
    • Property Details
    • Lead Generation
    • SEO Friendly

    Pricing

    They don’t have pricing on their website. You need to contact them if you want to find out more. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool. 

    Agent Image

    10. Showcase IDX

    Website Description

    Make your site sticky with a portal-quality search for agent and brokerage websites. Modern search options that buyers and sellers love. Showcase IDX’s proprietary indexes to let you search seamlessly across multiple MLS feeds. The Fastest, easiest way to search.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers. 

    • IDX Search & Results
    • Real Estate Listing Pages
    • State-Of-The-Art Mapping IDX
    • CRM Tools
    • Premium CRM Integrations

    Pricing

    Pricing starts at $59.95 per month and goes up to $99.95 per month. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool. 

    Showcase IDX

    11. AgentWebsite

    Website Description

    First impressions matter. Showcase your services. Promote your listings on your own real estate website. One that’s easy to update and optimized for search engines.

    Generate qualified leads. Impress sellers, and catch buyers early in the process.

    We make it easy. Agents are always telling us how easy AgentWebsite is to use. Expect fast activation and competitive features. Toll-free help is available every day, right here in the USA.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers. 

    • Free 15 Day Free Trial
    • Website & Hosting
    • Free Domain Name
    • Free Property Search (IDX)
    • Toll Free Support
    • Control Panel
    • Search Engine Optimized (SEO)
    • Buyer & Seller Articles
    • 1 Email Mailbox
    • CMA Lead Page
    • Relocation Lead Page

    Pricing

    Pricing starts at $29 per month, not including the set-up fee. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    AgentWebsite

    12. Ylopo

    Website Description

    Our mobile-optimized IDX home search website is the hub of your buyer’s home search activity.  Delight your consumers with a clean and beautiful site design, as you gather 24/7 intelligence on their search behavior to hone in on exactly what each buyer wants to see.”

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers. 

    • Mission Control
    • IDX
    • Branded Website
    • Lead Generation
    • Listing Rocket
    • Lead Nurture
    • CRM

    Pricing

    Pricing isn’t mentioned on their website. You have to request a demo if you want to learn more. 

    Example

    They don’t have any examples on their website. But they do have some case studies on their homepage. 

    13. Union Street Media 

    Website Description

    We build award-winning websites for real estate professionals. Our sites are IDX-integrated and responsive, meaning they will always be up-to-date with the latest MLS listings and will look great and perform well on any device or screen size.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features this tool offers. 

    • Search Tools
    • Lead Dashboard
    • Neighborhood Reports
    • Automated Home Valuation Tool

    Pricing

    Pricing isn’t mentioned on their website. You’ll need to request a demo if you want to learn more. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    Union Street Media

    14. Luxury Presence

    Website Description

    A brand-new home search experience for your clients. Our IDX tool provides award-winning design, cutting-edge search features, and compelling use of data and lead capture functionalities.

    Our IDX home search experience provides two things: an exceptional search experience for your visitors and a high-converting lead generation platform for your business.

    With multi-feed support, fully-responsive designed, spiderable and organic IDX, and lightning-fast multi-field search capabilities, our home search tools give your visitors an experience they’ll love.

    Pulling from your MLS feed, our control center allows you to layer high-resolution photos, videos, and virtual tours on top of your MLS listing date to create stunning featured listing pages for your website.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers.

    • Split-Screen Map
    • Lead Capture
    • Saved Searches
    • Multiple-MLS Feeds
    • Saved Listings
    • User Accounts
    • Multi-Field Searches

    Pricing

    Pricing isn’t mentioned on their website. You’ll have to request more information if you want to learn more. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    Luxury Presence

    15. Sierra Interactive

    Website Description

    We only build real estate websites. Our platform has evolved over the past decade to become the most powerful content management system for real estate websites in the market.

    The Sierra search tools separate us from our competitors and you from yours. We are always improving these features and keeping ahead of the curve.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers. 

    • Real Estate Websites With IDX
    • Real Estate CRM
    • Real Estate Ad Management

    Pricing

    Pricing starts at $299.95 per month and goes up to $499.95 per month. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    Sierra Interactive

    16. Pro Agent Websites

    Website Description

    Our designs are responsive for a pleasant user experience from desktop to tablets to mobile. Each design is created with the agent in mind. Your photos, logos, and artwork will be incorporated into the design. Designs can be built with any requested modifications.

    Features

    Here are some of the main features that this tool offers. 

    • Extremely Fast Search Results
    • Interactive Map Search
    • Industry Best Lead Capture
    • New Listing Email Alerts
    • Price Change Email Alerts
    • All Listings Available on Search Engines
    • Save Searches, Save Properties
    • No Framing or Wraps, Totally Integrated
    • All Lead Activity Tracked

    Pricing

    Pricing starts at $79.95 per month and goes up to $149.95 per month. 

    Example

    Below is an example of the type of IDX website you can create with this tool.

    Pro Agent Websites

    Why Do Real Estate Agents Need IDX?

    ON THE OTHER HAND, without IDX website integration, visitors have to go somewhere other than your website to view house listings.

    And when prospects leave your website to browse through homes, there’s naturally a lower chance of them choosing to work with you.

    Ideally, you want them to stay on your website as long as possible — searching for potential homes and learning about your business.

    Then, those visitors are more likely to work with you instead of the competition- thus improving your credibility!

    Of course, there are no stopping prospects from regularly visiting Zillow and Realtor.com, and other massive MLS websites.

    This is exactly why some online thought-leaders believe IDX is outdated — there’s no way, after all, that you can compete with the giants of MLS.

    Still, at Carrot, we believe IDX is a must for serious real estate agents. And that isn’t just an opinion built on smoke and mirrors.

    Here are four specific reasons why the best real estate websites for agents have IDX integration and tend to perform better than the competition.

    1. Prospects Stay Where You Want Them — On Your Website

    Property listings are the foundation of your real estate business and ultimately, you want people who visit your website to work with you. With the most accurate property data and photos, your IDX can cover 99% of MLS listings.

    But, of course, the story doesn’t start there. Most people, for instance, start by educating themselves on the house-buying process. Then, they might look at some listings to get an idea of what price-point they can afford.

    Eventually, they’ll start seeking out an agent to work with.

    There’s no better place for them to be during that entire process than on your website.

    Unfortunately, you have very little time to grab and keep their attention. One study by the Nielsen Norman Group found that most internet users stay on a website for less than 59 seconds.

    That’s not very long.

    Why do people leave so quickly, though? Well, in the words of Cody Ray Miller over at The Daily Egg, one of the main reasons is that “Users leave your site when they don’t get what they expect.”

    Imagine if you were looking to buy a house and stumbled upon a website that didn’t have listings.

    What would you do? Would you stick around and see what this website has to offer?

    No. You wouldn’t. You’d leave within the first few seconds of arriving.

    The point is, when people visit your website, they naturally expect certain things. If you don’t give them what they expect, they’ll bounce.

    What, though, do visitors to your real estate agent website expect to see?

    A few things.

    Visitors expect to see…

    1. An agent bio of who you are and why you’re fantastic.
    2. A clear CTA for how they can get in contact with you.
    3. Social proof (testimonials, case studies, and reviews) of why they should work with you.
    4. House listings.

    Think about it. What’s the first thing you would do on this website?

    real estate websites with idx roseburg oregon example

    First, you’d view the featured listings a bit down the page.

    idx featured listings

    If you saw something you liked, then you’d probably look into it more. If you didn’t, then you’d likely go to the search bar, enter the information, and click “Search.”

    real estate agent website builder with idx

    Which would then bring up something like this.

    realtor websites with idx

    Or maybe you’d first spend a bit of time learning about the realtor, only after that diving into the listings on their website.

    Either way, house listings tug on the visitor’s attention and encourage them to spend more time on your website.

    And that’s a good thing.

    After analyzing 948,286 visitors to our Carrot member websites over a three-month period, a compelling fact revealed itself: the longer someone spends on your website, the higher chance that they’re going to convert.

    The average session duration of converters was 6:39 and the average session duration of non-converters was only 1:25 — a whopping 471% difference.

    Still, most people leave a website in just under a minute. Unfortunately, that doesn’t give them much time to convert.

    So how does IDX integration help solve this dilemma?

    With real estate listings on your website, people spend more time browsing and less time bouncing, increasing the chance that they’ll become a paying customers.

    It’s not a complete solution. But it’s a simple strategy for keeping visitors right where you want them — on your website.

    Plus, visitors expect to see house listings on your real estate agent website. You don’t want to disappoint them.

    2. You Can Quickly Promote Remarkable Listings

    Maybe you’ve already noticed, but not all IDX plugin solutions are equal.

    Some real estate IDX providers allow you to “list” — if you can call it that — houses on your website… except that the listings aren’t really on your website.

    Instead, with these low-level tools, the IDX integration sends people to another MLS site to view the listing — which, of course, kind of defeats the purpose of IDX in the first place.

    Ideally, you want to use an IDX integration tool for your website that has the following four features.

    1. Visitors should be able to search natively on your website for house listings in your area of operation.
    2. Visitors should be able to view each house listing on your own domain as an individual page, rather than traveling to a 3rd party listing website.
    3. The entire experience should be seamless. You don’t want visitors to feel like their viewing someone else’s listings, photos, and house descriptions on your website. You want them to feel as though each listing is unique to your business.
    4. You should be able to easily choose properties to feature on your website using the IDX integration.

    Carrot’s real estate agent websites with IDX include all of the above features. That way, you never fall behind the competition.

    And on the fourth point, no house sells like a featured house.

    Here’s an example of what this can look like when you’re able to easily choose featured properties from your IDX integration for the front page of your website.

    real estate agent website idx feed

    More than likely, you’re busy enough contacting prospects, answering questions, and meeting with customers to show them houses. Frankly, you don’t always have the time to create a listing on your own.

    With IDX integration, you can simply choose a website to feature and, in just a few clicks, that property is on your front page.

    If nothing else, IDX saves you time.

    But, of course, time is money.

    Pro-tip: When choosing featured properties for the front page of your website, try featuring some of your most expensive properties. That way, people see those first and then perceive other high-priced listings as less expensive (because they see the price relative to the featured houses they saw). In sales, this is called the contrast principle.

    3. Each Listing Gives You Another Opportunity To Rank Your Real Estate Website In Google

    With high-quality IDX integration on your website, each house listing becomes a new page.

    And each page, as you probably know, becomes another chance to rank in Google.

    However, I know what you’re thinking: “There’s no way I can compete with Zillow and Realtor.com in search engines!”

    Related Content: How To Beat Zillow in Google With Your Real Estate Agent Website – Case Study + Guide

    You’re right. There’s no way you can.

    But, there’s another benefit to having those SEO-ready houses on your website beyond just trying to beat Zillow and Realtor.com.

    Namely, when people search Google for your real estate name and an address, you’ll show up.

    Like this, for example.

    google search for real estate websites

    Why would they ever do that, though?

    Let’s imagine that there’s a certain prospect named Joe. From his friends, Joe has heard some really great things about you and he’d like to work with you in the future. But you don’t know this yet because Joe hasn’t contacted you.

    One day, Joe drives by a house for sale that he really likes and he wants to see the inside of — or, at least, some pictures.

    Since he knows about you and he knows about the house listing, he types in “4000 Awesome Avenue [your real estate business].”

    Whose website comes up?

    That’s right. Yours!

    Joe clicks the result, views the house, decides he wants a tour and gives you a call.

    If Joe had viewed the house on Zillow or Realtor.com — if he hadn’t arrived at your website first — then he might have seen an ad for another realtor and chosen to contact them out of convenience.

    And the realtor who gets the first contact usually wins the prospect.

    In other words, IDX integration allows you to attract prospects that you might not even know you had. Sure, this type of prospect might be few and far between — but each client can generate tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars for your business.

    You don’t want to lose that much money because your website didn’t show up when someone typed in your name and an address into Google.

    4. You Can Send More Personalized Follow-up Emails with IDX

    What if you knew that person’s desired price point, number of bedrooms, and square footage for each person to visit your website?

    How would that kind of immediate information change your marketing strategy?

    For one, you’d probably send increasingly personal listing updates and recommendation emails to your prospects.

    Which is a good idea. The click-through rate on personalized emails is 14% higher — and conversions, 10% higher — than their impersonal counterparts.

    And, generally speaking, personalized emails also have six times higher transaction rates.

    But that dream of knowing your website visitors by house preferences is just… well, it’s just a dream, right?

    Wrong. At least, not if you use IDX.

    With some IDX services on your website and Google Analytics, you can track visitors’ listings and even exactly what they search for.

    In fact, one real estate website tried to capture my email like this when I searched for a property on it.

    real estate website listing tracker

    Then, you can either set up an automatic and personalized email update system to contact prospects with relevant house listings. Or you can do so manually.

    Either way, you’re now contacting prospects with things they care about rather than trying to shotgun blast one (or several) listings to loads of people who may or may not be interested.

    Of course, this isn’t a new strategy. Many real estate agents do this. Here’s one real estate email script, for instance.

    Hi Cindy,

    I noticed you recently registered for e-Alerts on my website. I’m glad you signed up as this is the quickest way to receive up-to-date information on listings in your area. Since our website is refreshed every hour on the hour you will be the first to know when a home that fits your preferences hits the market.

    Over the past 7 years, I have worked in the area selling homes and helping buyers find the perfect property. Buying a home is an exciting time and I am here to help you navigate through the process. Below I have linked to one of my blog posts about preparing to buy a home and how it is different this year over the others.

    Have a lovely day,

    Annie Agent

    IDX just makes doing this a whole lot easier and more streamlined than it would be otherwise.

    Conclusion

    If there’s one thing that visitors to your website are expecting to find, it’s house listings.

    You’re a real estate agent, after all. People go to your website to learn about your business and view houses. That’s pretty much it.

    You need to let them do both of those things as quickly as possible.

    Now, you understand how IDX can help and you understand why you need a real estate agent website builder that includes IDX integration.

    Namely, because, with IDX integration, prospects stay on your website longer, you can easily promote featured properties on your front page, each listing helps you rank in Google, and you can send more personalized email updates to prospects.

    However, some online critics believe differently — that real estate agent websites with IDX have an unnecessary crutch.

    What do you think? Let us know in the comments!

  • Do You Want a Website That’s Both Stunning and Effective? Here are 10 Beautiful Carrot Website Examples for Inspiration!

    Do You Want a Website That’s Both Stunning and Effective? Here are 10 Beautiful Carrot Website Examples for Inspiration!

    Carrot’s real estate marketing platform has evolved beyond a simple website builder into a comprehensive Lead Generation Hub that helps investors and agents create unique, high-performing websites that convert visitors into leads at a rate 44% higher than industry benchmarks.

    Key Takeaways

    • Carrot websites dominate search results, capturing over 50% of top-3 Google rankings across 225 U.S. markets, giving members a competitive advantage in visibility.
    • Leads generated through Carrot websites are 7x more likely to convert into deals compared to non-Carrot leads and yield an average profit of nearly $14,000 per deal.
    • Despite using the same software platform, Carrot members can create vastly different website designs that reflect their unique brand identity using the Visual Editor and customization options.

    With Carrot, real estate professionals can build websites that cut through online clutter, capture qualified leads, and become valuable assets rather than liabilities in growing their business.

    Table of Contents

    1. Carrot Website Examples
    2. Kauai Cash Home Buyers
    3. MN Nice Home Buyers
    4. KM Homes
    5. 412Houses
    6. KCMOHomeBuyer
    7. Jessica Wilkinson
    8. DHS Realty Group
    9. Unique Property Solutions
    10. TK Properties
    11. Grand Real Estate Investments
    Carrot icon
    Lead generation, at its best
    Attract, convert & close more motivated leads
    Try Carrot Today

    Carrot was an accident — albeit a wonderful one.

    Tapping into his experience as a real estate investor and online marketer, Trevor Mauch, CEO of Carrot, built his first motivated seller website in 2003.

    Almost immediately, the site began generating organic motivated seller leads – it was then Trevor knew he’d found the gap that all entrepreneurs are looking for… where your expertise overlaps the market’s needs. 

    So he built another site. And another. He finally had the grand idea to create a software company called Carrot. He wanted our websites to be so irresistible that motivated sellers couldn’t help but convert… and the investors using them couldn’t help but grow!

    Now we’ve transformed Carrot from being like any other website builder into a Lead Generation Hub, built on a real estate marketing platform with multiple tools and resources to help investors, agents, and hybrids grow their businesses with real impact and freedom. Take a look at some of our member’s performance stats below.

    By attracting the right traffic through SEO, Carrot websites capture over 50% of top 3 Google search results across 225 U.S. markets, meaning Carrot members have a competitive advantage in being seen first by high-quality clients.

    Carrot sites are stunning and effectively converting traffic into leads at a 44% higher rate than industry benchmarks, making Carrot the industry leader in producing high-quality leads.

    Speaking of high-quality leads, Carrot leads are 7x more likely to convert into deals than non-Carrot leads and on average, yield almost $14,000 in profit per deal!

    To celebrate Carrot’s accomplishments over the past decade and hopefully convince you to try Carrot (wink wink), we will share 10 of our favorite Carrot member websites.

    As you read through, notice the versatility of these sites and the significant differences in style and tone… all easily created by the same software backed by the same crazy people with the same crazy dream: to help entrepreneurs reclaim time for the things that matter most in life.

    Gain the most freedom, impact, and growth in your real estate business with highly motivated buyer and seller leads!

    Carrot website examples convert leads into deals 7x higher than non-Carrot leads and 2.5x more profitable.

    That’s the power of Carrot’s real estate marketing platform…with websites so powerful that we had to call it something else: the Lead Generation Hub.

    Take a free, interactive demo today to find out how a Carrot website has helped investors and agents attract, convert, and close more deals than ever before for over 10 years.

    Carrot Website Examples

    As mentioned, we’ve compiled this list of 10 sites representing how Carrot members are actively adjusting their websites. But before that, let’s take a minute to show you how one builds a real estate website.

    To paint a picture, once you become a member at Carrot and are ready to create your unique site, we’ll first have you select Site Type to determine what types of leads you are looking for (ex., Motivated Sellers, Cash Buyers). Next, we’ll have you choose a website template to help you get started on constructing your own design.

    Even if you aren’t a web designer, our websites are easily customizable using Carrot’s Visual Editor. This user-friendly design tool eases the process of making your site stand out without the need for any fancy coding. You’ll be able to drag and drop text boxes, images, videos, and more in real-time without ever needing to leave the page (saving you time and stress).

    If you’ve seen Carrot sites in the past and are asking yourself, “don’t all Carrot sites look the same?” then these examples prove that you can stand out from the crowd with a little effort. 😉

    We want to inspire you with this quick round-up of Carrot websites that our members love. Be sure to scroll through each site to see the endless possibilities!

    Additional website design services with amazing results!

    Some Carrot website examples below have been optimized using our Concierge Set Up services.

    If you don’t have the time to create your website, check out our done-for-you, high-performance Concierge Set Up!

    On average, our CSU sites…

    • Attract more than 3X the traffic of an average Carrot site.
    • Get more than 5X the leads with 3+ additional leads every month compared to the previous.
    • Have a 35% higher conversion rate from lead to deal.

    Kauai Cash Home Buyers

    A fantastic site design that blends local images, colors, and branding. Kauai Cash Home Buyers packs credibility into three testimonials blocks, including six testimonial videos. Their “Watch Our TV Commercial Below” and accompanying video adds “local” as an important call-out for their market.

    MN Nice Home Buyers

    MN Nice is a change of pace from other sites—simple, easy to follow, and practical design. The addition of a “You May Have Heard Us On…” section offers a unique way to call out credibility.

    KM Homes

    KM Homes is an example of a “hybrid” website. The realtor.com and Zillow badges communicate the option to list a house. Further down the page, they also offer an alternative to selling quickly. The website is easy to navigate and uses large images to enhance the clean structure.

    412Houses

    412houses.com presents a professional design, relevant content, and features that contribute to its credibility as a platform for real estate activities in the Pittsburgh area.

    The website showcases a well-designed, visually appealing and user-friendly layout, which can contribute to a positive browsing experience.

    Their “customer reviews” section highlights their past clients suggests a track record of successful transactions and satisfied customers.

     KCMOHomeBuyer

    Overall, the website’s design, content, and features contribute to its credibility as a platform for buying homes in the Kansas City area.

    1. Professional Design: The website features a well-organized and visually appealing design, which can contribute to a positive user experience.
    2. Clear Purpose: The website explicitly focuses on buying homes in Kansas City, indicating a specific and transparent business model.
    3. Contact Information: The site provides clear contact details, including a phone number and an address. This transparency can enhance trust and credibility.
    4. Accreditations: The website showcases accreditation logos, such as the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and Senior Transition Specialist, which can further enhance its credibility.

    Jessica Wilkinson

    The real estate website design for San Diego-based Jessica Wilkinson, a Big Block Realty brokerage, is simple yet effective. Whether you want to investigate properties in and around San Diego, get info on housing buying and selling values, or check out some of her informative real estate blog posts and newsletters.

    How Jessica Stands Out with Carrot

    DHS Realty Group

    All aspects of your business are key. That includes your real estate website design. DHS Realty Group utilizes the block editor in a variety of colors to guide guests down the page. The choice of words and color scheme welcomes visitors to their site. The photos are eye-catching, and the icons match the topics.

    Unique Property Solutions

    Unique Property Solutions goes big with videos and authentic local images. Take one look at it, and it’s evident they are a highly engaged “local” business that cares about how visitors learn more about their company and is determined to turn those visitors into leads.

    We tried to create the website on our own and had some initial success however our success paled in comparison to what our Concierge team of Taylor, Lisa, Nate and many others behind the scenes helped us achieve! The team was professional, responsive and super easy to work with and we enjoyed creating a great website with their expertise.

    – Shannon Kolbe – Unique Property Solutions

    TK Properties

    TK Properties’ design is clean and practical by showing off local houses with their motivated seller website. The custom logo and branding show off well. The testimonials and the design’s responsive capabilities across the homepage. Overall, a perfect example of website design.

    Grand Real Estate Investments

    Besides using credibility badges below the hero, Grand Real Estate Investments drives credibility by adding a “Mission” section on their homepage and additional testimonials. They also add local flair with custom location-based images.

    It’s like utilizing that website as your core for everything is the key. That’s definitely the key. But it’s so simple to use. It’s not like a regular WordPress site. I love the simplicity. I know how to do everything. – Robert Grand, Grand Real Estate Investments

    Conclusion

    With Carrot, you can build a unique website that stands out amongst all the clutter online, draws buyers and sellers in, snags their contact information, and becomes an asset (rather than a liability) for helping you grow your business.

    Use these Carrot website examples as inspiration.

    We know that because thousands of Carrot members have done it.

    Will you be next?

  • It’s a Low Inventory Real Estate Market Right Now – Here’s Our Solution to Getting More Listings

    It’s a Low Inventory Real Estate Market Right Now – Here’s Our Solution to Getting More Listings

    Carrot's response to today's low inventory real estate market seller site

    This year’s real estate market has been strong, with high interest in housing across all regions of the country. The strengthening economy and a demographic shift are fueling this growth — and millennials reaching their peak homebuying years have led to increased demand for homes nationwide.

    However, there’s another major trend in today’s market: housing inventory is at an all-time low. Simply put — there aren’t enough homes for everyone, so housing prices are skyrocketing and competition is fierce. 

    Low mortgage rates combined with an increase in work-from-home opportunities due to the Pandemic have fueled greater demand for suburban houses — and buyers are buying up these properties quickly as they come onto the market. Some buyers make offers without even seeing the property in person or including contingencies in their bids, just to win a bidding war with other eager homebuyers. 

    There’s also an increase in demand among millennials due to the historically low mortgage rates; however, many of them can’t find what they need within their budget. The drastically rising home prices are making affordable housing scarce. 

    Despite the increasing number of sellers due to increasing home prices and low-interest rates, limited construction activity earlier due to COVID-19 and high lumber prices, and pent-up demand for housing, housing demand is still drastically outpacing supply. So competition continues to be fierce for new homes hitting the market (or being sold off-market) making retail seller leads more elusive — and more valuable — than ever.

    Overview of the Real Estate Market

    These numbers are, of course, offset by the looseness of the definition of “active,” as well as the fact that some real estate agents help to sell homes, while many are purely focused on buyers or simply have an active, but unused, license.

    Additionally, we could potentially see over a million evictions in the coming months, while at the same time giving millions of people the means to get into a home. This is fueled by:

    • The ending of the mortgage moratorium.
    • The passing of President Biden’s first-time homebuyer credit. This first down payment tax credit “will help families offset the costs of home buying and help millions of families lay down roots for the first time,” according to President Biden’s campaign website.

    What does this mean for real estate agents today? 

    It means that every lead and listing counts and the real estate agents who succeed are the ones that consistently market, generate leads, follow-up, and build high-flying reputations in the area(s) where they operate.

    Don’t get us wrong. Today, inventory is low and competition is high. But the market has been through many similar fluctuations in the past and there are no indications that the market won’t balance back out. In other words, you’re in a good industry.  

    Here’s how, at Carrot, we’re helping real estate agents stand out in their markets and snag listings.

    The Carrot Solution

    Since CEO Trevor Mauch started Carrot, we’ve made it our mission to always innovate and evolve our software to stay ahead of the real estate market and anticipate our members’ future needs to help Carrot members see success.

    It’s the foundation of our company vision — to “inspire and empower real estate professionals to gain true freedom and make a greater impact with their businesses.”

    That means building awesome software that helps real estate professionals build authority online today while always staying a step ahead of your online lead generation needs in the future.

    One recent innovation inspired by current market trends that we are super excited to launch is our all-new Carrot Agent Seller Site Template that’s designed to help today’s agents attract and convert more retail seller leads.

    Our new site features fresh seller-focused content built from top-performing Carrot Agent sites, a modern design to help you stand out online, and — of course — Carrot’s proven SEO and conversion methodologies to attract and convert more seller leads in today’s highly competitive, low inventory real estate market. 

    How do we know it works? 

    Because the all-new content strategy is cultivated directly from our highest performing Agent members’ websites…

    • These sites received astronomically more traffic than the average agent site — across all channel groupings. The average agent site received 664 visitors in Q2. The top-performing Agent sites had 10X more visitors.
    • These sites converted all traffic between 2X to 5X better than the average agent site.
    • These sites converted organic traffic 215% better than the average agent site. 

    And we ensured the new design put you as the Agent at the forefront to help you strengthen your personal brand in your local market and build credibility with more social proof and happy client testimonials.

    So we figured… If it works for them, it could work for you!

    Check out a screenshot of the image below!

    How does it work? Sellers opt-in, you get notified, you call them and do what you do best… voila!

    Cool, right? 

    But that’s just one example of how we’re making it easier for agents to find listings. 

    Carrot members also get…

    • Tons of other tools that will help you drive traffic and generate leads in your specific market — UTM builder, SEO Keyword Rank Tracker, SEO Checker, and more!
    • Access to industry-leading trainings, support, and strategy from our team of product and real estate experts!

    But you don’t have to take our word for it!

    Check out some of the testimonials below from real estate agents using our software…

    “This is much more than a web hosting company…it’s a complete marketing and training program. Carrot has helped our Real Estate Team develop a complete marketing strategy. For the first time…ever…we can see how all the pieces fit together in a cohesive marketing strategy. The results have been an increase in exposure, online leads, and the ability to measure ROI! The training, support, coaching, and customer service have been amazing.” – Tom Townsend

    “Carrot has impacted my business so positively! I love the property websites, landing pages, SEO rankings, blog, and overall design of the site. I also love the landing pages that I use to drive traffic from ads that I run. And my favorite is to watch the increase in Google rankings with the more relevant content we produce. Really great web host!” – Shemeika Fox

    That’s all for now!

    We’ll let you know when we’ve got more cool innovations to share that’ll help you grow your business in a scalable and realistic way. 

    To your success!

    Want to learn more about our new seller site? Check out here.

    Unlock Our Newest Agent Site Template

    Join Carrot and Access Our Brand New Agent Seller Site Template Today

  • 30 Real Estate Agent Marketing Ideas to Win More Deals in 2025

    30 Real Estate Agent Marketing Ideas to Win More Deals in 2025

    real estate agent marketing ideas

    You’ll agree that sifting through endless real estate agent marketing ideas is challenging. It’s tough to determine which tactics will generate the highest volume of quality leads while keeping your sanity.

    When people think of buying or selling a home, you want them to think of your name. You want them to give you a call. And you want them to work with YOU.

    Of course, that’s easier said than done.

    Many other real estate agents in the area are fighting for the same attention.

    Fortunately, you don’t have to win all the attention to dominate your market – just most of it.

    And the best part is…

    You don’t even have to leave your computer to get started.

    30 Real Estate Agent Marketing Ideas to Win More Deals

    I will show 30 real estate agent marketing ideas for dominating your online market in this article.

    1. Market Yourself on Instagram
    2. Build a Real Real Estate Agent Website
    3. Shoot Facebook Live Videos
    4. Consistently Post on Social Media
    5. Collaborate with Other Real Estate Agents in Your Area
    6. Message 100 Friends on Facebook and Tell Them What You Do
    7. Set Your Email Signature to Explain What You Do
    8. Set Your Social Media Bio to Explain What You Do
    9. Listen to a Mindset-focused Podcast
    10. Optimize Keywords on Your Website for Search Engines
    11. Set a Budget and Invest in Facebook or Google Ads
    12. Enhance the “About” Page on Your Website
    13. Write or Record Weekly Blog Posts
    14. Record a Case Study Video with a Past Customer
    15. Make Your Phone Number Easy to Find on Your Website
    16. Use a Low-commitment Opt-in Form on Your Website
    17. Write Persuasive Sales Copy
    18. Publish High-quality House Photos
    19. Add IDX to Your Website
    20. Encourage Reviews on Your Company Facebook Page
    21. Create Location-specific Landing Pages
    22. Run Free Ads on Craigslist
    23. Create a Sales Script to Increase Close Rate
    24. Delegate “Busy Work” to an Executive Assistant
    25. Know Your Market Like the Back of Your Hand
    26. Use a Drone For Aerial Photography of Your Real Estate Listings to Create Visual Intrigue
    27. Create a Google My Business Account
    28. Create and Promote an Infographic
    29. Run a Webinar
    30. Create a Zillow Profile

    1. Market Yourself on Instagram

    Instagram is an incredible place to share your listings and get noticed! For real estate agents, Instagram provides a whole new world of opportunity.

    With over one billion monthly active users on the platform, there’s no better time than now for you to join in with all these people looking at beautiful pictures daily.

    Whether showcasing properties or providing helpful content like tips for staging homes, something here is suited ideally for you!

    Learn more:

    Unlock Your Instagram Marketing Knowledge

    Learn everything that Real Estate Agents need to know to get started with Instagram marketing.

    2. Create a Professional Website

    Examples of real estate websites

    Why does a real estate agent need a website?

    Most real estate agents become a part of the online “clutter” in their markets when they toss up a website that gets lost in the shuffle. Building a focused and optimized website will help you cut through that clutter with content marketing and adding your industry expertise.

    A website will attract more of your favorite clients by using it as an Evergreen Marketing tool.

    You can reduce or eliminate relying on cold calling, direct mail, Zillow, and the marketing that’s burning you out when done right.

    Having a website will also…

    • Increase awareness and online presence.
    • Generates quality leads.
    • Increases your credibility.
    • Service as an educational tool. Add community resources, FAQ, and contact information. Educating buyers or sellers and explaining how real estate agents provide their services can build trust and rapport and earn more business.

    Learn more:

    3. Use Facebook Live Videos

    Facebook’s LIVE video feature is useful for more than recording your kid’s birthday party. You can also use it to do a LIVE walkthrough of house listings you’re trying to get attention for.

    After all, one of the most time-consuming parts of your day is house showings, so why not show a house to your entire Facebook audience with a single LIVE video?

    Plus, 70% of homeowners want to list with a real estate agent who does some video marketing to sell their home. This might be your dead-simple, don’t-have-to-hire-a-professional way of integrating video marketing into your service.

    Just create a healthy cadence and get in front of your social media audience more regularly.

    The more people see your face online and hear you talk about their problems and your solutions, the more familiar your market will be with you.

    Video is increasingly important in content marketing for social media. More people are choosing to consume information through video.

    Here are some ideas for Facebook live videos to work into your real estate marketing:

    1. Host virtual open houses.
    2. Discuss your community market with a local specialist.
    3. Livestream auctions.
    4. Interview customers for success stories.
    5. Interview a partner or someone you work with… such as an interior decorator.
    6. Host a contest or giveaway.

    Learn more:

    4. Post on Social Media

    Why do real estate agents need social media?

    According to the National Association of Realtors, social media has become a significant way to acquire clients and close deals. Here’s a snapshot of their report:

    • 77% of realtors actively use social media for real estate in some capacity.
    • 47% of real estate businesses say social media results in the highest quality leads vs. other sources.
    • 99% of millennials and 90% of baby boomers begin their online home search. As opposed to in-person referrals.

    It’s powerful. Perhaps there’s no better way to generate consistent word of mouth around your brand name and service than by staying in front of your audience.

    Posting on social media consistently allows you to stay in front of your audience without leaving your desk chair’s comfort.

    Where to post:

    • Facebook posts
    • Facebook ads
    • LinkedIn
    • Instagram

    What you should post:

    • Property photos
    • Success stories
    • Milestones
    • Market news
    • Renovation and home tips
    • Events

    Learn more…

    5. Partner with Other Real Estate Agents in Your Area

    As the market gets increasingly competitive and the economy takes a slight downturn, collaborating with other professionals in your market might separate the winners from those who starve.

    Don’t be afraid to collaborate with other real estate agents and investors in your area to make the most of the market that you find yourself in.

    Sometimes, the best way to dominate your market is to team up with those already dominating it.

    Learn more:

    6. Message 100 Friends on Facebook and Tell Them What You Do

    If you want to generate word of mouth, send messages to your friends on Facebook and tell them about what you do. Maybe you’re offering a new service that you can announce to people, or perhaps you want to say to people that you’re currently looking for new clients.

    Either way, a Facebook message can go a long way in generating word-of-mouth for your business within your target market – especially if you personalize each message.

    Learn more:

    7. Set Your Email Signature to Explain What You Do

    If you’re like me, you send at least 3-5 emails daily. Believe it or not, every one of those emails is an opportunity to gently advertise what you do and who you are.

    By automatically setting your email signature to populate with business-card style information, you remind people of your company every time you send an email.

    Learn more:

    8. Create a Social Media Bio

    Like your email signature, your social media bios are waiting to be exploited for market domination. When someone clicks on your profile to find out more about you (and trust me, they do), you want them to quickly know who you are and what your business does.

    A quick bio that describes your real estate expertise ensures you don’t miss lead-gen and word-of-mouth opportunities on your social media profiles.

    Learn more:

    9. Listen to a Mindset-focused Podcast

    You might be thinking… “why would listening to a podcast help your online marketing?”

    Often, becoming the most successful real estate agent in your market is simply believing you can do it and believe you are the best.

    I know it sounds cheesy, but the mindset is crazy powerful for building the business of your dreams and pulling in more leads than you can handle. And a podcast is a great way to regularly test and refine your mindset.

    Here are some benefits of listening to podcasts:

    • Your imagination kicks in.
    • You learn new marketing tactics.
    • Your multi-tasking skills will be enhanced.
    • Your listening skills grow.
    • You can learn more about people and gain empathy as an agent.

    Learn more:

    10. Optimize Keywords on Your Website for Search Engines

    The most thorough way to dominate your market is to be the first result prospects see when they type “real estate agent” or “sell my home fast” into Google.

    If you’re not on the page when people do that, you have a very small chance of being a significant force in your market.

    real estate agent website keyword rankings
    Carrot SEO Keyword Ranking Tracker

    People go online to find everything, including a real estate agent to work with. You need to show up at the top of Google results. And to do that, you need to optimize your website to rank in search engines via strategic keyword placement.

    Carrot members can easily track their rankings using the Carrot SEO Ranking Tracker.

    Learn more:

    11. Invest in Facebook or Google Ads

    If you want to increase the number of leads and deals you’re getting quickly and have some money to invest, then PPC might be a great option.

    Whether you choose Facebook or Google Ads (the two most popular options), PPC can generate more leads immediately, increasing your business profitability and market authority.

    Learn more:

    12. Optimize Your “About” Page on Your Website

    Did you know that any website’s “About” page is the third most-viewed page? People don’t just want to know what you do or how you do it; they also want to know who you are.

    By spending a little time on your “About” page bio – adding core values, a mission statement, and personal pictures – you’ll stand out from competitors who didn’t spend extra time on their “About” page.

    Learn more…

    13. Write Blog Posts

    Weekly (or monthly) blog posts on your website give you and your audience something to discuss. They give you something to share on your social media pages and give your audience something to discuss.

    That’s good – the more interactions you have with people in your target market, the more people will view you as the real estate expert in their area.

    Plus, publishing consistent blog posts can also help with your Google rankings and build trust with people who arrive on your website.

    Don’t have time? Hate writing? No problem! Create a VideoPost! You could have amazing content to share in 10 minutes.

    Upload a video and receive a transcription for your content. Creating content that helps you stand out from the crowd is easy.

    See it in action here… How to Create Real Estate Content in Under 10 Minutes with Carrot’s VideoPost

    Learn more:

    14. Record a Case Study Video with a Past Customer

    SF Real Estate Agent Testimonial - Beverly Barnett, Top Realtor

    Case studies, or we like to call them, “customer success stories,” are powerful. When prospects arrive on your website, they ask themselves, “Can I trust this person to solve my problem and have my best interest in mind along the way?”

    How they answer that question will greatly determine whether they decide to work with you.

    The good news is that you can help them answer that question by filming and publishing case study videos of people you’ve worked with in the past and their good experiences.

    Learn more:

    15. Make Your Phone Number Easy to Find on Your Website

    When someone on your website is ready to take action, the last thing they want to do is send them digging for your phone number. To avoid losing leads who want to call you on the phone, put your phone number somewhere on your website that makes it easy to find.

    This alone might not dominate your entire market. But when you’re playing against big competitors, details matter.

    Learn more:

    16. Use a Low-commitment Opt-in Form on Your Website

    real estate agent website marketing website form

    When someone arrives on your website, you want to make it easy for them to take the first step.

    At Carrot, we’ve found that a simple form like the one above with address, phone number, and email is a great starting place. It’s enough to qualify the person (having three different fields) but not so much that it’ll stop someone seriously interested in your service.

    By putting a form like this on your website, you decrease the amount of lost quality leads to your website and increase your market domination – even if just slightly.

    Learn more:

    17. Write Persuasive Sales Copy

    Words matter. And perhaps nowhere do words matter more than when you’re trying to convince someone who doesn’t even know you to work with you.

    Often, the real estate professional who writes the best sales copy and speaks directly to their target market will win the day. Consider spending more time on your website’s sales copy to ensure every word is compelling and persuasive.

    Learn more:

    18. Publish High-quality House Photos

    If you’re a real estate agent, posting high-quality photos on your website, Facebook page, and house listings is critical. Several studies have shown that high-quality photos can increase how quickly a home sells and what price it sells for.

    It will take more than pictures to sell a house, but this is one piece of marketing that can’t be overlooked.

    Many real estate agents miss the importance of taking quality pictures. This is one simple way you can beat your competition.

    Learn more:

    19. Add IDX to Your Website

    Real-estate-agent-website-idx

    If you’re a real estate agent, when someone arrives on your website, there’s a good chance they want to see some house listings.

    One, because that means you’re actually a real estate agent and not some poser.

    And two, because everyone loves browsing house listings (most of all, your target market).

    Your high-performing competitors are using IDX, so you should be, too.

    Learn more:

    20. Encourage Reviews on Your Company’s Facebook Page

    People trust reviews just as much as they trust recommendations from friends. Think of your own experience: before you buy a movie, eat at a restaurant, stay at a hotel, or buy a book, you read the reviews.

    And how much BIGGER of a decision is buying or selling your home? Sure – people won’t decide entirely if they will work with you based on your reviews, but your reviews (or whether you have them) will play a big part during the prospect’s early decision-making process.

    Facebook is a great place to collect and advertise those reviews.

    Learn more:

    21. Create Location-specific Landing Pages

    One of the best ways to convince people that you’re the best person to solve their problem amidst a whole sea of competitors is by targeting them specifically. Rather than simply having a website that targets your city, create different landing pages that target different parts of that city.

    There’s probably an entire pool of prospects interested in river-side houses, houses by the golf course, wooded homes, or mountains.

    By niching your market down even further with market-specific landing pages, you can speak directly to those people and increase their chances of working with you.

    Learn more:

    22. Create Free Ads on Craigslist

    Craigslist is a great place to find buyers and sellers. Mainly because it’s one of the first places that many people go when they start looking for a piece of real estate to buy. Plus, the ads are free to post.

    Post consistently with pictures of the homes or property you’re marketing; voila, you’re battling on one more front that your competitors are probably ignoring.

    Learn more:

    23. Create a Sales Script to Increase Close Rate

    A sales script for your phone calls and email follow-up doesn’t just increase efficiency; it can also increase sales. By thinking about your prospects’ pain points and what makes them tick before getting on a call, you can avoid losing a deal because you forgot to say something important until after the call.

    Phone calls are still a big part of the real estate marketing strategy, and how you handle yourself on the phone (with efficiency and salesmanship) is critical to your success.

    Tom Ferry shares five proven sales scripts for every real estate agent who needs to gain confidence and win more business.

    The BEST 5 Scripts Every Agent Needs in Today's Market | #TomFerryShow

    Learn more:

    24. Delegate “Busy Work” to an Executive Assistant

    If you want to build a company beyond solopreneurship, you must delegate “busy work” to someone else. “Busywork” is the stuff that has to be done, but it doesn’t need to be done by you. Someone else can take it over relatively quickly and have the same impact.

    To grow your business and focus on more important things, outsource the “busy work” to a VA or in-person assistant.

    Learn more:

    25. Know Your Market Like the Back of Your Hand

    The one who knows their market best dominates the market.

    The truth is the agents and investors who know their market the best – who they are, what they like, how they think, how they talk, and where they hang out – are the ones who will dominate their market.

    Why?

    Those people will most easily sell their services to the market. They understand the market’s pain and strategically position their service to serve it.

    Study your market if you’re at a loss for beating your competition. Visit forums, Facebook groups, and pages, or make phone calls and ask relevant questions.

    Once you know it, establish credibility and connections by posting market snippets on social media or an email newsletter campaign.

    Learn more:

    26. Use Drone Photography

    There’s no better way to inject child-like life into your marketing strategy than purchasing a remote-controlled toy.

    Drones aren’t just great for having well-deserved fun; they’re great for business. 83% of people selling their homes prefer to work with an agent that uses drones. High-volume realtors use drones 3.5 times more than their low-volume counterparts. Lastly, homes with aerial images sell 68% faster than homes with basic images.

    Really, that’s no surprise when you glance at the beautiful photos these flying playthings can capture.

    But which drone should you buy? There are many options, and you want to get the best bang for your buck.

    Truthfully, I don’t know. I’ve never bought a drone, so I hesitate to tell you which one to buy before I’ve tried it out.

    But what type of drone should you use? Here is a list to get you started. Remember that that article probably has affiliate links throughout the list, so take those recommendations with a grain of salt.

    Ultimately, I’d trust Amazon reviews above all else (they’re harder for people to tamper with).

    27. Create a Google Profiles Account

    Most of you have probably already created a Google Profiles account.

    But if you haven’t, you might miss out on easy-to-capture SEO traffic. For example, these are the results that Google Profiles can generate for your website.

    Perhaps the best part about these results is that they draw the eye even more than normal top-of-page Google results. It’s a great way for your business to cut to the front of the SEO competition, especially if you have more five-star reviews than anyone else.

    BONUS TIP: Generating reviews for your Google Business Profiles account is another marketing strategy you might consider implementing. Contact your past customers and ask them to review you on your Google Business page.

    If you don’t already have a Google Profiles account, go to the landing page and click “Manage Now” to get started.

    28. Create an Infographic

    More than likely, you’re not a designer.

    But that doesn’t mean you can’t dip your toes in design. In fact, it can be fun to try something you’ve never done — especially when that something has as much lead-generation potential as an infographic.

    Here’s an infographic describing why visual content is so powerful.

    Said more simply, people love visual content. And an infographic is a more visual and easy-to-digest blog post. Here, for instance, is an infographic that some real estate agents created.

    But how the heck do you develop an idea for your infographic? And how do you actually design it?

    Well, it’s all easier than you think.

    Once you’re done creating it, promote it on your social media channels, email list, and blog.

    Learn more:

    29. Host a Webinar

    You might think running a webinar is just for the world’s self-proclaimed B2B coaches and gurus, but it doesn’t have to be. Running a webinar on a topic that appeals to your audience is a great way to build digital relationships and start relevant discussions about how you can help people buy or sell a home.

    Accordingly, here’s a far-from-exhaustive list to get you started hosting your very first webinar.

    • What not to do when buying your first home
    • X tricks to sell your house for its highest possible value
    • Should you list your house with a real estate agent?
    • How to stage your house to sell crazy fast

    Remember, though, that most people prefer to watch a webinar for only between 30 minutes and 45 minutes. So try to keep yourself to that time limit and advertise it as being that long in the first place. 

    In terms of technical webinar setup, this guide by SmartBlogger will show you how to do it for free (skip to the “How to Run Webinars Like a Pro (Without Spending a Dime)” part).

    And before you actually do your webinar, test everything and ensure it’s all working how you want it to. There’s nothing quite as embarrassing or frustrating as technical difficulties during a webinar presentation.

    Once you’ve assembled your webinar, start collecting sign-ups via Facebook ads, emails, and maybe even guest posts on other blogs.

    30. Create a Zillow Profile

    You can’t afford to miss out on the opportunity of Zillow. With over 245 million unique monthly users, it gives you an audience for your business that is much larger than any other solution in this space!

    You need a profile because when potential clients find listings they are interested in and see that no one has listed them yet at their contact information, chances are high they’ll want to reach out with questions – which means if you’re not sharing those listings through profiles on sites like Zillow. Someone else will be getting all these new leads instead.

    Learn more:

    Conclusion

    To dominate your market, you have to change what you’re currently doing – what you’re doing to generate leads and revenue is great for where you’re at, but it’ll never take you where you want to go.

    That’s the truth about everything in life. If you want to go somewhere new, you must make some changes.

    And these 30 real estate agent marketing ideas will get you on the right track to dominating your market.

    What do you think? What has been key for your real estate agent marketing? Which tools and strategies do you use? Please share your thoughts, knowledge, and questions in the comments below!

  • Announcing the New and Improved Carrot IDX

    Announcing the New and Improved Carrot IDX

    We’re excited to announce our updated Carrot IDX, featuring more Advanced Search options, mapped results, and an improved interactive map view — and now it’s included in the price of our Advanced Marketer plan! Basically… FREE IDX.

    Whether you’re a buyer’s agent, seller’s agent, or both, we know how important it is to create an easy and enjoyable home search experience on your website. There’s a lot of competition out there, from other agents, to ibuyers, to the big names in online home search that are quickly becoming the go-to destinations for people starting their search.

    Having the latest in MLS property search and listings on your website is a surefire way to keep retail buyers and sellers on your site for longer, giving you a better chance to convert them to leads. It also adds credibility to your personal brand as a trusted Agent and to your website, helping you further build authority in your market.

    That’s why our Product team here at Carrot set out to bring a better IDX integration to our Agent members’ sites. This Carrot IDX update brings the search experience retail buyers and sellers expect from the big names in online home search to your Carrot site.

    Here’s what you and your site visitors can look forward to with this update:

    • Streamlined property search that combines Advanced Search options with mapped results
    • Interactive, searchable map view
    • More Advanced Search options allowing visitors to filter their search by more parameters
    • And a major pricing update to our Carrot plans…

    That’s right… With this update, Carrot IDX is now included in the monthly price of our Advanced Marketer plan at $199/mo — all you pay are your local MLS pass-through fees!


    You guys have changed my life. The leads are fueling my family’s vision. And the values/mission behind it all makes me a huge advocate for Carrot… My business has doubled each of the last 2 years… I grossed around $350k last year, and a huge part of that is due to Carrot.”

    ERIC SZTANYO
    Fort Thomas, KY

    Why Do I Need IDX?

    Websites like Zillow, Realtor.com, and Redfin have quickly become household names over the past several years for anyone looking to casually browse for properties or begin a serious home search.

    Creating an easy-to-use, comprehensive home search experience directly on your website keeps visitors on your Carrot site for longer — and that helps increase your chances of converting those visitors into leads.

    Carrot IDX

    Carrot IDX Improvements

    This update to Carrot IDX is an all-around improvement that will help our Agent sites rival the big names in online home search:

    1. Streamlined property search

    This update streamlines the property search experience by combining Advanced Search with mapped results. Now, when visitors are narrowing their search for properties, the map populates in real-time with listings that meet their parameters. Visitors can also pan and zoom across the map while in their filtered search.

    2. Improved map view

    Visitors can click, drag, and zoom to browse properties by location, or draw a polygon to filter down their search. The list of available properties updates as visitors navigate through the map, and the sweeten the deal — visitors can click on and flip through photos without leaving the map!

    3. More Advanced Search options

    Site visitors can refine their search directly from the map view from a variety of Advanced Search options. From schools and specific property features — pools only, please! — to house style and property condition, visitors have a multitude of MLS-search filters that will help them find the perfect home for them.

    … And We Aren’t Stopping There.

    We are always looking to evolve, innovate, and improve Carrot to provide the best product for our members and the best experience for their site visitors. What better way to figure out how to do that than to listen to what our members have to say?

    So over the past several months, the Carrot Product team has been connecting with our Agent members to learn how the Carrot platform can better solve the problems facing today’s real estate agents.

    We heard from our members how important it is to have an easy-to-use, comprehensive property search and beautiful MLS listings on their sites to rival the big names in online home search that their sites are competing with today. That’s why we updated Carrot IDX to provide members with the latest in IDX property listings and search directly on their Carrot sites.

    And this Carrot IDX update is just the beginning of an exciting year of new and improved features for real estate Agents! We have big plans this year to make Carrot even more powerful for Agents, so stay tuned for more updates and announcements in the coming months.

    Ready To Learn More About Carrot?

    Have you been thinking about joining Carrot, but still aren’t sure if it’s right for you? Now is the time to join!

    With our all-new Carrot IDX, you get the latest in MLS listings and property search on your site right out of the box — no monthly fee, no setup fee, and it’s totally risk free! What are you waiting for?

    Now when you join our Advanced Marketer plan, Carrot IDX is included in the monthly membership price and there are ZERO setup fees — all you have to pay are your monthly pass-through fees!

    And with our 30-day money-back guarantee, there’s no reason not to give it a try. Take a demo of Carrot today!

  • The Hybrid Real Estate Model | The Rise Of The Real Estate Investor / Agent + Website Structure

    The Hybrid Real Estate Model | The Rise Of The Real Estate Investor / Agent + Website Structure

    Agents vs Investors | The BEST Real Estate Business Model is Hybrid!

    Video Transcript

    Hey guys and gals. This is Trevor from Carrot, and I’ve got a video coming at you that’s going to walk you through as an agent or an investor, how to embrace something that we call the hybrid real estate strategy.

    Now you’ve probably been seeing in the market a lot of things happening in the last two to three years. Around 2017 here at Carrot, we were starting to talk about the hybrid strategy that will become increasingly popular, where a house seller works with a person who is both an agent and an investor.

    Now, many of you watching this might be just an agent serving people through the MLS and mainly working with sellers who are motivated to sell retail and get top dollar. Many of you might be watching this video, who are wholesalers or house flippers who are used to buying properties and acquiring properties at a discount.

    Now, one of the things we saw in 2015, 2016, and 2017 was that many real estate agents weren’t collaborating with investors. Many investors complained that they couldn’t find investor-friendly agents, and the times have changed.

    We’ve started to see laws being enacted around the country where it makes wholesaling harder to work. We’ve started to see iBuyers and big tech giants coming in to start to disrupt parts of the market. And with that disruption, with those law changes, what’s happening is there’s a concentration in the middle.

    There’s a concentration in the middle of the market where sellers are demanding an easier way to sell their house.

    So for real estate agents who are only working with people who are motivated to sell retail where the houses are in show-ready condition, they don’t need any repairs, or where the person can wait multiple months in order to get top dollar…

    If you’re one of those real estate agents who wonder,

    “Why would someone ever want to sell a house for below what it’s worth, below what they could sell on the MLS to an investor when they can just list it on MLS and get top dollar?”

    Well, I’m going to be walking you through why an increasing amount of sellers are choosing to work with a direct house buyer, an iBuyer, or a local mom-and-pop investor like we work with here at Carrot a lot.

    And on the investor side of things, you might be looking at it going,

    “Why would I ever want to get my real estate license?”

    We hear that all the time and I’m going to walk you through why you really need to be seriously looking at either getting your real estate license or collaborating with one of the millions of real estate agents around the country to help you serve more of your sellers.

    I want to drill this in right now: YES, there are massive side benefits to moving forward with a hybrid real estate strategy as an investor and an agent or an agent and an investor.

    But the main reason to do hybrid isn’t just to put money in your pocket. There’s a massive upside to it as I’m going to walk you through exactly how to do it.

    The main reason to do it is actually to serve your sellers better because you can imagine that if a seller reaches out to somebody, they want to sell their home.

    If I were to survey 100 house sellers, 99 and a half of them would say that they would much rather sell their house quickly for cash, not have to wait for a buyer to find financing, not have to have open houses, not have to have a bunch of people go through their home for a fair price that they agree within a matter of days or weeks.

    99 out of 100 would say that they would much rather do that than list it on the market and all that goes through that process.

    Now, why do 85% of homes sell on the market with real estate agents through the traditional routes?

    It’s because that’s the way that most people know to do. And what people do is they follow the path of what they know best.

    But with iBuyers coming into the market, what we’re finding is it’s actually making iBuying or directly selling your home more mainstream to the average home seller.

    hybrid real estate model

    If we think about Tesla. Tesla came along, before that electric cars were not popular. People didn’t want to drive electric cars, but what happened is Tesla came in and they made an amazing experience for the user.

    They actually solved the problems and provided a better experience, and then they also went out there and grew the electric car market. So Tesla came along and raised the entire market, made the electric car market bigger than it ever was.

    That’s what’s happening with iBuyers.

    iBuyers are coming in and they’re going to be getting deals that real estate agents normally would have gotten.

    They’re also going to be getting deals that real estate investors normally would have gotten.

    They’re going to be growing the overall pie for people who want to sell their home directly to an end buyer or to an investor versus listing on the market.

    So what does this mean for you as a real estate agent?

    Well, there’s a lot of competition right now in the market. And so you need to find ways to differentiate your offering.

    So if you’re showing up to every single house seller appointment, when you’re offering them one option, which is,

    “I can list your home and here’s my fee, take it or leave it,”

    How many of those home sellers are you likely losing because you’re not actually solving their problem the way that they want it to be solved?

    If you’re a real estate investor and you show up to that house and you say,

    “Hey, here’s my offer. It’s a discount offer. Take it or leave it,”

    How many of them are actually perfect people who would rather list on the market and take full retail?

    How many of you guys, real estate investors or real estate agents, are completely ignoring the other side of the market?

    Where you’re trying to paint everything into your pretty little box of, it’s got to look this way to list on the market or you’re painting it in your pretty little box where it’s got to look this way if I’m going to buy it at a discount.

    I’m challenging all of you to become a hybrid in the next real estate cycle or heavily collaborate with the other side because if you don’t, you’re going to be struggling big time.

    What Is Hybrid Real Estate?

    Hybrid is essentially a seller strategy, not a buyer strategy.

    And that’s something a lot of people have confusion about. Do I make one website? Do I make two websites, one just for retail and one just for wholesale?

    I’m going to walk through exactly what you do with your websites and exactly how to deal with that and what to do with your offers to your sellers and how you serve them best, whether you’re an agent or an investor.

    Hybrid real estate is a seller option where you’re serving sellers up with multiple different offers.

    It’s a cash offer. Hey, if you’re looking for speed and convenience and are willing to take a little bit of a shave in equity, here’s this.

    If they want top dollar, here’s what we can list it for them in the market.

    That’s all that it is.

    It’s going in there and saying,

    “We can help you no matter what your situation,”

    Versus we can only help you if you fit in this box.

    So the traditional approach like I’m showing below.

    traditional real estate approach

    You’ve got a motivated seller right in the middle. And that seller traditionally is going to go reach out to a real estate agent because everybody knows 5, 10, 15 real estate agents, but very few people personally know a real estate investor.

    But now we have these iBuyers coming in that are making that more popular.

    So they’re hearing of “Opendoor”, they’re hearing of Zillow buying homes, “Offerpad”, and the mom and pop home buyers that we work with that have been around for 30 or 40 years.

    iBuying is not new. It’s just a fancy phrase that the tech industry placed on their well-funded competition.

    So most people would go reach out to a real estate agent.

    And if they’re:

    • Looking to get top dollar,
    • Willing to wait multiple months,
    • Don’t mind people coming through the property; you’re having open houses or all that goes with that,
    • Okay with paying the fee that goes to the real estate agent,

    Then they’re going to go that route.

    That’s where the majority of people are going to go. Probably 80% of sellers are going to go that route.

    Now, if you’re a seller and you are:

    • Looking for speed,
    • Looking for convenience,
    • You don’t want to list it on the market,
    • You don’t want to have open houses,
    • You don’t want to have people coming through your property,
    • You don’t have the time because you’re relocating,
    • Or, you just inherited a house from your uncle and you don’t want to deal with all the hassles of fixing up that property in a way that’s going to make it so it can be sold. Or, you don’t have the emotional investment in the property because you inherited it and you just want to get it done with because there are so many reasons why someone wouldn’t want to sell for a cash offer.

    So on the traditional side of things, a real estate agent is going to put the house on the MLS. They’re going to try to get top dollar for that property. They’re usually nicer houses that are show ready.

    Sometimes it will be the fixer-uppers, but usually, it’s nicer houses. About 80% of sellers are going to go this way, which means you as an agent are probably throwing away 20% of your leads which could be some of your most profitable deals of the entire year, and you’re now not serving those sellers.

    You’re throwing them back out to the streets, back out to the wolves to try to find their solution when you could actually serve them.

    Now, as an investor, you’re going to take it and buy it off-market, you’re going to then fix it up and sell it on the market to somebody.

    So real estate agents, investors are your friends because if you work with them tightly, you’re going to then find out that when they fix up a property, they’re going to be listing on the market to sell retail.

    So this process is not cutting agents out at all. It’s actually raising the values of the homes that you’re going to be able to sell and then giving you more inventory of great homes to sell on the market versus all these homes that need fixing up.

    That is where the real estate investor plays a massive role in that. And a lot of agents don’t grasp that and you really need to in this next cycle.

    The investor is going to offer them speed and convenience.

    Let me tell you an analogy.

    I’ll hear a lot of real estate agents saying,

    “Why would someone ever sell at a discount when they can sell on the market and get $40,000 more, $20,000 more?”

    Well, let me throw this at you.

    When was the last time you went and bought a car at the car dealership and that car dealer sat in front of you and said,

    “Do you have a car to trade in?”

    And almost all of us always say, yes, I want to trade it in. And we know when we’re selling them that car, we’re selling it at a discount.

    We know when we’re selling them that car, that we could go over to Craigslist and we could sell it for more money if we’re willing to list it on there, if we’re willing to do whatever repairs are needed so the person is going to take it and they’re not going to come back on you liability-wise, to answer the phone calls, to let people drive it, to do all the paperwork that’s involved with it.

    We choose to not do that and we choose to trade the vehicle in because of speed and convenience even though we know that we could sell it for more.

    So it’s the exact same thing for a house seller.

    The real estate investor is going to offer them a fair price. A seller won’t agree to a price they don’t feel is fair. Now it might be below what they could get on the market, but they’re agreeing to a price that they feel is fair in exchange for the speed and convenience and the service.

    20% of these are those types of sellers, which means, real estate investors, you’re throwing 80% of your leads away right now if you’re not a hybrid or if you’re not working heavily with a real estate agent.

    Real estate agents, listen to that. If you want more sellers if you want more listings, one of the best sources for listings is to work with a real estate investor or become a hybrid agent investor because 80% of those motivated sellers come through your Facebook Ads, through Google search, and through Carrot.

    80% of those actually want to sell retail. And so that’s one of the most underserved lead sources the agents completely ignore and you guys should be going after and we can help you.

    The last part of it here is investors tend to profit two to four or two to five times higher profits per deal on those deals than a real estate agent would gain for commission.

    anthony beckham

    One of our Carrot members, Anthony Beckham, we were chatting not too long ago. He’s actually here locally in Roseburg. He is a hybrid agent/investor. He always talks that his average profit per deal as an investor is around $20,000 to $30,000. His average agent commission is around the $7000 to $12,000 range.

    Add those numbers up! Would you love to be able to do fewer deals, and fewer transactions, help more sellers, and actually earn greater revenue while providing an amazing community service?

    Hopefully, the answer is yes.

    The Hybrid Real Estate Agent First Strategy

    The Hybrid Real Estate Agent First Strategy

    On the other side, you have the hybrid. The hybrid is the one who is both an agent and an investor as I said. The cool thing is you’re offering your seller more options. You’re offering them a better experience. You’re solving their problem rather than throwing them back on the streets to solve their problem.

    You’re going to be increasing your revenue as a hybrid 30 to 50%, sometimes more, just by taking those same leads you already have and dealing with them in a different way.

    We’re not talking about getting more leads. We’re talking about using the leads you’ve already gotten, better, or adding on a lead source like Carrot to make it great: higher ROI and competitive advantage.

    How do you do hybrid now using Carrot or just in general in your business?

    hybrid motivated seller website approach

    Well, there are three different ways to do hybrid and it really depends on what your strategy is, whether you’re an agent first or an investor first.

    I’m going to start with agent first.

    Once again, I want to emphasize that hybrid is a motivated seller strategy.

    It is not a buyer strategy.

    Buyers for retail are not going to be buyers for an investment property or wholesale usually. Sometimes they will be, but not usually.

    Sellers who want to sell retail do become buyers for retail, but sellers who want to sell wholesale don’t automatically become buyers who want to buy retail also.

    So what we’re saying is this is straight-up a motivated seller strategy. That’s what hybrid is.

    And so if you’re an agent first, and what I mean by that is you’re known as an agent in the local market. People know you as an agent, you market yourself as an agent, you have your main website that’s an agent, you are an agent, but you also invest on the side.

    Now, you’re going to need to have your retail agent website. You’re going to have IDX attached to that. It’s going to be mainly for buyer leads, but you’re also going to get seller leads through that. It’s going to be for credibility.

    It’s going to be great for driving Facebook ads to it for sure and SEO, search engine optimization in Google is going to be amazing for that.

    But you’re going to want a separate website that’s just 100% geared towards a highly motivated house seller. Trying to mash the two together in one website doesn’t work well because you’re not speaking that motivated house seller’s language.

    This hybrid-motivated house seller website focuses explicitly on the language that a house seller would want to hear so you can solve their problem. But the difference with the hybrid site versus our standard motivated house seller websites here at Carrot is they’re going to show multiple options to sell.

    hybrid real estate websites

    Now we have a hybrid template that you can activate in the Carrot system that shows this, or you can use this training and execute that and build it out on your website solo.

    But, on the hybrid site, you’re going to show,

    “Hey, we can do a cash offer or we can sell it enlisted at top dollar.”

    You’re going to show them case studies, explain how you do it, and give testimonials from people who have done both.

    You’re going to be driving traffic to this from SEO. It’s an amazing spot for motivated house sellers. Google Ads is actually one of the best spots for house sellers. Facebook ads also work. We usually start with Google Ads, build up credibility on that, get your reviews on there, and show that you can buy or list it for top dollar.

    The Hybrid Real Estate Investor First Strategy

    Now let’s say you’re an investor first, but you have your license, but you’re not an agent in the market, and you’re not looking for buyer leads per se. You’re not looking for retail buyers.

    The Hybrid Real Estate Investor First Strategy

    Well, you don’t need a retail website, then. You don’t need that website with the IDX. You don’t need that website that shows that you’ve got a brokerage or real estate agent, a real estate agency.

    If you are known as an investor, but you just have your license so you can commission share with other agents or something like that, what you need is a hybrid motivated seller website that I talked about earlier.

    Whatever other types of websites with Carrot, cash buyers, rent to own, your land, whatever the types of investing or leads you’re looking for, but you don’t need the retail site with the IDX if you’re not looking for retail buyers.

    Let’s say you’re an investor first, but you work with retail buyers.

    Raul Bolufe

    We have a member, Raul Bolufe, that we were talking to on the CarrotCast recently… he is this person. He’s an investor first. He partnered with a broker so that another person’s the broker of record in his state.

    And what they do is they take their motivated seller leads and the ones that don’t want the discount cash offer, but want retail, they then partner with them and they list that through their brokerage, and then they do collect those buyer leads.

    So you do, in that case, need a retail website. Their primary business is driven through their investing side, through their motivated house seller marketing. Still, their retail side is where they collect those buyers so they can sell their house flips quicker and also, so they can capture more of those commissions and add 30 to 50% extra revenue in their business with no extra marketing at all.

    Advanced: Adding a 3rd Option

    Eric Young

    There’s an advanced way to do hybrid, and we’ve got a case study with Eric Young and how he does this.

    We have other members that do the same thing.

    3 options for hybrid real estate

    Option #1 – Sell Fast for Cash

    So you have option number one we discussed, which is selling your house for cash. That is exactly what iBuyers are doing and they’re even now starting to say that they’ll list the home and compete directly with real estate agents or sometimes they’re collaborating with agents, but that’s option one.

    If that option doesn’t work for people, you as a hybrid should always suggest that the seller does exactly what’s going to help them the most.

    Most of the time, you’re going to suggest to the seller,

    “Hey, you should really take this offer over here. You should really list it on the market because you’re going to get X price more for that, but if you are looking for speed and convenience, they’re willing to give up a little bit of your equity in exchange for that. Here’s the cash offer that we can make for you.”

    Option #2 – List for Top Dollar

    Number two is listing on the market, like I said, for top dollar.

    Option #3 – Fix and List

    Number three is what we call the fixing list. And the fixing list is kind of a hybrid of the two.

    The fixing list is saying…

    “Hey, Mr. and Mrs. Seller, you have a great house. If we were to list it on the market, it probably would sell pretty quick for about $300,000, but if we were to invest about $50,000 or $25,000 into fixing up the kitchen, this bathroom, putting new carpet in, I think it’s pretty quickly going to sell for 375,000 on the market where it is. So Mr. and Mrs. seller, what if we provide our money to do the full rehab?

    We’ll bring in our construction crew. I’ll show you some good examples of the great work that we’ve done. We will do the work. We’ll put in our money to do that $25,000 of fix-up, and then we’ll list it on the market for you, and then over the price of the $325,000, we split that money. I get my $25,000 back right away since I put that money in to fix it, you pay me my commission on the first $300,000 and then we split the profits right down the middle on the extra.”

    So you, as an investor/agent hybrid, you will earn the commission on the $300,000. You will earn the extra $25,000 in profit because you split that $50,000 in profit. And now that your seller, rather than selling for $300,000, all the other agents are offering that they can sell it on the market, you sold it at $375,000.

    You took your money back. You took your profit back, and they got an extra $25,000 in their pocket, and the end buyer has an amazing, beautiful house.

    Now, if you’re a real estate agent or a hybrid investor/agent who offers that service, can you tell me that you would not be winning in your market big time because every seller would want to work with you?

    The answer is you would 100% be winning.

    How Much Money Are You Leaving on the Table?

    So, I want to ask you this: As a real estate agent and investor, how much money are you leaving on the table right now? How many sellers are you underserving and throwing back to the market or not putting enough money in their pockets because you don’t know how to serve them well with the hybrid real estate strategy?

    How many leads are you giving up as an investor or an agent because you’re trying to fit everything in that pretty little box for the MLS or the investor side? Are you completely ignoring the other side of the market that’s going to keep growing and growing and growing as the iBuyers penetrate the market more?

    You have to make the shift as an agent. You have to make the shift as an investor, and we’re here to help you guys and gals do that.

    We have amazing websites for real estate agents, amazing websites for real estate investors. We help you attract the most motivated house sellers and buyers, and tenants. And we help you do that through evergreen marketing with our inbound marketing system.

    And we want to help you increase your ROI, leverage more of your leads into deals, grow your business without growing your activity, and serve more sellers, launch a hybrid site here on Carrot.

    Post what you’re doing right now in the comments section below.

    We’d love to collaborate, answer your questions, and help you increase your deal volume with the hybrid approach!

  • 19 Lead Generation Tools for Real Estate Agents [Your Guide for 2023]

    19 Lead Generation Tools for Real Estate Agents [Your Guide for 2023]

    20+ Lead Generation Tools for Real Estate Agents

    Most real estate agents can’t afford to miss out on leads and deals. They don’t know it but having the proper lead generation tools for real estate agents is the holy grail of their business growth.

    You probably became a real estate agent because you’re a bit of a “people person”… because you’re great at sales and know how to talk to clients.

    But if there aren’t leads to convert into clients, your business can’t grow.

    No matter how good you are at sales — no matter how convincing, charismatic, or persuasive — none of that matters if you’re not consistently generating leads for your business.

    Consistent, high-quality, and high-volume real estate lead generation is the secret to dominating your market and building the business of your entrepreneurial dreams.

    More leads mean more closings, which means a more successful business.

    Of course, that’s easier said than done.

    So how do you get leads in real estate consistently?

    19 Lead Generation Tools for Real Estate Agents

    Here are 19 of the best lead generation tools for real estate agents to help!

    1. Carrot Website

    Many real estate agents start out by joining a larger real estate group or franchise. Their face gets added to the company website, and they receive a particular share of the leads.

    But it doesn’t take long to realize that if you want to grow your own business, you’re going to need your own website.

    Unfortunately, most agents think their website only exists to represent their business — as a sort of digital business card.

    The most successful agents, though, know that isn’t true.

    Your website is probably your company’s biggest lead-gen asset.

    There are two ways that you can use your website to predictably generate high-quality leads for your business.

    The first is paid traffic. Running ads on Facebook or Google is a great way to drive traffic to your website. But here’s the thing: that paid traffic isn’t worth a lick if your website doesn’t consistently convert that traffic into leads for your business.

    (In fact, driving traffic to a low-converting website is expensive and usually a waste of money)

    And our Carrot websites are built to convert and drive leads right out of the box therefore, can be one of the most productive lead generation tools for real estate agents.

    We start with a compelling homepage header, which transitions into two separate CTAs for buyers and sellers. And we always include the agent’s phone number in the upper right corner for people who want to take action right away.

    Take a look: the entire format is crafted to make taking action as easy as possible for visitors.

    The trick to building a high-converting website is to give visitors exactly what they want, as quickly as possible… and to build trust along the way.

    That’s exactly what Carrot sites do.

    But that’s not all they do.

    While paid ads are a great way to drive traffic to your website, SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is just as powerful. SEO is working to rank in search engines (like Google and Bing) for keyword phrases that your target market types into Google. That way, those people click on your website and become leads.

    And SEO leads are usually even higher quality and more consistent than paid leads.

    SEO is a bit complicated but can be one of the best long-term lead generation tools for real estate agents.

    This is why our Carrot sites make search engine ranking as simple as possible. Check out some of our best lead-generation features in the second point.

    2. Carrot Features

    AgentCarrot Features

    Our Carrot sites convert better than any other websites in the industry.

    We’ve generated more than 2 million leads for our members with conversion rates between 10% and 20% (most real estate websites convert at 2%)!

    That means more leads and more closings for your business.

    And you can sign up for Carrot risk-free for 30 days over here.

    But what else do you get by signing up?

    Here are some of our coolest real estate lead generation tools

    • Carrot Lead Manager — When you get a Carrot site and start generating leads, you need a way to keep track of those leads and organize them all. That’s why all Carrot members have access to our Lead Manager, where you can view mission-critical information, categorize prospects, and see how many leads you’ve got in the pipeline.
    Carrot's lead manager
    • Campaign Tracking Links — When you run advertisements or post on social media, it’s nice to know how much traffic that content is driving to your website. With our Campaign Tracking Links, you can create a custom link with a single click, and we’ll track clicks and conversions from that link. This is super easy and a great way to test the effectiveness of your advertisements.
    • Visual Editor — All AgentCarrot sites are built to convert right out of the box. But you can still customize the site however you like, adding your logo, brand colors, and images and changing the copy to fit your business. Our visual editor makes this process super easy. It’s the best of both worlds: lead generation and website customization.
    Carrot's real estate website visual editor
    • SEO Ranking Tracker — Want to know how your SEO rankings are performing? Just tell us what keyword phrases you want us to track for you, and we’ll give you regular updates on how your website is performing. That way, you can celebrate once you break through to page 1!
    Carrot SEO rank tracking
    • VideoPost — One of the most challenging parts of getting your website ranking in search engines is consistently creating content or blog posts. Because the more content your website has, the more keyword phrases you’ll be able to rank for. And with VideoPost, you can record a quick video and then, with just a few clicks, transcribe that into a long-form blog post that can rank on Google. SEO doesn’t get easier than that!
    Carrot videopost tool
    • Carrot SEO Tool — There are a lot of rules to creating a new page or post for SEO. You should include the target keyword phrase a very specific number of times, you should have a certain amount of links, and you should use a certain number of images… all depending on the length of your content. It’s hard to remember everything, which is why we give all of our members’ access to our Carrot SEO Tool, which acts as an SEO checklist every time you create a new page or post. Just keep at it until the light turns green, and then you’re good to go!
    Carrot SEO tool
    • Carrot IDX — IDX is useful because it allows real estate agents to automatically upload MLS listings to their websites. This saves a lot of time. And Carrot IDX allows you to upload listings and then customize those listings however you like.
    Real-estate-agent-website-idx

    Check Out Our FREE AgentCarrot Demo Now!

    3. Silver Street Marketing

    Running Google and Facebook ads is much more complex than it probably sounds… especially if you’ve never done it before.

    If you have tried your hand at paid ads, then you know exactly what I’m talking about.

    You choose the targeting and craft the copy as carefully as possible, then hit launch with your fingers crossed.

    But those ads end up far less effective than had hoped.

    The truth is, it can take years to learn how to craft high-converting advertisements.

    This is why we highly recommend delegating that part of your business to the marketing experts over at Silver Street Marketing if you have the budget for it.

    They will manage every aspect of your PPC and Facebook marketing strategy so you can focus on closing clients and growing your business.

    4. Citation Building Service

    If you want to start building your SEO and website rankings to drive traffic passively to your website, then citations are a great place to start.

    What are citations?

    Well, first, you have to understand backlinks. Backlinks are the term used when another website links to your website, and they’re a critical indication to Google that your website is trustworthy. The more high-quality backlinks you have, the more that Google will trust your website (which means better rankings).

    And citations are a type of backlink that’s easy to get.

    You just go to sites like Google, Yahoo, Bing, etc., and list your business information. Doing this on 40 or more sites will typically give you an SEO advantage over your competitors.

    But it can take a while.

    With our Citation Building Service, we’ll go build 40 citations for you so you can keep your attention on more important business matters.

    5. Ballpoint Marketing

    Direct mail is one of the most common lead generation tools for real estate agents.

    Any real estate agents in your market who are trying to grow their business are probably sending direct mail.

    That’s for good reason — direct mail is a great way to build brand awareness and generate leads.

    The problem is, everyone is doing it.

    Which makes it difficult to craft mailers that stand out from your competitor’s mailers. Because of that, many mailers end up in the trash before even getting looked at.

    But Ballpoint Marketing is solving that.

    They offer robot-written mailers that look hand-written (the ink even smudges and indents the paper).

    And these mailers get an exceptional response rate.

    It creates a personal touch that feels authentic and is difficult for people to ignore.

    Why not give it a try?

    6. Mailchimp

    lead generation tools for real estate agents email campaigns

    Your email list should be the backbone of your marketing strategy.

    By consistently growing your email list and interacting with those prospects on a weekly basis, you expand your reach, build brand awareness, and nurture leads.

    It’s like this: your ads and SEO leads to your website, which leads to your email list, which leads to follow-up and eventually closing clients.

    It might not always be a straight line, but that’s the general flow.

    And perhaps the easiest tool for building your email list is Mailchimp, which won’t cost you a dime until you’ve reached more than 1,000 subscribers.

    Plus, Carrot easily integrates with your Mailchimp account!

    7. DocuSign

    docusign

    The real estate business includes a lot of reviewing and signing documents.

    Fortunately, DocuSign allows you to upload, edit, and send documents for review and even digital signing.

    Carrot members love to use DocuSign for contract signing because it’s so much easier and faster than trying to coordinate in-person meetings.

    You might also consider HelloSign, which is a similar service.

    8. Canva

    canva

    Marketing requires a lot of design work.

    Whether you’re creating a logo, designing your website, or posting on social media, graphics are an important element.

    They draw the eye better than text and consistent colors, fonts, and graphics create a sense of continuity, making your brand easier to identify.

    But being able to design graphics is an uncommon skill for real estate agents.

    Well, Canva is changing that.

    With Canva, even real estate agents with no past design skills can create eye-catching graphics. And it’s free to try out.

    Our member love using Canva to spice up their social media posts and create grahpics for their website.

    9. Realvolve

    realvolve

    The bigger that your business gets, the more cluttered internal processes becomes.

    It’s a natural part of hte process. Promising leads slide under the radar and important tasks don’t get finished… all because your business is growing.

    Remember the old saying: what go you here won’t get you there.

    And when your business gets to new heights, you’ll probably find that you need software to help organize and coordinate your leads, workflows, and other internal processes.

    Many of members love using Realvolve for that. You can schedule a demo on their homepage to check it out for yourself.

    10. HARO

    What if you could easily get your business and website mentioned on local publications?

    With HARO — which stands for “Help a Reporter Out” — you can.

    And the benefits are twofold. First, local and even nationwide publications will mention you as an expert at real estate. This will grant you credibility and even give you the chance to put a trust-building bar like this on your website…

    Just add the logos of the places that you’ve been mentioned and voila! You’ll build immediate trust with your website visitors.

    The second benefit is in regards to search engine optimization, which drives traffic to your website when people type certain keywords into Google.

    One of the biggest factors of SEO is how many reputable backlinks your website has — a backlink is when another website links to your website.

    And when other sites quote you as an expert, they’ll almost always link to your website.

    Win, win.

    So how does HARO work, and how do you get leads in real estate from their services?

    Well, you can sign up for free as an expert source for journalists. Then every day, you’ll receive an email with potential articles you can contribute to. Just follow the intstructions and you’ll start getting mentioned in no time.

    HARO is most effective when you consistently and quickly respond to prompts over a long period of time.

    Even dedicating 10 minutes per day to can help to win HARO backlinks, improve your domain authority, and enhance your brand’s visibility.

    11. Craigslist

    Craigslist? How do you get real estate leads on Craigslist?

    Craigslist probably isn’t the first site you think of when you’re working to generate leads for your real estate business.

    But it can certainly help… especially if you’re trying to generate leads in a new market for the first time.

    You can look under the housing category for people who’ve listed as for-sale-by-owner and send them a message like the following…

    Hey,

    I saw your house listing and I was wondering how much interest you’ve got in your home?

    I know the market can be a little tough right now and I’m a new real estate agent in the area who’s looking for people I can help.

    Would you have time for a five-minute chat about the home and how we might be able to work together?

    Mike

    Or something similar… (adjust it to fit your style!)

    Similarly, you can message people who are looking to purchase a home with something like this…

    Hey,

    I saw that you’re looking to buy a home… is this your first home?

    I’m a real estate agent in the area and I’d be interested in learning more about what kind of home you’re looking to purchase.

    Would you have time for a five-minute chat?

    Mike

    Once your business is off the ground, this probably isn’t a strategy you’re going to keep using… but it can definitely help to get things moving.

    12. Aircall

    Answering the phone is one of the biggest, most unexpected challenges of growing your real estate agent business.

    If you don’t answer the phone when it rings, then your chances of losing the lead skyrocket. At the same time, you obviously can’t spend all your time on the phone… between negotiating contracts, house showings, and client meetings, you’re busy enough.

    So what do you do?

    Well, one thing you can do is hire a salesperson to answer the phone for you and make follow-up appointments.

    Once they’re trained, you can use a service like Aircall to create multiple phone numbers, ensure that the phone gets answered when it rings, record conversations, and even assign different leads to different salespeople.

    You probably don’t need this service when you’re just getting started, but it’s something you might want to consider when your team grows and the phone won’t stop ringing (’cause that’s a good thing, after all).

    13. CRM

    warm market sales follow up stats - Tanya Aliza | Business Success ...

    Following up with leads is an extremely important part of running a real estate business.

    Not just so that you can do more closings, but so that you make the most of each lead.

    The fact is, most closings happen during the follow up… people don’t decide to work with you after the first call or even the second call… but after the 5th call.

    And while that might sound discouraging, it really just requires a little restructuring to be able to follow up consistently and effortlessly.

    Really, it takes an effective CRM.

    A CRM helps you organize your contacts, your leads, and your touch-points with them. You can keep track of how many times you’ve contacted each lead, when you contacted them, and tons of other person-specific details that make having a CRM one of the best real estate lead generation tools out there.

    The first choice for most of our member is Realvolve.

    Check it out!

    14. YouTube

    10 Youtube Statistics That You Need to Know [Updated May]

    Like other social media sites, YouTube is a great platform for growing your real estate audience, building brand awareness, and even generating leads.

    But you know what really sets YouTube apart from other platforms?

    Video.

    More than any other media type, people love video content. It’s easier to consume and more entertaining than written content.

    In fact, 54% of people want to see more video content from brands and businesses that they follow.

    10 Video Marketing Statistics for 2020 [May 2020]

    And by creating consistent video content on YouTube, you can establish yourself as a real estate expert in your market and encourage people to reach out to you when buying or selling a home.

    But what kind of content should you create?

    For inspiration, check out the Farr Group’s YouTube channel. They create videos about their listings, their business purpose, and they even offer educational advice.

    Building your YouTube channel isn’t going to change your business or your life overnight, but it can make a big impact over the long-term.

    The main key to building a following on any platform like this is to be consistent with your content creation schedule (publish at least once per week).

    The more often that people see your videos, the more that they’ll view you as a real estate expert.

    But YouTube isn’t just great for generating attention organically… you can also run YouTube ads.

    And one of the greatest parts about YouTube ads is that your competitors are probably not using the platform at all (they’re probably just running Facebook ads). Additionally, you can target people based on location.

    Which means that you can create a “YouTube commercial” that only targets people in your market.

    Why not give it a try and see how it impacts your lead generation?

    15. IDX

    IDX stands for Internet Data Exchange and it’s the tool real estate agents use to bring listings from the MLS to their own website.

    This is really important for a few reasons.

    First of all, if people see house listing that they like on your website… they’re going to call you and maybe work with you.

    (Especially if you have a high-converting Carrot site!)

    If they see that same listing on Zillow instead… then who knows who they’re going to call for help? It’s just a roll of the dice.

    And second, putting listings directly on your website gives you an excuse to drive people to your website, building brand awareness and generating leads.

    Every you add a new listing, you can post on social media and email your list about it… just like the Farr Group does.

    Having IDX on your real estate website allows you to build a real estate business disassociated from big corporations and their listings.

    That way, people will call you when they find a house that they like.

    16. Facebook

    Facebook is one of the most popular places for real estate agents to do their online advertising… and for good reason.

    It’s an extremely powerful platform with billions of people and remarkable targeting.

    With just a few clicks, you can create an advertisement that targets first-time homebuyers, people interested in selling their home, or pretty much any other demographic that you can dream up.

    And not only are Facebook’s advertising options versatile, but it’s also relatively inexpensive, costing between $1 and $3 per click.

    Facebook Stats Every Marketer Should Know in 2020 | Sprout Social

    Of course, before you run Facebook ads, you’ll want to make sure that your website is ready to convert that paid traffic.

    Carrot sites are built to convert, but you’ll still want to make some minor customizations.

    The best way to find out whether your site is converting as you want it to is to do a test run.

    Use this calculator to determine what your budget should be in order to get a single closing, set that money aside, and run some advertisements.

    If you’re getting closings while staying within your budget, then you have a winning system. If not, then tweak your ads and/or your site until you’re in the green.

    It might take some time to get profitable with your Facebook ads, but stick with it and, eventually, you’ll figure it out.

    17. Instagram

    You might be suprised at just how effective Instagram can be for growing your business and doing more closings.

    At first, it seems like just another social media platform that’s easy to get distracted by, but it’s more than that.

    Since Instagram is so visual and so full of images, it’s a great place to show your listings and to encourage buyers to buy and sellers to sell… through you.

    In fact, that’s exactly what Krista and Aaron of the Farr Group have done.

    Their organic Instagram posts are so booming that they don’t even use Facebook or Google ads for their business.

    (Here’s their Instagram account so you can look for yourself)

    As you can see below, their Instagram posts aren’t all that complicated, but they are quite effective lead generation tools for real estate.

    They share new house listings, cool photos, and buying and selling advice.

    And it’s working really well.

    When I asked them about this, they even mentioned that some of their posts don’t get a ton of engagement, but then people will mention those posts as the reason that they reached out.

    So your social media posts build brand awareness and might be having a bigger impact than you think.

    And Instagram is a great place to get started.

    18. 99designs

    We already talked about Canva, which is a great place to go design your own graphics.

    But since you’re a real estate agent — and not a graphic designer — it might be safe to say that… well, you just don’t want to design your own graphics.

    In that case, 99designs is a great website for hiring a high-quality designer.

    Your first option is just to post a job, check applications and reviews, and then hire someone who you think fits the bill.

    But another great option is to “host a contest”, which allows multiple designers to compete for the job. Each designer creates a graphic for the project, you review them, and then choose which one you like the most.

    Pretty cool, huh?

    That means you can see the designers work before you pay for it.

    19. Planoly

    Social media is an extremely powerful tool for building brand awareness and marketing your business.

    Unfortunately, it can easily turn into a time-sucking machine.

    Posting turns into scrolling and scrolling turns into wasted time.

    Why not avoid social media altogether — but still get all of the business benefits — by using a tool like Planoly to schedule your social media posts on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter.

    This ensures that you won’t get distracted by social media when you’re trying to work.

    And plus, it also allows you to create and schedule all of your posts at one time, so you don’t have to return to social media throughout the week.

    Good for your business… good for your productivity.

    Which of these lead generation tools for real estate agents is right for your business?

    Hopefully, you now know of several lead-gen tools that you’ve never considered using before.

    And more hopefully, you’ll give some of them a try.

    Which ones do you think will be the most helpful for your business? Which ones are you going to use right away?

    Which ones are you still considering? And which one do you think is the best lead generation tool for real estate?

    Let us know in the comments!