There’s no denying that we live in a society that thrives on immediate gratification. Whether it’s personal or work, we want quick results, no time to wait.
So it’s not surprising when many real estate investors attach this “rush” approach to their SEO plan – it’s a disaster waiting to happen. There’s a huge difference between fast SEO results and strategic SEO results that are also aggressive.
The rushed approach flat out doesn’t work over the long run. Good SEO can be aggressive while also being strategic… now that’s effective!
The tendency to rush any sort of business investment is completely understandable, given the monetary expense involved. But when it concerns Search Engine Optimization (SEO), it’s time to replace the “want it now” approach with a “wait for it” mindset.
The chart below outlines some of the differences between bad SEO vs. good SEO.
Good SEO vs. Bad SEO
Organisms take time to grow, whether plants, animals, humans… and yes, even businesses. SEO is no different, it should be organic. After all, SEO is all about increasing a website’s organic rankings.
SEO is a strategic, well-thought-out plan of action with the potential to give you a tremendous return on investment (ROI) for your real estate investment business if given the chance.
How Fast SEO Results Can Actually Hurt Your Website And Search Engine Results
It’s easy to jump the gun and over-optimize your website, which can prove quite costly when it’s all said and done. Mistakes are costly.
Making a bunch of edits “just ‘cause” doesn’t work. Sure, there’s a chance you might get a “top 5” ranking right away. But, that’s only before Google flags you on your low-quality links or spammy over-optimization and hits you with a major penalty.
Or, an unexpected Google update rolls out later down the road – that kills your rankings. In either scenario, you lose.
This actually happened to one of our clients in Denver
We had worked hard to get this business ranked in the “top 5” positions. But unfortunately, this customer had a tendency to rush things and did what they thought would help. Unknown to us, they purchased thousands of cheap, junk backlinks from Fiverr. Within days of the Google Penguin update, this client watched as his home buying website dropped out of the top 100 rankings.
The Google update I’m referring to specifically targeted “junk” backlinks. Just like that, their website was nowhere to be found.
Thankfully, this is the only one of our clients that has ventured out on its own in an attempt to rush SEO.
The moral?
SEO Shortcuts Aren’t Worth It
None of us knows for sure when Google will make updates or what the nature of those updates will be.
So it just doesn’t pay to rush something (SEO) that’s “wired” for organic growth. When you rush your SEO, your rankings may pop up for a bit, but it’s all for naught when they drop (and they will) or disappear.
Engaging in “spammy” SEO techniques like PBNs (private blog networks for backlinks, link exchanges, using cheap overseas automated “link building” services) may bring immediate gratification, but they rarely lead to long-term results.
Don’t get me wrong, SEO should be aggressive, but it should also be strategic and “white hat”.
Let’s get away from the idea of 3-week results (or even 8 week results in competitive markets), and embrace the process of 3-month (and beyond) sustainable results.
I’m not saying that you can’t get great rankings in a month or two for many keyword phrases for buyers, sellers, or tenants.
You can and we do all of the time!
But those search phrases are usually “long-tail” phrases or less competitive search phrases in small markets.
We’ve been able to rank on the page 1 in Google for “klamath falls apartments near oit” with an InvestorCarrot site within 8 days before. But that’s a phrase with not a lot of competition and I was fortunate enough to pop up on page 1 with just some solid on-page optimization (see our 16 keys to perfect on-page optimization there).
But for more competitive phrases, I guarantee your patience will be rewarded in the end.
Real World Results With SEO – From 0 Leads To Turning Consistent Leads And Deals With SEO
I’ve been doing SEO since 2003 and I’ve seen the fruit of SEO done “the right way” time and time again.
So here are 2 quick examples with real rankings graphs showing the timeline it took in these 2 competitive markets (for motivated house sellers) to go from ranking very low… to a #1 or #2 ranking and generating consistent leads each month and closing deals every month with SEO from those leads.
Example 1: Motivated Seller Leads w/ SEO In Baltimore
The picture below shows a snapshot of time while this InvestorCarrot client was implementing our SEO training (the 3LeadPerDay training). She went from ranked on page 3 to #1 for many top motivated seller search phrases in that market, and has held that ranking for nearly a year.
The Analysis:
This InvestorCarrot customer in Baltimore, a highly competitive market, started her SEO in late 2013. The first few months she was really setting the foundation… then you can see her rankings climbed in the summer of 2014, bumped up, back down… then bumped up again and have stayed there ever since.
She now generates on average 20-30 seller leads per month, she doesn’t have to share those leads with other investors, and netted over $90k in profits in 2014 alone. Her 2015 is shaping up to be an even better year.
The Takeaway:
This client said in a case study we did with her that she felt like quitting 3-5 months in because it seemed like things weren’t happening fast enough. We encouraged her to stick with it… and boy is she glad she did! Now SEO is her #1 lead source and has produced well into the 6 figures in profits for her real estate investing business that never would have been there.
That’s SEO done right… not rushed.
Example 2: Motivated Seller Leads w/ SEO In Houston
The picture below shows a snapshot of time while we were doing the SEO (search engine optimization) for this client in one of the most competitive markets in the country for motivated house sellers.
The Analysis:
This InvestorCarrot customer in Houston, one of the top 5 most competitive markets in the U.S. for motivated sellers online according to our research, was able to climb from his page 2 ranking for several highly competitive motivated seller search phrases… to #1 for one of them and top 5 for others within 12 months.
This graph shows only a snapshot of time during our SEO campaign… but you can see the dramatic increase on the chart.
That increase happened about 5 months into the SEO campaign. During those 5 months, the website bounced around the search rankings but generally stayed at the top of page 2 and bottom of page 1.
But then with aggressive but strategic SEO strategies (our SEO service is in the Carrot Marketplace for Carrot members) Google updated their rankings and rewarded this InvestorCarrot customers website. Then you can see from July 2014 to September there was a steady climb up to the top of the search rankings… which also included (and still does at the time of this writing) a #1 position for one of the most sought after motivated seller keywords in Houston.
The Takeaway:
It took 8-10 months of strategic SEO to get the website into the top position in a crazy competitive market. Now that client is generating leads daily and closing multiple deals a month from his online marketing.
Our SEO service in competitive markets isn’t cheap, but the ROI this client is seeing is one of the best return on investments he has in his business today.
Shift Your SEO Thinking From Short-Term To Long-Term
We can show you hundreds of examples like those above now that InvestorCarrot customers control more page 1 rankings for search phrases that matter to real estate investors than any other website platform for investors… but you get the idea.
Growing a business is a long term proposition. Organisms don’t grow overnight. SEO is no different. And those who understand this will reap the rewards year after year.
By taking the time to create an organic and aggressive SEO strategy, you will be setting yourself up for success. Remember that you’re in business for the long haul, so make it count. If you are patient and resist the urge to rush it, then you will hedge against ruining it.
Still have questions about any aspect of SEO? Comment below.
Want Better SEO Results And More Real Estate Leads with Inbound Marketing?
If you’re not yet an InvestorCarrot member and want to know how we can help you get better results online… take our demo or reach out to us anytime. We’d be happy to hop on a strategy call with you to see if it’s a fit… or just head over and grab the plan that fits your goals the best. Most high achieving investors choose the Content Pro plan.
Very helpful outlook. Slower, more strategic, steady and patient will win out. Thank you.
For sure Wayne! Go get ’em and reach out to us if you need any help at all!