No matter where you live in the United States, most people will find your real estate business online. One of the best ways to take control of your real estate brand is by blogging.

A blog is a gold standard for generating traffic, leads, and building relationships. Blogging keeps you top-of-mind with your readers while positions you as an expert through helpful, informative content. Also, when you blog regularly, you benefit from an SEO standpoint. Google favors websites with relevant, unique, and engaging content added.

These sites are often indexed more frequently, and visibility in the search engines tends to improve.

Blogging: A Powerful Inbound Marketing Tactic

Over the ten years, there's been a shift away from old-fashioned outbound marketing. 

Outbound marketing relies on the advertiser interrupting your day long enough for the message to sink in. Cold calling is the ultimate form of outbound marketing. Most times, telemarketers don't even know if the person they're calling might be interested in what they're selling.

Invasive, intrusive, and loud—those are the hallmarks of outbound marketing. People are opting out in record numbers: More than 600 million devices now block online ads. About 230 million Americans opt-out of unsolicited phone calls.

Inbound marketing is the exact opposite. It focuses on brand awareness through marketing tactics involving social media, SEO, and yes, blogs. Your blog, in particular, helps them answer questions, solve problems, and soothe worries about buying or selling.

By the time a lead is ready to buy or sell a home, you've been with them every step of the way. You've advised them on what works and what doesn't, and, in doing so, you've become the natural choice to guide them to closing.

Set Yourself Up for Success with Your Real Estate Blog

How do people find your blog? Search engine visibility is critical. Each time you publish a blog post, it gives search engines an incentive to feature you in searches related to the topic. 

Here's how to set your blog up for success:

1. Be Consistent
   One of the most important parts of having a successful blog is consistency. Consistency gives site visitors and social media followers reasons to keep coming back. It also "pings" search engines, who know to check your website for new
2. Be Relevant
   As a real estate professional, you understand the time and effort involved to master real estate. Your leads don't: They rely on you. Blog posts should answer a question, solve a problem, soothe anxiety, or address an objection. When you write posts with actual client questions in mind, you don't have to worry as much about "search keywords" and other technicalities. Also, consider topics that show your expertise in the core markets that you serve. These articles can be about area amenities, upcoming events, local attractions, nightlife, the list is endless.
3. Timeliness
   If you read about blogging, you'll see plenty about "evergreen content." Evergreen content refers to posts that will be just as useful in a week, a month, or a year. Of course, real estate changes faster than that: If you write a neighborhood guide, you might have to update it annually. Don't be intimidated. You can count on this kind of content to generate traffic and leads month after month if appropriately positioned. A great way to start blogging is to answer common questions almost all your leads have. It's an easy way to dip your toe in, and visitors will appreciate it!
4. Be Intentional
   If you're marketing homes in a specific community, be sure to work in keyword phrases that send readers to relevant pages on your site, such as listings for homes. Be sure to work these types of phrases in naturally; a blog post isn't the places for a hard sell. Also, be sure to let readers know where to go next. Include a call to action to contact you or find a sales associate.
5. Capture Their Attention with Images
   Blogs are all about text, but real estate captures the imagination with images! From breathtaking property photos to compelling panoramas of your city's skyline, visual touches are a must. They make life easier for readers, breaking up text, and improving recall. Posts with photos get twice as many shares on average than those without, so your efforts will go much further. There are many free or very inexpensive tools available to help you make your imagery shine. Consider adding your company logo to images as well to give your brand a boost.
6. Be Involved
   Once you get into the swing of writing for your blog, the next thing to think about is promotion. Promotion is essential since your search rank rises when people share or link to your blog. Get in the habit of using analytics to learn which blog content drew the most traffic. Then, add social media into the mix to amplify your unique voice on Facebook and Twitter.

You Too Can Embrace Your Inner Blogger

Like your website isn't just a book of listings, your blog isn't just a collection of postcards. It's a dynamic, ever-growing introduction to who you are, what you do, and why clients should meet you.

The most important thing? You should stand behind what you write, but don't wait to be perfect. The sooner you get started on your blog, the sooner you can see truly exciting business results.

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