Google Base: A New Avenue in Real Estate Search

Inman TV recently interviewed Justin McCarthy - the strategic partner development manager of real estate for Google.  Below is a 6 minute clip of the interview highlighting how Google Base attempts to deliver relevant real estate listings to it's consumers.  Currently you can find Google Base within the organic search results for "homes for sale + [City]" type queries.  It is the drop down menu box at the top of the organic results.  NewHomeSource.com provides Google Base with a feed in order to get our customers communities into Google Base.

Real Estate Video by - Real Estate Blogger

Google Searches: "New Homes" Search Volume Trends

What goes up, must come down.  After seeing "new home" related searches match their high point in July, we saw a substantial decrease in search volume traffic for the month of August.  A decrease is to be expected, as the selling season cools, and families prepare their children to go back to school.  The cyclical nature of the market along with the national market conditions have made this recent drop more extreme in comparison to other years. 

Below is a snapshot provided by Google Trends highlighting the August dip relative to the rest of the year. (Note:Google does not publish actual search volume quantities performed but they do offer this graph.)

Search Engine Marketing Strategies - PPC vs. SEO - Part 1

Part 1 of our Search Engine Marketing Series will focus on the basics of PPC.

Search Engine Marketing, or SEM, is a form of Internet marketing that seeks to promote a website by increasing it’s visibility in the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) when someone enters a keyword phrase that is relevant to that website or business. There are 2 main types of results on a SERP – Sponsored Listings (PPC) and Organic (Natural) Listings (SEO).

The Sponsored Listings are Pay Per Click Advertisements that are created by an Internet Marketer or firm that wants to present an advertisement to those users searching for specific keyword phrases. These Sponsored Listings will show up at the very top of the Search Results Page or on the right hand sidebar. The Internet Marketer responsible for creating the Pay Per Click Advertising Campaigns will assign a maximum bid to each keyword or group of keywords and establish an overall monthly budget that they are willing to spend on those designated keywords.

With each search performed on Google, the ad will post what is called an impression in the Sponsored Listing section. They will only need to pay for that advertisement if someone clicks on the displayed text ad and the user is then redirected to their website. This is referred to as Pay Per Click (PPC) Advertising. Initiating a PPC Campaign is rather simple to get started (you can see your advertisements posted within minutes of setting them up) but maximizing the amount of clicks you get for your money is a daunting process that deserves continuous attention and improvement by a PPC Expert.

Check back next week to learn about SEO - Search Engine Optimization.  Yes, it is different than PPC...

The Importance of Visualization: Real $3.1M Mansion Causes Big Virtual Stir

Be sure to read this article on cnn.com about a $3.1M mansion in Washington State that has been re-created in the 3-D online world, Second Life. This is a fascinating and innovative way to market real estate for prospective buyers online. This first attempt has attracted a lot of interest in the virtual community:

"In real life, a house like this might normally attract the attention of 50 to 100 people, but since Wednesday 3,500 people have toured the home in Second Life, according to its broker, Suzanne Lane. Not all of them are prospective buyers of course -- in a virtual world it's easy for anyone who's curious to just stop by.

"I feel comfortable that it will sell within the next couple of months," she said, despite the fact that the Seattle real-estate market has cooled recently."

This gives food for thought on the impact 3-D visualizations have on buyers, and the increasing importance of utilizing advanced visualization tools to attract interest in real estate properties. Consumers will soon expect to see 3-D walkthroughs and video tours of homes they are researching. Pictures and traditional virtual tours are becoming more and more obsolete by the day. As an industry we need to start creating interactive content, such as video and 3-D walkthroughs, that will excite consumers for years to come.

Thanks to Crystal Christopherson from Envision for this post.

Kelsey Group Research: Online Video for Local Advertising

Forgive me for being on such a big online video kick recently but... I just read this interesting Executive Summary from The Kelsey Group. If you're not familiar with Kelsey, they're a provider of strategic research and analysis, data and competitive metrics on Yellow Pages, electronic directories and local media. Their conferences are among the best in the business for attracting decision makers in the online advertising industry. Anyways, their point is that the awareness and popularity of YouTube has brought video online to the mainstream. Companies like TurnHere and Spot Runner are now offering video production at price points targeted toward SMEs. Video assets will likely become an integral part of cross-platform advertising packages sold to SMEs. Compared to pay-per-click, video is very easy for advertisers and sales reps to understand, making it an easier sell. Read the whole summary here to learn more about the challenges of making video a viable advertising medium at the local level. http://www.kelseygroup.com/visitorsearch/view-ILM-Summary.asp?DocID=1655&SFlag=No

Zillow Self Service Ads

Zillow has launched a targeted self-serve ad service called EZ Ads. The ads are sold at the zip-code level and cost $1 per 100 impressions. The ads are being promoted to real estate agents, loan officers, other professionals, and homeowners.