Innovation is a method for evolving industries. We’ve observed it across about each vertical that exists and with regards to real estate, there is no exemption. Today it is no surprise that all people got used to the fact that any information can be found with a minimum of effort, in 2-3 clicks. Therefore, with regard to the younger generation, which is now just looking for real estate to buy/rent, they initially look for them on agency websites. And that is precisely why real estate agencies should think about creating their own user-friendly website in order to attract such users.
A modern custom real estate portal is very different in functionality from those that were advanced even 5 years ago. It goes far beyond a listing and is able to lead your real estate business forward. Unlike sites that were 5 years ago, there appeared the following requirements to modern websites: user-friendly design and usability, mobile-friendly interface, fast rendering, easy filtering and search, and of course, well-presented information.
It’s a new standard that a successful real estate business in terms of winning users should consider in creating a website for the real estate sphere these things: eye-pleasing real estate website design and user-friendly interface, a handy search, analytics, calculator, remote demonstrations (video tours/virtual tours/3D tours). Let’s look a bit closer:
Visual component and user-friendliness. It’s not news that every marketplace should be eye-pleasing and convenient in use. But in case of a real estate website sharp your attention to these things several times. Real estate purchase by many customers is associated, on the one hand, with the change of their lives for better, gaining prestige, possession of luxury, on the other hand, with risks, parting with a large amount of money, uncertainty. So, it’s important to relieve stress from users, as well as make you think about the pleasant aspects of the deal, and tailor the selection process as pleasant and seamless as possible. For these, take care of your design, UX/UI, handy filtering, site responsiveness, fast page rendering, and website performance.
Organized search and analytics. The more parameters the real estate card contains, the more effective and precise the result can be. The detailed description is also useful for analytics, driving a better understanding of the user’s needs and behavior. Search by map, by filters, by surroundings, by area or infostructure, age, size, floor, transport facilities – dozens of the factors will influence the price and it’s important to understand, what amenities are buyers or tenants willing to sacrifice for the price and vice versa, for what they can pay more.
Video tours/virtual tours/3D tours. It’s a wow-effect feature that is not so common for real estate websites, at least by yet. Let adding these videos to the property card, it will raise the interest, involvement, trust, and readiness for the next step – informed choice.
Mortgage calculator. This useful tool assists in making an informed decision. More than frequently individuals feel awkward asking about prices, especially significant if they need more information. All that is required of the clients is to enter just two or three numbers and they are right away furnished with the consequence of estimations. They don’t have to send a request, wait for the consultant’s reaction, invest energy in long visits or calls to get a discussion.
Blog. For a potential buyer or a tenant, it is vital to find so much useful information as possible. It’s especially valuable if there are expert tips in the blog, market overviews and predictions, guidelines and how-tos to help users to make the right choice.
It’s obvious that a modern real estate website provides advantages not only for users. It can give detailed information for further dealing with customers.
Nurture leads with the CRM module. The connected CRM module and the web portal complement each other and enhance the effect. Customers visit the website, wait for updates, hunt for the property of their dreams. Finally, they make their choice and send a request which goes to CRM. Now the agent has enough info for further work and this allows sales managers to approach a customer with a relevant offer. Moreover, through CRM, managers can configure mailings and notifications to cover other points of contact with the client – one’s mail and smartphone. Timely reminders, relevant offers, promotions will help to draw the customer into the buying process.
Data-driven decision making. It’s essential to have an opportunity to analyze what users search for, what sections they spend more time, what they end their sessions with, why they bounce from the site. Any additional information gives the image and understanding of their behavior and demands.
What is the Best Way to Create a Real Estate Website
It’s a common case that real estate businesses start with a listing website or a several-pages site, but very soon they realize that a template website has got too many limitations and needs improvements. At first, it works, but then plugins go old, problems with platform updates begin, and errors accumulate. All these shortcomings adversely affect the speed and stability of work, may cause security vulnerabilities and give a negative effect on the ability to scale. The good answer to these challenges may become actual custom real estate software solutions that will count all your business plans at the beginning, leaving space for improvements and scaling without affecting the stability, security, and speed of work. Moreover, by the customer’s demand, any other feature will be added, thoroughly tested and then deployed.
Let’s, in a nutshell, recollect how to create a real estate website. Custom development is made from scratch and goes through very necessary steps, such as business analysis and requirements collection, system design, testing, etc.
Also, there’s a decent response to the point about the speed of creating a web portal. With the properly chosen frameworks, pre-made components, agile methodologies the development speed is grown to the maximum, shortening go-to-market time. It’s also necessary to mention, that today it’s possible to adjust to the budget of the customer to create a real estate website while giving the necessary working result and return to the creating of additional less critical functionality later when the project begins to pay for itself. All the necessary conditions for this will be incorporated into the solution architecture.
XB Software possesses the necessary expertise in software development for the real estate business. Among our latest projects CRM-systems, ERP, web portals, mobile apps for agents and other solutions can be named. Our developers are ready to create a fast, secure and scalable website for your real estate business to bring it to the next level. Get a free consultation of the XB Software team.