- Find out which agents in your area are getting the most paid and organic web traffic, research who is getting the most out of social media and find out the most-searched keywords in your area.
Do you know which real estate agents in your area are using paid advertising, who has thousands of Facebook fans, or who is getting the most organic traffic to their website? If you’re not sure, it’s time to get informed.
The internet is a pretty crowded place. In some markets, it’s almost suffocating. Having a clear picture of your online competition will reveal opportunities for you to get noticed online.
And researching your competition online is as simple as ever. Here are four easy ways to do it:
1. Google search
We all know how to do a Google search, so this one should be pretty basic. Simply type the phrase “real estate (your town),” and see who appears in the top spots.
The first few results will be ads, these are denoted by a small ad icon to the left of the text. These are agents who are using Google Adwords to pay for the top positions.
Underneath the paid ads are the organic rankings. Many of these will be the big guns such as Trulia and realtor.com as well as large brokerages. However, there will be local agents who rank on the first few pages too.
These agents are probably getting a substantial amount of organic traffic to their site (equaling more leads), and they are likely implementing powerful search engine optimization (SEO) strategies.
2. Hashtag search
A hashtag search is an easy way to find out which agents are active on social media, in particular Twitter and Instagram.
For Twitter, you can perform this search without an account.
Simply go to the Twitter, and search the following hashtags:
- #RealEstateYourTown
- #YourTown
- #ForSaleYourTown
In a savvy online market there could be hundreds of results in a 24-hour period. Which agents are active on Twitter and using these hashtags in your area?
Conduct the same hashtag search on Instagram (an account is required for this). Are there some main players dominating the space?
If there isn’t much online action happening in your market using Twitter and Instagram, this could be a good opportunity for you to become an authority on these channels.
3. Facebook Pages Insights
You will require a business page to asses your online competition on Facebook. Don’t have a business page yet? It’s time to get one.
From your business page, go to “Insights,” scroll to the bottom and “Add Pages to Watch.” You can search by agent name and add any potential competition to your watch list.
From here you will be able to assess your competition’s total page likes and any changes in page likes from the previous week as well as how many posts per week and weekly engagements.
These insights will give you a good idea who is successfully leveraging the power of Facebook in their real estate business.
4. Google Keyword Planner
Google Keyword Planner is a free tool that will not only tell you how many people are searching for particular keywords in your area but also how competitive the keywords are.
Simply access Google Keyword Planner (a free Adwords account is needed, which is easy to set up with a Gmail account), and enter a few pieces of information to begin your search.
To start, go to “Get Search Volume and Trends Data,” enter the keywords you would like to research, and select the appropriate targeting. Now click “Get Search Volume.”
This will reveal the average monthly searches for a particular keyword as well as how competitive the keyword is.
Keywords with low competition and high search volume should be used throughout the content of your website to rank organically on search engines, and they are the ideal keywords to bid on if using paid advertising.
Every business needs a strong competitive analysis, and real estate is no different. The internet is a powerful and growing force; having a clear understanding of competition to reveal opportunities is imperative.
Take some time today to research your online competition, and generate more leads for your real estate business.
Meghan Zuvelek is the owner of Realmm and a Realtor in Squamish, British Columbia. Connect with her on Instagram or LinkedIn.
