Because Google gets approximately 70 – 80% of all web searches, it’s the search engine that optimization specialists shoot for. The principles and techniques are simple enough, yet getting good search engine rankings can be difficult to achieve, especially in a competitive market like real estate.

The choice keywords are limited, too – how many ways can you say “home for sale” – “real estate” – and the few other search phrases that are the most used by potential home buyers and sellers?

Add to that the fact that prime search engine real estate is the first 5 listings on the first page of a search, we all have our work cut out for us!

My blog, SEO Diva, is written to help guide you through the confusion of search engine optimization. As a member of Active Rain, many of my posts are on that site also and are, as a result, targeted to the real estate market.

If you need help and guidance in getting your real estate business web site ranking on Google, be sure to subscribe to SEO Diva.

They have a program called eWorks!XL that sounds like a good option. You’ll get a web site that’s semi-custom, and they promise lots of support from not only techs but designers too. The price is reasonable at $94.95 per month, with no set-up fee and no contract.

Build you own website with just 3 steps at Web.com

The DIY SiteBuilder starts at $11.95, again no set-up and no contract. I wanted to try out the wizard, but couldn’t do that from just visiting the site. However, since there’s no set-up fee or contract, it would be worth the $12 to check it out.

You will also get a Google Adwords credit of $50 and Yahoo search marketing credit of $50 – free PPC advertising is always great to get, especially for the competitive market real estate has become.

One cool feature I really like is that Web.com includes a trackable phone number which forwards to your number, which will enable you to know how many people call you specifically after looking at the site. This is a metric that too many businesses don’t think to check.

They also offer a lead generation program, some basic SEO training, and have an e-commerce program if you need one.

Click on this link for a special discount good through 12/31/2008: Save 20% on Web.com web creation/web hosting products using code TWC287

There are a plethora (I love that word) of totally free and beautiful WordPress themes on the Internet. One client told me he was close to having a nervous breakdown over choosing just the right one from such a huge number of themes available! To help you out I have a list of wonderful WordPress themes – you’re bound to find the one.

Once you’ve chosen the theme that speaks to who you are, or what you want your blog to be, you need to get a domain name if you don’t already have one.

Then comes the issue of a hosting company. There are a lot of them out there, some quite good. My personal favorite is Hostgator, and this is why:

1. You can have as many domains as you want on one account, which costs about $10/month
2. Once you get used to the cpanel it’s a dream to use
3. The most AWESOME customer support I have encountered

In fact, I’d like to elaborate on Hostgator’s terrific customer service. Talk about having a nervous breakdown – I had been working on a site for weeks that just would not cooperate. I had enlisted the help of developer friends, but it still wasn’t working right.

A light bulb finally clicked on in my brain and I contacted Hostgator through their Live Chat. The tech that helped me was so great – she checked everything out, verified some things with her supervisor, and they ended up making the correction for me that made the site work right.

That kind of help is major, and I’ve been a dedicated fan of theirs from then on.

The most popular plan is the “Baby Croc” which runs $7.95 – $9.95, depending upon how long you sign up for – it should be all you’ll ever need. They also offer a “free site builder” and 4500 free templates. Order Page.

That’s a big question! These days you almost have to put a hyphen or two in your domain name unless you come up with something totally off the wall.

The real estate market is glutted with web sites, many of them old, but they managed to grab the best names in the real estate market, so hyphens often are the only way to go.

I have my own personal theories about hyphenated domain names:

1. 2 hyphens at the most, 1 is preferable
2. Don’t make the domain name just a hyphenated list of keywords (been there, done that, not good)
3. Check the un-hyphenated version of the name to see if you’d be in direct competition with a site that has an already great search engine standing (not a good thing)

You can also buy an existing domain name to fit your real estate market, but that’s another article entirely!

If you’ve decided to start a real estate blog, where do you begin?

You’ll need to get a domain name if you don’t already have one. And unless you are a well known real estate brand like Keller Williams or Realty Executives, you need to have at least one of your keywords in your domain name.

This is not necessarily as easy as it sounds, since it seems like all the good ones are taken (I complain about that in my dating adventures too).

Real estate agents are usually S.O.L. when it comes to using the keywords real estate, homes for sale, realtor, real estate agency, and so on in domain names.

There are a couple of sites that will help you formulate a name. I like using Bust a Name because they make it easy for you to combine different words and then find out if they’re actually available. If you find one you like, you’ll get a discount by going through their service, too.

The other site I like for domain names is nameboy. You type in 2 words you want to use, and they will show you a large selection of available names.

I avoid going to the registrar sites to check to see if a domain name is available. Rumor has it they sometimes grab the name if you don’t register it right away.

Did you know that 80% of home buyers look on the Internet for their next home? If you are a Realtor and  don’t have a web site representing your real estate business, you need one fast!

Web sites should be professional, attractive, user-friendly and informative, complemented with quality photos and graphics. Content should be well written and web sites should be optimized for high search engine rankings.

If you’re on a budget, the least expensive way to build your real estate web site is to use a template rather than pay for custom design work. You can find many resources for free web site templates online.

You can also find fairly cheap, more professionally designed web templates, which is sometimes a better option in the long run, especially if you’re a new real estate agent just getting started.

Buy a Web Site Template – Save Money

Professionally designed web site templates for Realtors and real estate agencies do not need to be complicated or expensive. You can buy a well designed web site template and have it personalized at a reasonable cost.

A few options:

Template Monster has a huge selection of ready-made templates to choose from and are the most popular place on the Internet to buy web site designs and templates. If you have some coding experience you can use the templates to design your own site; if not, you can hire a designer to personalize it for you.

You can also use one of the relatively inexpensive online web site template services that let you choose a template and your customization. Prices start low and increase depending upon how much you want to add to the site, for instance a flash banner. Template.Tuning is one of these template services.

Inverse Logic has a web site design package that starts at $500 (a steal) and includes:

• Any website design package
• Domain registration
• Hosting set-up ( 1 year of free hosting included!)
• Corporate Identity
• Online Marketing
• Free website maintenance during 1 month upon project completion
• Your satisfaction!

Design It Yourself

You can also choose to design your web site yourself, using online tools. Site2You.com is a user-friendly advanced website builder that lets nearly anyone create and handle a successful website quickly, at a very low price.

Whatever method you choose, get that web site up!