Strategies to Improve SEO for Real Estate in 2024

Did you know that 75% of users never scroll past the first page of search results? With over 90% of online experiences beginning with a search engine, your SEO strategy can make or break your real estate business.

In a market as competitive as real estate, simply having a website isn’t enough. You must ensure your real estate business stands out in the crowded digital space.

In today’s blog, we will guide you through the essential strategies to improve your real estate SEO, ensuring your business isn’t just another listing but a market leader.

Dive in.

What is Real Estate SEO?

Real estate SEO is optimizing your real estate website to achieve higher rankings on search engine results pages (SERPs). This involves strategically incorporating keywords, enhancing user experience, and showcasing your expertise in the field. 

In a sector as competitive as real estate, SEO is essential for making your website more visible to potential clients who are actively searching for properties or real estate services online.

At its core, real estate SEO is about understanding the search behavior of potential clients and tailoring your website to meet their needs.

The Importance of SEO in Real Estate

A well-optimized real estate website can become a powerful tool for lead generation. It helps you capture organic traffic from search engines, which often has a higher conversion rate than traffic from paid ads because these visitors are actively looking for the services you offer.

Your reputation as an expert in the real estate industry can significantly impact your success. Google evaluates websites based on their expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness (E-A-T), making these factors crucial for real estate SEO.

Top 8 Strategies to Improve SEO for Real Estate

You need to have a comprehensive SEO strategy in place to attract potential clients and drive organic traffic. Additionally, this strategy needs to be tailored to the nuances of the real estate market. Here are the detailed insights on the top 8 strategies for improving SEO in real estate.

1. Conduct Thorough Keyword Research

Before you can optimize your content, you need to know what your potential customers are searching for. Keyword research is the backbone of any successful SEO strategy. 

For real estate, this involves identifying keywords used by your target audience when searching for properties, real estate services, or information related to home buying and selling.

• Primary Keywords: Start with broad, high-volume keywords like “real estate companies,” “best real estate developers in India,” or “top real estate firms.” These are highly competitive but essential for visibility.
• Long-Tail Keywords: While primary keywords are important, long-tail keywords (e.g., “luxury apartments in Mumbai” or “affordable homes in Bangalore”) often yield better results. They are less competitive and more specific, attracting users in the process of making a purchase decision.
• Local Keywords: Given the nature of real estate, local SEO is crucial. Use keywords that include geographic markers such as city names, neighborhoods, or even landmarks (e.g., “real estate developers near MG Road, Bangalore”).

By using tools like Google Keyword Planner, SEMrush, and Ahrefs you can identify the most relevant keywords for your business.

2. Optimize Your Website for Local SEO

Local SEO is vital for real estate businesses because most property searches are location-specific. Here’s how you can enhance your local SEO.

• Google My Business (GMB): Ensuring your business is listed on Google My Business can help to push your business in local search results and on Google Maps. Keep your GMB profile updated with accurate information, including your address, contact details, business hours, and photos of your properties.
• NAP Consistency: The Name, Address, and Phone number need to be consistent across all online platforms, including your website, GMB, and social media profiles. Inconsistencies can be clear to search engines and lower your rankings.
• Local Citations: Get your business listed in local directories like Justdial, Sulekha, and real estate-specific platforms like 99acres or MagicBricks. These citations enhance your local SEO and improve your visibility.
• Local Content: Creating content tailored to the local audience helps to attract potential buyers. This could be blog posts about the best neighborhoods in your city, guides to local real estate trends, or market reports for specific areas.

3. Create High-Quality, Relevant Content

Good content is the core of every SEO strategy. The more valuable and relevant your content, the higher your chances of ranking well in search results. 

Pro tip: Google’s guidelines follow E-E-A-T(experience, expertise, authoritativeness, & trustworthiness) for assessing the quality of content, and sites that excel in these areas are more likely to rank well.

For real estate, content marketing should focus on providing value to your audience while seamlessly incorporating your primary keywords and E-E-A-T method.

• Blog Posts: Regularly publish blog posts on topics that interest your audience. For example, “Top 10 Tips for First-Time Homebuyers,” “How to Choose the Right Real Estate Developer,” or “Understanding the Real Estate Market in 2024.” Incorporate your primary and secondary keywords naturally within the content.
• Guides and Ebooks: Provide detailed manuals or ebooks that users can receive in exchange for their contact information. Topics could include “The Ultimate Guide to Buying Property in India” or “A Comprehensive Guide to Real Estate Investment.” These not only establish your authority but also help in lead generation.
• Property Listings: Optimize your property listings with detailed descriptions, high-quality images, and virtual tours. To boost your listing's exposure in search results, include keywords in the title, meta description, and body.
• Video Content: Video is becoming increasingly popular, particularly in real estate. Create virtual property tours, customer testimonials, and market updates. YouTube is the second-largest search engine, so optimizing your videos for SEO can significantly increase your reach.

4. Don’t Miss Technical SEO

While content and keywords are crucial for SEO, technical SEO is the foundation on which your entire strategy is built on. Ensuring your website is technically sound enables search engines crawl, index, and rank your pages effectively. 

Here’s a closer look at the essential technical SEO aspects you shouldn’t overlook.

• Crawlability and Indexing: Make sure search engines can easily crawl and index your website. Use tools like Google Search Console to identify and fix any errors that might block search engines from accessing your content..
• XML Sitemap: Generate and submit an XML sitemap to search engines to clarify your website's structure and improve page indexing. Regularly update your sitemap to include new content or changes.
• HTTPS Security: Implement HTTPS to secure your website and protect user data. Google considers HTTPS a ranking factor, so securing your site with an SSL certificate can improve your SEO and build trust with your audience.
• Site Architecture and URL Structure: Optimize your site architecture and URL structure to ensure a logical flow of information. Use descriptive and keyword-rich URLs, and create a clear hierarchy with categories and subcategories to improve user navigation and search engine understanding.
• Page Speed and Mobile Optimization: As part of technical SEO, ensure that your website’s speed and mobile responsiveness are optimized. Fast-loading pages and mobile-friendly designs are critical for both user experience and search engine rankings.

5. Leverage Backlinks and Internal Links

Backlinks, or links from other websites to yours, are important for SEO. They serve as proof for search engines that your content provides value and is trustworthy.

• Earn High-Quality Backlinks: Focus on earning backlinks from reputable websites, such as real estate news sites, blogs, and industry publications. Guest posting, press releases, and partnerships with other businesses can help you secure these valuable links.
• Internal Linking: Use internal links to guide visitors to other relevant pages on your website. For instance, if you have a blog post about “The Benefits of Investing in Real Estate,” link to your services page or a related property listing. Adding internal links helps search engines to understand the structure of your site while keeping the users engaged for a longer time.
• Anchor Text Optimization: Replace the descriptive anchor text for your internal links. Instead of “click here,” use keyword-rich phrases like “explore our luxury apartments in Mumbai” or “learn more about real estate market trends.”

6. Utilize Schema Markup

Schema markup, or structured data, helps search engines understand your website's content better. For real estate businesses, this can improve your visibility in search results, especially for local searches.

• Real Estate Schema: Use schema markup to highlight important details like property listings, reviews, or business information. This can lead to rich snippets in search results, which show extra information such as images, ratings, or contact details.
• Local Business Schema: Add local business schema markup to boost your chances of showing up in local search results. Include your business name, address, phone number, and hours of operation.

7. Optimize for Voice Search

As smart speakers and voice assistants become more popular, optimizing for voice search is crucial. Voice searches are usually longer and more conversational, so use long-tail keywords and natural language in your content.

• Question-Based Keywords: Identify and target question-based keywords that users might ask via voice search, such as “Where can I find affordable homes in Delhi?” or “What are the top real estate companies in India?”
• Featured Snippets: Aim to appear in featured snippets, as voice assistants often read aloud. To do this, provide clear, concise answers to common questions in your content.

8. Monitor and Analyze Your SEO Performance

SEO is an ongoing process that needs regular monitoring and adjustments thus, using analytics tools to track your performance can help to make better decisions backed by data.

• Google Analytics: Monitor key metrics like organic traffic, bounce rate, and conversion rate. Additionally, you can analyze the pages with higher performance and compare it with those that need improvement.
• Search Console: Use Google Search Console to track your keyword rankings, identify crawl errors, and monitor your website’s indexing status.
• SEO Audits: identify technical issues and content gaps by regularly conducting SEO audits. It also helps in finding opportunities for improvement. For this purpose, tools like Screaming Frog, SEMrush, and Ahrefs can help with comprehensive audits.

Real Estate SEO vs. Other Forms of SEO

Although the core principles of SEO are similar across industries, real estate SEO has unique features. The main difference is its focus on local SEO. While e-commerce or SaaS companies might target a global audience, real estate professionals need to optimize their sites for local search terms specific to their market.

Another key difference is the complexity of the customer journey in real estate. The process of buying or selling a home is not a one-click transaction, it involves multiple stages, from initial research to final purchase. As a result, real estate SEO strategies need to cater to each stage of this journey. 

For example, someone in the early stages might be searching for “how to buy a house,” while someone closer to making a purchase might search for “best real estate agents in [City].” Your SEO strategy should account for these different stages, offering content that guides potential clients through the entire process.

Conclusion

In the competitive world of real estate, a robust SEO strategy is essential for driving organic traffic and generating high-quality leads. You can significantly improve your search engine rankings by conducting thorough keyword research, optimizing your website for local SEO, creating valuable content, and leveraging backlinks.

Remember, SEO is an ongoing process. Monitor your performance regularly, stay updated with the latest SEO trends, and continuously refine your strategy. With the right approach, your real estate business can dominate the search results and attract the clients you need to succeed.

As you start getting an influx of leads, it is highly recommended that you have a powerful CRM in place to help you manage them and move them up in the sales funnel. For this, we recommend exploring Sell.do—the best CRM solution specifically designed for real estate! This comprehensive CRM system is designed to help you manage leads, improve your marketing efforts, and close more deals.

Schedule a free demo and start driving better results today!