This is Part 2 of a 2 part series on creating a lead converting luxury real estate website.
A lead is a visitor who finds your site or is directed to it. A lead conversion is a visitor who voluntarily gives you their contact information. Your luxury website must be just that. It must feel luxurious to visit your site. But, use restraint with special effects.
1. Limit Flash Movies or Animation. Better yet, forget it.
Good Flash sequences can be eye-popping and make a great first impression. But, it does not make a great second impression, if you want return business. Your site is like a gateway to information. Flash can be a gatekeeper that wastes your visitor’s time or distracts them, once the effect has been created, the first time.
Whatever you do, do not bore your visitors with a movie where you walk onto the screen bubbling with your welcome message. It is like an annoying, effusive salesperson who accosts you the moment you walk through the door. They will not come back just to avoid seeing you again.
2. Make Information Easy to Find.
One of our clients was approached by a famous luxury real estate magazine to place an ad on their website. It took five clicks and eye strain to get to the advertising section. In today’s technological world, we expect speed and immediate search results. Consider Southwest Airlines. It is easy to choose your destination. You do not have to look up airport codes. Buying a ticket is quick and easy.
3. Be Discriminating with your Outbound Links
If your site has community, lifestyles, and educational links make sure you know who these people are before you link to them. It is better to have real referrals than the whole phone book. You are building a relationship with you new prospects and existing clients. Refer only people and companies that you know, or those your friends would recommend to you.
4. Keep it Simple!
Be kind to those website visitors who may be technologically challenged. Insist that your website software is compatible with the majority of web users so that your visitors do not have to download the latest and greatest gizmo just to view your site. Otherwise, if visitors do not upgrade their browsers, plug-ins or media players, they may not be able to see parts of your website. And, they will quickly abandon it .
This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column