Real Estate SEO – Do Meta Keywords Matter?

Do Meta Keywords Matter?

There are many challenges with real estate SEO.  Search Engine Optimization, has become a very complex set of processes and best practices (regardless of what you read).  One of the oldest references to SEO is the infamous “meta tag”.  In real world SEO those words have many meanings, but in real estate search engine optimization, it is referenced all of the time. So this begs the question…Do Meta Keywords Matter?

Real Estate Website Platforms

One specific challenge that real estate agents have when dealing with SEO is that many of them are using some sort of a monthly website platform.  What I’m referring to is NOT having a custom website built; instead taking advantage of one of the hundreds (possibly thousands) of real estate technology companies that offer websites for a monthly fee.  I  am not attempting to bash these types of websites, as many offer great CRM’s and lead capture systems and can be cost effective.  

The problem is, from an SEO perspective most all in one real estate website solutions leave quite a bit to be desired. In most instances, they advertise their website to “have SEO built in” — which is all but impossible.  What they usually DO provide is a place where you can enter “your keywords” that you want to be found by on the major search engines.  This lets you feel as if you have some level of input and control and that after putting “homes for sale” and “real estate” in that little box, you will magically start to rank.  Truth is, Search Engine Optimization is much more complicated than that.

Meta Keywords For Real Estate SEO

Now that we have spoken about how most real estate agents optimize their website for SEO (putting those keywords in that little box) I think its only fair to say that pretty useless.  For it to be successful, SEO for real estate take many forms including:

• Detailed keyword research
• Meticulous attention to the URL structure of your website
• Methodical use of H1, H2 and H3 headers
• Fresh, unique copy that is not found anywhere else on the internet
• Copy density control
• Well written meta descriptions and meta titles
• Strategically thought out internal linking between pages
• Properly set up XML sitemap and robot.txt files
• Backlinks from high trust, high authority websites

This is only a few of the basic things needed if you intend to rank your site in an ultra competitive niche such as real estate.  Notice…one thing was not in there….Keywords!  Although meta titles and meta descriptions are extremely important, meta keywords are useless.  Google has not looked at meta keywords in years. The irony is that many of the website platforms for real estate, give you ONLY that for your real estate SEO.

What Can I Do To Rank My Real Estate Website?

Well, let me tell you, that’s quite the question of the day! The truth is, anyone who claims to have a simple answer to that question is not being entirely honest. When it comes to real estate websites, it’s important to recognize that you’re competing with thousands of others in your city, all vying for the same keywords. It can be quite a challenge.

Now, there are certainly strategies that can help drive traffic to your website, and in the world of SEO, traffic tends to attract more traffic. Let me explain what I mean. If Google sees that your website is receiving a significant number of new visitors who are spending a good amount of time exploring your site, it recognizes that as a positive signal. As a result, your website may start climbing the rankings.

However, it’s crucial not to lose sight of your ultimate goal: generating new leads and acquiring new clients. SEO is just one piece of the puzzle when it comes to driving traffic to your website. There are other effective ways to generate traffic even without relying solely on search engine rankings. So, the question becomes, if you can generate a substantial amount of traffic without necessarily ranking high on search engine results, do you really need to invest heavily in SEO?

While SEO plays a vital role in attracting organic traffic and improving your website’s visibility, it’s important to consider a holistic approach to marketing. A combination of various strategies, including social media marketing, content creation, paid advertising, and building relationships with your audience, can all contribute to driving traffic and generating leads. It’s about finding the right mix of tactics that work best for your specific situation and goals.

So, in conclusion, the answer to whether you need SEO or not is not a simple black-and-white one. It depends on your overall marketing strategy, your target audience, and your specific business objectives. By taking a well-rounded approach and exploring different avenues to attract traffic, you can maximize your chances of success in the highly competitive world of real estate websites.

So What Can I Do To Get Traffic?

First thing is to write original content and post it to your site.  This has to be something that a potential home buyer or home seller would have an interest in.  Once you have it…share it!  Get it on social media, use some social media syndication.  You may even want to pay for some targeted Facebook advertising, to get your awesome new article in front of your potential clients.

 If you can get some great content out there, people will share it.  Once it gets shared enough, other websites will link to it (remember those backlinks in the above list?). Create different types of content. Make video’s and embed those videos on your website to engage your customers.  Have the videos inside your new blog posts that get shared.  Make sure that all of the profiles you set up online have a link back to your website. Finally…if you post listings to social media, be sure to do it from YOUR website…NOT from Trulia or Zillow.  These are the same things that an SEO company would do….its just they fine tune every aspect of the process.

Digital Marketing Should Be Holistic

As we touched on earlier, if the goal is to conjure up new real estate leads, real estate SEO should only be a part of an overall Digital Marketing strategy. Most of the other aspects of Digital Marketing, such as Google Pay Per Click or Social Media Advertising go away as soon as you stop paying for them.  Search Engine Optimization takes quite a bit longer to get implemented, but has much longer term affects.  There are other peripheral benefits to ranking on page one of Google such as brand recognition.  Even if people searching for real estate don’t make it to your website, they will see your brand over and over again.