Original Are you the product?

“In this world, you get what you pay for.” - Kurt Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle

Are you using a "free" real estate app?

Is the real estate app you're using free? You've heard the saying, "When the product is free, the product is you". Real estate is no exception. Almost all real estate apps deliver "you" as the product (unless your agent is paying for it for you which is the case with Listed and their Real Estate Board app).

Otherwise, you are being sold by lead generating services or brokerages to agents. This is bad for everyone but it's especially bad for you.

Learn why this is the case, how you can avoid it and what quality real estate tools you can safely use to achieve your real estate goals.

Here are 3 main ways to determine the best real estate app and which ones to use.

1. Why is this the case?

If you're not paying for the real estate app you're using, and your agent isn't paying for and providing it to you, then you're probably using a third party lead generation service that's using you both to make money.

If you are looking to buy or sell real estate this is bad because instead of returning information that will help you make cogent buying and selling decisions the data being provided to you is likely a 'hook' to get your information by wrapping valuable information (statistics, graphs, school and area data) in a lead form that when you want more information prompts you to "sign in".

delivered to a real estate agent who is willing to pay for 'leads'. Often this is because the agent does not have enough repeat and referral business to support their business so they purchase 'consumer information' from apps and real estate websites that capture this data for the purpose of selling it to them.

2. What Real Estate tools you can safely use?

Blogging helps your website to be more than just a place for people to visit. It gives them the opportunity to interact with your business in a way that isn’t possible through other forms of content on your website. By blogging, you have the ability to help drive traffic back to your website and convert that traffic into leads. For example, if you blog about an important industry event and share it on Facebook and Twitter, you can expect a boost in new signups to your email list or visitors to your website.

3. Become an authority

Blogs are a great addition to your site as they give you the ability to create authoritative content. They also help you establish credibility and become an expert in your field. Moreover, they provide you with an opportunity to build an audience that will help push your company’s brand recognition.

4. Build relationships with potential customers

One of the most important aspects of starting a blog is establishing a connection with your potential customers. This can be done through engaging in conversation on your blog, posting stories about how you operate your business, or even sharing inspiring content that you think will resonate with them. These interactions also make it easier for you to keep up with what people are saying and sharing on social media.

5. You can repurpose blog content for social media

This is a great way to get more mileage out of your blogs and increase traffic. However, it's important to use the right type of content on Facebook. If you write about topics like parenting, personal finance, or food, they might not be as relevant on Facebook as other types of posts.

If you are looking to make money online, affiliate marketing has become one of the most popular. Affiliate marketing allows bloggers to earn commissions by promoting products and services from others. The blogger does not need to own any product or service to be able to promote them. All he needs is a link to the product or service which he wants to promote.

6. It drives long-term results

A blog is an essential tool for building a long-term relationship with your audience. The best blogs will eventually become an extension of your company’s culture and marketing strategy, which means that each article you publish has the potential to create a lasting impact on your brand.

Your blog serves as a platform through which you can share information, knowledge, and tips on your preferred topics. This allows you to provide valuable content with value in return. The more time readers spend on your website, the more chances there are for them to get familiarized with your business and become customers down the line.

7. Blogging helps with link building

Your blog should be the top source of information for your business. By writing consistently on your blog, you’ll want to build links back to your website and help increase its authority.

You can use a free service like Google Analytics to track how many people are visiting your site. This will give you an idea of what kind of traffic is coming in from where. You can then decide whether or not it makes sense to invest money into advertising.

If you have a blog that has been around for a while, you may find yourself having trouble getting new readers. If this is the case, there are many things you can do to get more traffic to your site.

You need to make sure that you are providing value in some way to your audience. This means that you should be offering something of interest and benefit to them. You will also want to provide quality content on a regular basis.

Make sure you have an RSS feed so that people can subscribe to your blog. This will allow them to receive updates whenever you post new articles.

8. It increases SEO

Search engine optimization is a vital part of any successful digital marketing campaign. A well-written blog can improve your search rankings by helping you rank higher in search engines. When someone searches for a topic related to your niche, they will often click on the first few pages of results. These are usually the websites that have the most relevant content.

If you want to get more traffic from Google and other search engines, make sure you use keywords throughout your site. This means using them in titles, headers, subtitles, and even in the body of your articles. If you do this, it will help people find what they’re looking for when they type in a keyword or phrase into their browser.

This means that regardless of what your business offers, your target audience is likely searching for products or services like yours on search engines like Google.

Other resources to help you get started with blogging

Start your own blog checklist:

Here is a quick checklist to get you started with you website blow. Remember imperfect action beats inaction, get started and keep publishing.

• Create your blog page then add the blog element

• Add the blog element to your page and select if you want compact or list view

• Start planning your blog topics by Identifying what resonates with your audience. If you are stuck you can use sites like - https://answerthepublic.com/

• Create an outline serves your company goals.

• Write conversationally, like if you were telling a story to a friend

• Pick a catchy title.

• Use several media types (gif, short video, or image) to deliver your messages.

• Use data to back up claims or ideas - make sure to cite all sources❗

• Have a call to action and or give your audience something to walk away with.

• Take 30 minutes to edit your post.