Archive for category Mortgage Website Values
Top 3 Problems That Will Kill Your Mortgage Website (And How You Can Fix Them)
Posted by Kyle in Mortgage Website Design, Mortgage Website Discussion, Mortgage Website Values, SEO on December 2, 2010
Research shows that consumers seek real estate and mortgage services via the internet more frequently than any other medium. We’re in a digital, information-driven age. Sorry, but your ad in the phone book just isn’t going to cut it anymore.
That said, your mortgage website isn’t a magic money machine. You may find, in fact, that your website isn’t bringing in any new applications, leads, or even site traffic. If this is the case, one of the following issues may be at fault.
1. Your website is impossible to find. This is the fundamental reason websites fail. If no one ever sees your site, your site is a waste of time and money.
How you can fix it: Visitors won’t stumble onto your website accidentally, and you don’t want “accidental visitors” anyway. You want real, significant, qualified traffic. The following steps will help ensure that you get it.
- Make sure you have a domain name that is catchy, memorable, and easy-to-read-and-type.
- Fill your site with valuable, relevant content and information.
- Optimize your title tags to reflect the keywords your target market searches for, and integrate these keywords into your content. Consult with an SEO specialist to gain further ideas about how to optimize your site.
- Connect with other sites and affiliates. Get links to your pages out there for others to find.
- Check out these other ways to drive traffic to your site.
2. You have nothing to say. While good, valuable content can help solve your traffic problems, poor or confusing content will turn visitors away from your site once they get there. If your site makes no sense or doesn’t seem to offer anything useful, visitors won’t stick around long, and they definitely won’t call you for a loan.
How you can fix it: Again, content is the answer. Host a blog, post articles, update your pages on a regular basis with graphs, charts, market news, and more. Do anything you can to continuously provide visitors with the information they’re looking for, and organize it in a way that’s logical and easy-to-follow.
- Feature industry news on a regular basis. Offer your opinions on recent events.
- Write pages that cover small, local markets. A page for each local suburb or neighborhood might be good.
- Integrate a blog into your site, and update it with valuable content as often as possible.
3. Your site doesn’t evoke trust. Let’s say you’re getting traffic, you’ve got your content organized concisely, but still no leads. It may be that the way you’ve presented your site to visitors makes them feel pressured or skeptical. If you’re promising pie in the sky, your visitors will sense that you aren’t being honest. If your site is just a big mortgage marketing billboard, visitors will suspect a scam. It’s not easy to establish trust on the internet, but it can be done.
How you can fix it: Transparency and authenticity are key.
- Talk about yourself, but not too much. You need to let visitors know who you are, but don’t make yourself out to be some kind of hero or you’ll lose them. Post a few pictures of yourself and a bio.
- Be realistic. Talk about the true state of the economy, offer practical lending options, and so on.
- Focus on educating your visitors rather than selling to them. This is the best way to establish trust, and sales will follow trust.
Sound like a lot of work? It can be, but it doesn’t have to be. Your best option is to work with a web development company that has the knowledge and ability to address these issues before they arise.
Top 5 Ways to Drive Traffic to Your Mortgage Website
Posted by Kyle in Mortgage Website Design, Mortgage Website Values, SEO on November 30, 2010
You’ve got a mortgage website. That’s great. But it won’t do you much good unless visitors find it and contact you for a loan, which means you need to find ways to market your website.
There’s an entire industry built around website marketing. Volumes of books and articles and whitepapers have been written on the subject. But to get your mortgage marketing started, check out these top five ways to drive traffic to your site.
1. Search Engine Optimization. This is the core of internet marketing. The vast majority of internet users find the sites they use through search engines. If your site comes up at the top of the list for the right search terms, you’ll bring in more traffic than you know what to do with. If your site comes up somewhere in the middle of the list or near the end, you’ll get table scraps. Work with an SEO consultant to determine what keywords your site should rank for and place these keywords throughout your site.
2. Pay-Per-Click Advertising. Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising is a powerful tool, but unlike SEO, it can cost you a lot of money. If you’re an advanced web user or you have a large website than can handle the traffic, PPC advertising may be a good option to pursue.
3. Share through social media. Social sites such as Facebook and Twitter provide numerous opportunities for mortgage professionals to network with potential clients. Link your Facebook profile or Twitter account directly to your website, or join relevant social groups and present your site there. This works even better if you…
4. …have a blog. Blogs are the age-old, tried-and-true backbone of the social web. Start a blog and update it regularly with information that potential clients will find useful. If your blog becomes popular, your site will gain significant exposure. Simple as that.
5. Trade links. There are a lot of other mortgage-relevant websites out there, and some of them get a lot of traffic. Try to find a way to get a link to your site featured on one of these sites, and many of their visitors may cross over to your page.
Can A Mortgage Website Boost Your Credibility?
Posted by Kyle in Mortgage Website Design, Mortgage Website Discussion, Mortgage Website Values on November 12, 2010
Borrowers don’t often trust the banks they borrow from, and lenders are often cautious when working with borrowers. But it seems that a solid, established mortgage website can actually boost your industry credibility and help you gain customer trust.
Trust has never been more important. The internet, as with any form of media, sees its fair share of scams, scandals, and false advertising, and as the internet becomes a driving force behind more and more consumer purchases, trust will serve as more and more of a competitive advantage. The best way to build this trust on the internet is through your website.
1. Contemporary design. Internet users often make decisions about the reliability and trustworthiness of a site based on the look and feel of the site. If your page has a cheap, shallow design, users will skip it and look for a more contemporary site that meets their needs and offers better usability. The design says a lot about your commitment to the business and your stability is a professional.
2. Straightforward information. Visitors don’t want to read a lot of technical jargon or fine print. If they find information on your site that seems intended to trick or confuse them, they’ll leave. This means your content must be direct and straightforward. Speak clearly on every page.
3. Honest, accurate information. If you want to establish trust, tell the truth. The information you provide must be correct and delivered with sincerity. Don’t just focus on mortgage marketing. Your readers will see through it.
4. Depth. A broad range of content on your website, including articles, tools, calculators, secure login forms, and other elements, can help your visitors gauge your experience and professionalism. Provide information with real depth. Don’t stop at a page or two. Convince your visitors that you are an industry expert by showing what you know.
5. Who you really are. More than anything else, visitors won’t trust you unless they get to know you. Talk about yourself. Include a picture or two. Let your potential clients get to know you as much as possible. If you can establish a personal connection from the start, you’re golden.