Through dumb luck I find myself batting .500 on the above recommendations to start off my career as the Client Services Manager for our Real Estate team.  I really couldn’t be happier.  The crew here embraces a work hard, play hard ethos and a sense of warmth that is beyond refreshing.  That same genuine warmth is evident in every manner of communication with Union Street Media’s partners.  One only need look to my predecessor’s deep involvement in the interview process, devoting her last two days of employment to bringing me up to speed or providing me with her personal contact information as testament to just how much everyone here cares about our clients success.

So a little bit about me.  A native of Cape Cod, MA, I’ve lived in Stowe, VT for close to a decade now. When not fixing up our historic home, my wife and I can be found skiing, biking and enjoying the best of VT, usually with our dog, Simon, along for the ride.

My career has focused on account management and sales for small, growing web technology companies.  The bulk of this experience was with Inntopia, a pioneer in the travel reservation software service, which swelled significantly during my tenure.  I look forward to leveraging my experience in growth phase SaaS applications to create efficiencies that streamline the Union Street Media experience for everyone.

A great foundation has been laid at Union Street Media.  I feel lucky to step into a situation with such a robust feature-set, astronomical client retention rate and well deserved reputation.   As Client Services Manager for the Real Estate division it’s my job to collaborate internally and externally to build on past success while looking towards the future.  I encourage that collaboration to begin in the comments section below.

1. Video

Creating engaging and interesting videos is a great way to increase business.  By setting up a YouTube account, you can easily share company or listing videos not just on YouTube, but on your other social media channels, too.    Here are a few action items for using video to market your real estate company:

• Create video tours of your listings (see example video below).
  
• Film yourself or other members of your company explaining the services you offer and the benefits of working with you.
• Showcase your local area with videos of different towns or neighborhoods.

2. Pay Per Click Advertising

Pay Per Click, or PPC, campaigns are the paid advertisements that appear in the Ads sections at the top or to the right of search engine results pages (see example ad below). You can create ads that target specific keywords and specific geographic areas, and they will only appear when people are searching for something relevant.  PPC ads can be very effective because they advertise to people who are actively searching for a product, service, or piece of information that you offer.  You only have to pay when the user clicks through to your website.   Here’s how to use PPC to drive more traffic to your site:

• Set up a Google AdWords or Bing Ads account.
• Create campaigns targeting real estate in very specific towns or areas, or targeting certain property types.
• Use narrowly focused keywords in each ad group, and direct visitors to the most relevant page on your site.
• If you aren’t comfortable creating ads on your own, contact an Internet marketing professional for assistance.

3. Social Media

People aren’t just looking to a company’s website for information anymore; they’re searching Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and other social media channels.  By creating engaging social media accounts, you’re opening up opportunities to connect with potential clients and improve your brand’s image.  Here are some ways we recommend real estate agents take advantage of social media:

• Post links, images, and videos of your current listings.
• Promote upcoming open houses.
• Connect with users who Like your page by asking questions and replying to their comments.
• Let people know about new listings and price reductions.

For more tips on Internet marketing for real estate agents, read one of these related posts:

10 Ways to Drive Traffic to Your Real Estate Listings

Pinterest Tips for Brands

Tips for Engaging with Your Customers on Google+

Here in the Union Street Media office, we regularly trade stories about projects that we’re proud of, but as soon as we got this testimonial from Doreen Coones at Monarch Realty in Adams, MA, we knew we had to share it far and wide.  Building and maintaining a website is a challenge, and it’s great to hear how our process and our people have helped to surpass Doreen’s goals for her new website. 

“Union Street Media rocks!  We LOVE our new webpage, www.monarchrealty-ma.com, and our customers LOVE it too!  Because Monarch Realty Inc. is growing by leaps and bounds, we needed a more modern, user friendly and eye-popping website to accommodate our expansion.  Union Street Media is a God send!  We are so thrilled with the classy, resplendent, welcoming look and design and atmosphere of the site; it is more beautiful and user friendly than we envisioned! Not only is it alluring to consumers but it is so easy to use!  We have already received so many compliments from people who love our webpage and our new features!  Customers specifically admire the property search formats, the new listings layout, the interactive map and the ability to sign up for listing updates.  By far, the most popular new feature is our mobile site!  Our customers have stated it is the best mobile site they’ve visited and it is now the only one they use!

We owe our new found internet success to Union Street Media!  The entire team of professional and caring people are a pleasure to work with!  Everyone, from Dan Kompass, the Business Development Manager, to Joe Mester, Web Developer, work with you every step of the way while turning your website dreams into a live, vibrant site on the internet!

I wanted a web design company who could meet my goals, provide uncommon expertise, and one who afforded a continuing relationship after the launch of my website.  After searching the internet and examining several companies, the only web design company that stood out above the rest was Union Street Media.  Upon speaking with Dan Kompass, the Business Development Manager, I was sold!

Dan was incredibly honest, knowledgeable and understood exactly what I needed in a website.  He patiently explained the price structure, design process and gave me an estimated completion date for my project.  The contract he emailed was easy to understand, contained all the project details and the contract price matched the verbal quote.  The best part of all, there were no hidden costs!  The actual cost we were charged matched the projected cost!  Thank you Dan!

Ariana Wammer, Production Manager, was with me every step of the way, ensuring my complete satisfaction with each phase before we progressed to the next step.  She made the whole process a comfortable experience.  Her insight and understanding of what I wanted for both the design and administrative end of my website, gave me the confidence my website was in good hands.  Thank you Ariana!

I was fortunate to land Normandie Hyatt, Graphic Designer, as my website designer!  What a wonderful, dynamic & creative woman!  I did not realize Monarch butterflies, colors & formats could be so tricky and mind-boggling!  Thankfully for me, her young daughter lent a helping hand with the butterfly.  Determined to create a website the way I wanted, Normandie put on her thinking cap and went to work.  Upon my first site preview, I was astonished!  Her design was better than anything I envisioned!  She exceeded my expectations for my Monarch Butterfly and color scheme on the first attempt!  I fell in love with the whole sight right away!  Thank you Normandie for your lovely daughter, all your wonderful ideas and for your keen intellect of my desires.

Allyson Locke, Internet Marketer, is a person I cannot live without!  She is the epitome of a quality employee!  She is a laudable crackerjack with regards to all of the perplexing, complicated and baffling areas of internet marketing.  After one phone call with Allyson, I clearly understood an expert was what I needed to help promote my website not only at the beginning of the project but specifically once it was launched!  Allyson is the only person I wanted for the job!  Not only is she teaching me the basic principles of internet marketing but she constantly analyzes my site statistics and recommends improvements to obtain the best results for my company.  Her service was an upgrade to my project costs; one at first I was tempted to eliminate, but under the advisement of Dan Kompass I decided to include the figure in my budget.  It’s the best decision I made and one well worth the extra expenditure. Allyson is worth every penny and my website would be lost amongst the millions of other real estate websites without her finely honed abilities.  Thank you Allyson; I am so tickled to be working with you.

Most web design companies terminate the relationship once the project is completed and payment is received.  Not Union Street Media!  Minna Brown is my client service manager and an invaluable asset to both me and Union Street Media.  She takes as much pride in my website as I do!  She is in constant contact with me to make sure I am on track with my training on blogs and the back end administration of  my website.  She also noted I had not made any progress on the EXPLORE OUR AREA tab that I chose to build myself.  How impressive to know she cares and is easily accessible to lend a helping hand.  She continues to work with my local real estate board to configure a way to provide our customers with instant updates  on our listings.  Thank you Minna for your ceaseless efforts, without your positive attitude and encouragement my website would simply linger!

Union Street Media continues to provide stellar support once the training is complete and websites are launched.  Joe Mester, Web Developer, rapidly responds to my questions and concerns.  No matter how simple the query, he personally responds with the appropriate resolution and shows me where the training video/material is located.

Furthermore, Union Street Media does more than just design websites, they are committed to helping their clients use their websites to build a strong on-line presence, sell more homes and dominate their marketplace.  Their collection of resources available to their clients is commendable!    Their help center has articles, videos & blogs on an array of subjects devised to help clients attract, retain & convert leads to sales!

Union Street Media are team players and remain a key part of our business.  Their customer service is first-class and their products are unsurpassed.  We look forward to being the forerunner of on-line marketplace in our area and converting leads into sales through our high quality, easy to use website and mobile website.  We consider Union Street Media part of our family here at Monarch Realty Inc. and would refer them to anyone who is considering either creating or updating their website.  I salute you Union Street Media for a job well done.  Thank you for our new, interactive website & mobile website; you’ve made a customer for life!”

-

Doreen T. Coones

Co-founder, Partner, REALTOR®
Monarch Realty Inc.

New Google Local listings highlighted in blue.

These results are called local listings and they’re customized for each user, depending on their location, geographic terms included in their search phrase, what device they’re using, and other criteria. Go ahead, Google “Oklahoma Real Estate,” and your results are probably different from the ones listed above.  Why? Because Google is gathering these results using unique parameters defined by you, for you.

So, how do you know if your business is going to show up in searches? While all of this seems a bit up-to-chance, there are things you, as a business owner, can do to help your site have a better shot at appearing.

Encourage customer reviews. Good reviews build trust with Google and with potential customers/clients.  The more positive reviews you have, the better your “score” (Google’s version of stars) will be.  This score is based on a 30-point scale that Google also takes into account when showing local listings.

Claim your listing. Seriously! This makes all the difference. Log into Google Places for business here, to establish your identity with Google and gain control over your listing. Once your page is verified you will be able to edit the information that Google has about your business. This also allows you to connect your local listing to your Google+ Business Page. As this in-depth Inman article points out, you will be able to connect your page with your Google Analytics account, which means more insight into your social ROI.

Keep your information accurate and up-to-date. Once you’ve claimed your listing, here are a few ways to make sure your page is optimized up to Google standards:

• Be sure that all the basic information is correct and filled out: business name, title*, bio information, etc…
• Pay special attention to the categories. Google allows for 5 different categories. Consider categories such as: Real Estate Agency, Buyer Broker, Home Appraisal, Realtor, etc… No need to put location-based keywords here.
• Be sure to include a local address. Google Local is all about finding people near you. Having a street address rather than a PO box will automatically help you.
• Same thing goes for phone numbers. A local number looks better than a toll-free number to Google. Try to use your office number, one with a local area code.

*Tip: Do not use your title as a place for keywords. Google will think you’re using black hat SEO techniques. Stick with your company’s name such as: Guy Incognito Realty, not Oklahoma Real Estate by Guy Incognito Realty.

What this means for SEO

Because of the massive amount of space Google+ Local Listings are now taking up on the page, old-fashioned “organic results” are getting less and less visibility. While you may rank #3 for a particular search term, your site may be pushed down to the bottom of the page by local results. This is all the more reason to get your Google+ Local and Google + for Business pages set up and ready for search. You can use these pages to a) drive more users to your site and b) gain more branding/exposure. Two things that you can never really have enough of.

What this means for Realtors ®

This innovation in Google search is particularly important to those in the real estate industry. Everything you do is about location, and Google has come out with a tool that is seemingly tailor made for you. So go forth, get your Google Local pages claimed and your Google + Business page set up. The more accurate information Google has on you, the more likely it is you will appear in searches.

www.jenike.com

Jenike & Johanson

For over 55 years, engineering firm Jenike & Johanson has specialized in powder and bulk solids storage, handling, conveying, and processing.  They are one of the leading bulk solids flow engineering companies in the world and needed a site that matched their highly esteemed offline reputation.

The new site was designed to ensure ease-of-use for a wide variety of target audiences, including international clients and colleagues. Clear calls to action and carefully worded navigation, information about services and products can be found through a variety of “channels” based on the user’s preferred method of moving through the site.  Modern updates including widening the site design, use of an interactive map, a searchable case studies database, and interactive timeline were made to match the company’s online identity with their leading-edge offline presence.

www.grahampelton.com

Graham-Pelton

Graham Pelton is a consulting firm that offers customized fundraising guidance and services for nonprofits, cultural organizations, independent schools, environmental groups, community organizations, religious organizations, and those operating in the fields of higher education and healthcare.

Although their old site contained valuable information about their services, it failed to convey the scope of their work and the depth if their client base.  The new site was developed to increase brand recognition while modernizing their online and offline presence.  The use of a full-screen image slideshow and updated logo convey a clear marketing message in a user-centric and engaging way.

www.vtcustomclosets.com

Vermont Custom Closets

Vermont Custom Closets is Vermont’s largest closet company offering the biggest selection of products than any other company.   Vermont Custom Closets is a new entity that merged Otter Creek Custom Closets from Otter Creek Awnings and Closet Crafters.  Vermont Custom Closets has a 3000 sq. ft. showroom and design center (located next to Otter Creek).  It is Vermont’s largest closet and organizational showroom.

The goal of the site was to introduce the new brand and company through a clean, professional and responsive design optimized for all screen sizes.  The site design is consistent with The Otter Creek Awnings website.  The site navigation is intuitive and clearly encompasses all aspects of the company including the products, services and the team customers will work with.  The responsive design restructures elements on the screen as it becomes narrower, keeping the most important sections, such as brand identity and calls to action on the top.

www.educatorsally.com

Educator’s Ally

Educator’s Ally is a highly personalized placement agency for educators and independent schools in the New York metropolitan area.  They have been representing and recruiting for both day and boarding schools located in the northeast since 1975.

The old site was very outdated and new ownership began operating the business during 2012.  The goals of the redesign and resulting solutions included:

• To elevate the organization’s image by creating a contemporary, impressive, interactive, useful, and informative website with clean design and easy navigation.  A large, graphic slideshow was added to the homepage to help convey a sense of Educator’s Ally is to site visitors before they even begin to read the written content.  The balance of the whitespace and the crisp color scheme helps the site maintain a modern, yet sophisticated and professional look.
• To increase productivity and operational efficiency including fielding unqualified candidates.  The addition of an online application for pre-approved and qualified candidates  increases the efficiency with which Educator’s Ally completes daily, time-consuming tasks.
• To directly capture data about viable candidates directly into their database via an online application.  Every 24 hours, Educator’s Ally receives a CSV file via email that includes all applicants that have submitted an application within the 24 hour period.

www.andrewpearcebowls.com

Andrew Pearce Bowls

The Andrew Pearce story begins with family and a tradition of craftsmanship, innovation and entrepreneurship.  Andrew Pearce bowls combine the artistic integrity of a hand-turned bowl with the efficiency of a machine-manufactured product.  Using locally sourced wood, Andrew Pearce bowls are created through a unique manufacturing process employing equipment specifically designed by Andrew.

Creative Director Todd Cummings designed the logo prior to the web design process.  The initial vision of the logo included a hand done look with rough edges, the organic feel of wood, and loosely imitating the feel of a brand.   The site is starting out as simple blog site with minimal content to announce the company, create brand awareness, share the story and plant the seed for more.  The site is a responsive design optimized for mobile, tablet and computer screens of varying sizes.

www.halnc.com

Harsch Associates
Legal Nurse Consultants

A Legal Nurse Consultant adds value by reviewing, organizing and analyzing medical records to support your strategic argument.  Harsch Associates Legal Nurse Consultants help identify, locate, review and interpret relevant medical records, support the attorney’s case, act as an attorney liaison, work with experts and witnesses and assist with discovery and preparation.

Designer Alaina Castillo created the logo with the goal to elegant, professional, yet right to the point.  The site features blog post headlines in the footer, clear call to actions on all pages, and is easy to navigate.

www.globalz.com

Global Z

Global Z specializes in data quality and direct marketing services such as address verification, phone and email standardization, geocoding, and international postal presorts.  Their data hygiene services are invaluable to clients the US, Canada, Asia Pacific, Latin America and Europe.

Along with creating a new responsive website design, we restructured the navigation to meet the goal of providing potential customers and current clients a more intuitive way to find the information they are seeking.  By creating three main funnels that speak to different ways varying target audiences search for information, we ensured that no matter the industry or region the client comes from, they would be able to find the content they’re look for quickly and easily. Clearer calls to action were added to encourage and drive leads through the site.

www.middleburyfence.com

Middlebury Fence

Middlebury Fence is a commercial and residential fencing company that specializes in installation of residential and commercial fences, gate & access control, solar panel installation, and outdoor living products.

The goal of the new site is to highlight Middlebury Fence’s new initiatives and the full scope of services and products they now offer.  The design of the site presents the client with a variety of ways to promote new initiatives and products while also focusing on their “bread and butter” branches of business – commercial and residential fence installation and the addition of the residential fencing and commercial fencing databases.

www.mobilevtstorage.com

Mobile Vermont Storage

Mobile Vermont Storage offers clean, secure, affordable storage containers for on-site storage throughout Vermont.  The storage containers are available for purchase, long-term, or short rentals.

The site was developed to provide an online identity for the new and growing company.  Our design team worked with the client to create a modern, clean logo to serve as the cornerstone of their brand identity.  The site was created in a way that will allow the homepage to be updated frequently to highlight new initiatives and products as the company continues to grow and evolve.  In addition, clear calls to action were added to generate leads.

What is a Responsive Design and how does it work?

Each day, the number of devices, platforms, and browsers that need to work with your site grows. The shift to responsive website design represents a change in how we build websites and how users experience your site on the web. What responsive design achieves is a one size fits all framework for your website that will save you time and money as the mobile market grows.

Last year we wrote an article about mobile websites vs responsive design and how responsive website design is a better choice for most websites.

Rather than creating a separate mobile website, multiple platforms for new devices, or an app – responsive design will do all the work for you. Responsive sites are composed of elements that size, shape, and place themselves based on the width of the browser screen. Elements determine the screen size using CSS media queries.  Basically this means that instead of being something static, the site predetermines how the user is viewing the page and arranges itself accordingly.

Here’s a great example of a responsive site we recently developed for our friends at the Waybury Inn, who also happen to be our original website client having signed on with us in 2000.

Desktop View

Tablet View

Mobile View

You can see through these screen grabs how the site rearranges itself, but still maintains the great flow of the full site; drawing the viewers attention to important calls to action no matter which device they are using to view the site.  The calls to action: “Make a Reservation”, the phone number, and Special Offers” get larger as the screen size gets smaller.

Google SEO + Responsive Design: The New Industry Standard

Responsive design can also help increase search engine rankings for your website. Search engines are now tracking how websites work across desktop and mobile platforms and using those results to determine rankings. If a user visits your site on a mobile device or tablet and immediately leaves because of poor quality, search engines take note. Search engines like Google are responsible for delivering the most accurate results for their users, and now that includes usability. Kristina Kledzik of SEOMoz says “If you have a mobile site that has less content or looks significantly different than your regular site, you’ll frustrate return visitors who are looking for something they found on the desktop version. ….With a responsive web design, visitors will get all the content they want, in a format they can read.” (read full article here)

At the end of the day it is about creating a user experience that keeps both people and search engines happy, and makes it easy for you to promote your business.

What’s Next?

Union Street Media now incorporates responsive design into all the new websites we develop. Our clients who adopted this approach early have seen more conversions off of the web.  If you have any questions about responsive sites and how best to implement one, please feel free to contact me.

On March 6, Google+ started rolling out a new design for profiles and pages (just one day before Facebook’s new News Feed design announcement). The most noticeable change is the size increase for Cover Photos. As with the Facebook Cover Photos, users were complaining that the size was really difficult to work with since it was so long and narrow. In order to solve the problem, Google has added an option to upgrade your cover photo to a much larger size. The new dimensions are 2120px by 1192px, a significant increase from the 940px by 180px it used to be.

Google also added a local Reviews tab, which shows all of the reviews about local businesses that you’ve written. This encourage visitors to start reviewing local shops and restaurants and sharing them with their friends.  If you prefer not to share these, they can be hidden in your settings.

Profiles have a new design too. Now, your About tab is divided into different sections including People, Story, Education, Work, Links, and Basic Info (for brands, it’s People, Story, Links & Contact Info).  This makes the profiles more colorful and easier to navigate.  You can also add skills to your profile in the section about your work history.

Although not all social media users are on Google+, its numbers are increasing.  Google has reported that 235 million users are using G+ to do things like +1 content (similar to Facebook’s “Like”) and video chat with friends, while 135 million are actively using it once a month. And with the updated profile and page design, more users might start jumping on board.  While it still isn’t as popular as Facebook, Google+ is gaining popularity.

Find out if your profile has been updated or take a look at the Union Street Media page and let us know what you think.  Do you like the new design or do you prefer the old style?

Looking to make your blog posts more interesting in search results? Read this article about setting up Google Authorship.

The NAR and Google recently released a digital study on how home buyers used digital media and the Internet.

These sorts of studies are important to be aware of, since some perceptions about how people search for real estate on the web are outdated. This study contains some surprising yet welcome data.

Here are some of the highlights, from our perspective: [View the full report here]

Searching Online

• 90% of home buyers searched online at some point in their buying process
• Real estate-related Google searches climbed by 22% from 2011 (up 253% over the last 4 years)

The Internet has clearly become a default resource for people seeking property, so it’s more important than ever to have good visibility online and get found for relevant content.  Real estate agents need to pay attention to search engines and other online resources when planning their marketing strategy.

The on-site search experience is important, too.  Providing sophisticated search options for visitors once you’ve acquired them is imperative to nurture leads. Your website must make it easy to find property from a wide range of criteria and then display these results in an easily digestible way. If your website cannot provide this, visitors won’t stick around for long, nor come back.

Website Conversions

• On average, buyers perform 11 searches on a site before converting to a lead
• 69% who convert on a site came from a local search
• 24% convert on a site the first day of their search but 40% take 120 days to convert, meaning that the initial site response and ongoing value are BOTH important.
• 78% go to 3+ sites before converting

This data really speaks to the importance of having a strong user experience and reason to come back. What tools does your site or blog offer that will be useful in their quest? What information can you provide that is trust-worthy and speaks from authority? Everything from your home page copy to thank you pages must put your best foot forward. You can have an enticing shop window but there must be good items inside and good customer service.

Mobile Search

• 89% of new home shoppers use a mobile device during their search
• 1/5 of real estate related searches happen on mobile devices
• Activity: 48% use mobile to get directions, 44% to compare prices, 35% check company’s inventory, 28% call a brokerage, 21% locate a listing agent, 16% watch a listing video, 21% read reviews

Our phones and tablets have become an indispensable tool for shopping, and homes are no exception. With nearly 9 of 10 home shoppers using mobile devices to find their new home, having a well honed mobile experience has become vital for real estate agencies to remain competitive. With real estate in particular, we are faced with many challenges unique to the industry.

Our development team at Union Street Media had this to say:

“The sheer volume of information associated with each property is daunting and can be difficult to digest even with a full desktop browser experience. At Union Street Media we have developed a collection of tools which aggregate and display listing data in a mobile friendly way – leveraging new technologies like Geo-location and device identification. We’ve spent so much time, in fact, that our mobile real estate sites behave more or less precisely like a native application without the barrier of having to download and install another app. Essentially we’ve removed every barrier to user participation – giving them all the information they need in a format that is dead-simple to digest.”

Video in Real Estate

• 86% use video to learn about a community, 70% view house tours
• Agent-related searches on YouTube climbed 46% year on year

It’s not surprising that people look for videos on communities. What is surprising is that 86% choose to look for that first. Most of the time, real estate videos fall into two camps. One is the overly-long property tour set to Muzak. The other is the highly professional walking tour for luxury properties by large brokerages. There is a middle ground that can be exploited with basic videos that have a genuine story about communities, interviews with locals and agents, which can live quite happily on a blog and social media. Reserve more resources for an evergreen company video or agent profile, if, you are motivated or are willing to spend on outsourcing this to a professional.

The Home Buying process

• Average buyer takes 3 months to buy but contacts an agent earlier, after 3 weeks

All real estate markets are different, but this speaks to timing. If your busiest season is typically the spring time, then spend time during the winter to make sure your website and other profiles are at their best. Use the time wisely so you are not having to worry about a re-design or changing CMS software right when the highest volume of people are looking for property. Also, agents should maximize this time during the buying window by encouraging them to sign up for an account to receive updates to their favorite searches and keep an eye on favorited properties.

Visitor Demographics

• The 25-35 age group makes up the largest share of home shoppers who take action on a real estate website, at 31%
• Gender is relatively equal when it comes to registering with real estate sites (53% women, 47% men)
• 75% of senior home buyers go online to search for a home
• Seniors care about neighborhood info and interactive maps

There is lots of good data here for us. The younger, first time home buyer is much more tech savvy, so it’s important to offer this group easy ways to contact you, to share listings socially, and to get onto email updates. They want to be in control but won’t waste time on ‘figuring out’ your website. The older demographic may be more patient but no less frustrated if the site is hard to navigate or confusing. Also, a unique perspective about neighborhoods will appeal to all ages, so make sure to write for your audience while not alienating others.

First Time Home Buyers

• 47% of first-time home buyers used the Internet to search for a home
• 52% of first-time home buyers started their search online
• 77% of first-time buyers drove by a home viewed online

These numbers are unsurprising given the average age of first time home buyers, but if this is your target market, then it’s imperative to provide a streamlined experience for these users. They are likely to find you across multiple channels including your website, blog, mobile site and social media. Providing helpful information about first-time home buying can help steer a fickle market back to you. This audience segment needs re-assurance and one way to reinforce your credentials is with social media testimonials from ‘real people’ on Facebook, Twitter and Google+.

What Has Google Authorship To Do with Google +?

Now since Google + has emerged into the public consciousness, it’s no coincidence that SEO practitioners are trying to work out how much value it has for rankings. Google + is essentially another social media profile, but there is more to it. If you run a few searches on brands, popular bloggers or important news items, we see more and more rich snippets.

A rich snippet pulling from my Google + profile image

These are modifications to the usual description that provide users with more information than simple text. It can include videos, star ratings and your Google + profile image. This opportunity to visually draw the eye is particularly useful to gain an advantage over those weighty sites that rank higher than you in search results. It’s kind of like nicer, earthier packaging of a product or, more to the point, more trustworthy packaging.

A Higher Click-Through Rate for Your Blog Posts

So this becomes particularly helpful for building trust with an audience for blogs. Search on any topic, and you can bet that dozens of people have already blogged about it. How you choose which result to click on, can depend on a compelling title, a URL with a relevant and friendly structure, an engaging description, the ranking position, the company brand, or the influence of the blogger. A blog author image is one of these factors. The author tag is a great tool for building your personal brand and memorability much like a book jacket photo.

Measuring this is also important. If you are tracking your blog, which you should be, you can track the success of your individual posts by tracking visits and the source of the visits. After setting up Google authorship, you may see an increase in visits to your posts. What a visitor does after that is down to you, but for a short set up process, the potential for an increase in traffic to your posts could be worth it.

Does This Help My Organic Search Rankings?

On a Draw

Here’s the thing: We’re not sure. However, as a keen poker player I know pot odds and the probability that there is high SEO value for low investment, is odds on. Based on Google’s mission to provide trustworthy results built on quality site content, credible authors and a social element; this seems to be a drawing hand.

There are several reasons why I think this, including the signals a Google+ profile can build:

• Your content can receive +1′s
• You can be a contributor to high authority sites
• You can create circles
• You can be in other people’s circles
• You can receive links from other sites and high authority profiles

This looks a lot like how search engines rank content anyway. The significance of attributing an author signal to content has been in the works for a few years now. It turns out that Google filed a patent for something called ‘AuthorRank‘. In a nutshell, this search signal builds much more context around a piece of content, unlike generic spam. Now that the vehicle exists to make the connection between author and content (Google +), they are ready to roll.

This area of Internet marketing is growing quickly, so expect more on this topic from Union Street Media in the future and please leave your comments or questions.