Welcome to the CREN Blogging Community!!
As a free service offered by the Christian Real Estate Network, you now have the ability to set up your own free blog!
Simply Register your username/password, select a title & web address, and off you go! Already have your own blog? Add it to the community!!
Benefits of a Free CREN Blog:
- A free website (a good start if you don't have one)
- An easy way to get started on blogging if you are unfamiliar with it.
- A great way to drive traffic through local content marketing.
- Tie the blog into your existing website to create much needed content and value.
- Are you seriously considering launching a full time blog to create more business? This is a great way to get started.
Included with your blog:
- Set up of a Free Blog
- Customize your blog with logos, pictures, bio, etc.
- Customize the layout including colors, fonts, etc.
- Includes all the basic functions of a blog: categories, blogroll, commenting, trackbacks, favorites, archives, search, RSS Feeds, co-authoring, and much more.
- Post an article in 3 easy steps: 1. log in 2. type your article 3. press submit
- Advanced support for virtual & video tours
- Free tech support, and the support of an entire community of other CREN bloggers.
- Many of the same features that you can find on other popular blogging platforms like: blogger, wordpress, & typepad
In addition to all the benefits you will receive with setting up your own blog, we will be following right along with you... we have set up a new site called "The Rock" - Castle Rock Real Estate Blog on it we will be showing you what a local real estate blog looks like and how it functions. You can also follow along with step by step instructions here: How to start a real estate blog
Not Convinced that Blogging should be included in your online marketing efforts???
Are you serious about generating new customers? Are you satisfied with your current online presence? Blogging is a fantastic way to create new business for yourself.
There are many different ways to be successful at blogging. As a real estate agent, the quickest way to get results is to blog about your local area. Pick 2-3 markets in your area. Think small... you want to fill a niche. Instead of Phoenix, use Avondale. Instead of Seattle, use Auburn. Instead of Dallas, use Carrollton. Think of it as farming for online customers. Choose a few small areas and start writing. It really is that simple. Here are a few ideas that have worked for other local real estate bloggers:
- Every time you get a new listing, post it. Use lots of pictures, and be very descriptive.
- Write a short post when you will be having an open house.
- Take lots of pictures of your community and post them.
- If you are motivated enough, take some video of the community (this blog platform allows video posts!)
- Write about interesting events and news in your community
- Write about interesting real estate news in the community, bizarre listings, interesting properties, etc.
- Post statistics on your community like # of homes sold, average prices, crime, cost of living, etc.
- Do you love where you live? Write about it! Convince people to move to your area.
- Interview interesting people from the community.
- Post about personal experiences you've had in the real estate industry (the goal is to set yourself up as a local RE industry expert)
- Post anything and everything you want about your community!
The bottom line, and ultimate goal is that when people search for information about real estate in your area, they will find your blog, read about your expertise in your market, and use your services as a real estate agent. There are hundreds, if not thousands of real estate agents that are blogging and generating leads from it this very minute.
You cannot afford to miss this major trend in real estate. Go to any major real estate conference around the country... what is the buzz word??? Blogging. Ask yourself, how many leads does your static website generate right now?
The reason we are offering this free blogging platform is because we are very passionate about the effectiveness of blogs, and have an urgent desire to see real estate professionals succeed in their online marketing efforts.
Top 5 Reasons to Start Blogging Today:
- Search engines love blogs, and don't like traditional websites. That's because there is fresh content on blogs, and traditional websites just sit around and grow stale. Blogs always rank better in the search engines, and if done right, they can rank extremely well for local real estate searches with minimal effort.
- People love fresh content. Be honest with yourself. Do you really think anyone is going to read your basic website with the "about me" page. The answer is no. But what if you had up-to-date market information and pictures about a community someone was interested in? Suddenly, your website is something to stick around for and maybe even subscribe to.
- The industry is getting flooded with new bloggers, and you have no time to lose. Have you been to activerain.com yet? It is a very basic blog platform for real estate agents. They have 25,000 subscribers and their website isn't even 1 year old!
- Consumers are looking online for real estate. Some stats say that over 90% of people look online to do their own real estate research before contacting an agent. You could be that agent or loan officer that gets found when people search.
- You have a free opportunity to start your own blog with our new blogging platform. Take advantage of it! You will always have free tech support and coaching when you need it.
We hope that you will step out and move towards increasing your online marketing efforts through blogging. We are always here if you need help.
Sincerely,
Justin Smith & The CREN Staff
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