Real estate websites should provide a ton of relevant information, but should do so in a form that is easy to read and offers clean, clear pages. So the first thing is to make sure that your landing page is uncluttered and offers immediate easy-of-use through clear CTA buttons. Why? Because the first thing users want is easy navigation to the pages they find most relevant. Lucas Haun and Sharon Laing of Keller Williams at www.knoxvillefinehomes.com have a site that showcases the effectiveness of a clean landing page. When visitors arrive at this page, they see the Realtors names at the top, and then in a rectangular menu box, they get all the CTA buttons set off in a distinct, hard-to-miss way. It’s simple, clear and offers immediate comfort AND user confidence.

I also think it’s essential that a Realtor’s website contains high-quality, high-def images of properties. You want the pictures to be so gorgeous and appealing that a visitor feels as if they are standing in front of the property. Laura Marie, a Realtor in Los Angeles, does a great job of featuring high-end photos that give viewers a great first impression of the properties she represents. Notice on this page, how she varies the photos, so that some are taken at night, at dusk and during bright sunlight. This is a smart way of offering diversity in images so that the website doesn’t feel homogenous.

Last, you have to make sure your listings include a full menu of search items for the properties offered on the site. It may seem obvious, but you absolutely need to offer more than one way for users to search. So, for example on this website by Stefanie Hahn, a Coldwell Banker Realtor, the landing page is beautifully designed so that your eyes are immediately drawn to the middle of the page where Hahn has these search menus: Quick Search, Town Search, School District Search and Search Recent Sales. That’s four different ways for users to conduct their search, and each is simple and easy to understand. Give users options and they’ll be more likely to stick around and engage with what you’re offering.