Q. Why do I need a web site?

A. The short answer is, "to become a part of the new technology that is redefining the role of the Realtor." Vague? Here are some specifics...

• Many people depend on the Web to provide information before making important decisions. To attract these prospects, an agent needs to provide that information online.
• To supplement your ads, brochures, business cards, etc. The more prospects learn about you the more likely they are to call you.
• To provide a quick, easy way to start the business relationship through your email and online response forms.
• To reach prospects not accessible through traditional means. The Web can take you to markets undreamed of a few years ago.

See also, "What A Good Web Site Can Do for You" under General Information.

Q. How long does it take to get a web site online?

A. Within 30 days after receiving all the materials, and often much sooner. Open communication can prevent extensive or late changes that may be time-consuming and expensive. We try to let you know what we'll need ahead of time so things can proceed smoothly.

Q. How can people find my web site?

A. Many ways! In the "real" world, put your web address everywhere you'd put your phone number. Send special announcements to your farm area. Online, search engines will place your web site where people look for Realtors. We will submit your web site to 18 top search engines once FREE with several follow-up reports. We offer further search engine promotion plans, from occasional submissions to intensive work for serious web marketers.

For more ONLINE and OFFLINE ideas, See Search Engines and Ways to Promote Your Web Site under Promotion .

Q. Can I update my own listings?

A. We can update your listings or YOU can with our Listings Management Program. Your Sellers can watch you place their home onto your web site via your laptop (with photos too if you have a digital camera) just moments after they sign the contract! If you want greater control over your listings or like to make frequent and instant changes, this program is for you. See Listings Management Program under Promotion for details.

Q. How big must my web site be?

A. That depends on what you want your site to do. To supplement your other advertising, then a modest site may be all you need. To attract prospects, then a moderate to comprehensive site with good promotion would be required. If you want your site to be a "one-stop resource for all your real estate needs" that people may bookmark and return to repeatedly, then a comprehensive web site will do it for you.

I'm new to real estate. How can I compete with experienced agents?

A. The Internet is unique. You can provide the SAME services and resources that a Top Producer can, and just as effectively! An attractive site with good content and smart promotion will project the professional image that will help level the playing field for you.

Q. How can I justify the expense of a web site?

A. Compared to other advertising media, a web site is a bargain. Unlike expensive homes magazine ads, there is no "next issue" to submit to. Unlike brochures, the info is easily, instantly, and inexpensively updated. A web site should not replace your other promotions, but it will enhance their effectiveness. Consider the return on your investment. How many sales would it take to pay for your web site? How many referrals would pay for the maintenance? A good web site, well promoted, will pay for itself many times over.

Q. I already have a page on my broker's web site and on Realtor.com. Why do I need my own web site?

A. Your broker's site promotes your broker, and you are competing with others in your company, and on Realtor.com you're competing with everyone! On these sites and other for-all-Realtors sites, several things can happen:

• When your prospect types in "your" web address, he is taken to your page -- which is part of another larger web site. It gives him the opportunity to access other Realtor pages. So YOUR prospect becomes EVERYONE'S prospect. But your own web site leads your prospect to YOU ONLY.
• These sites cannot promote individual web sites on the search engines. It promotes you along with hundreds or thousands of other real estate agents. On your own web site, you have total control of all promotion, and all the promotion benefits you.

For information on how your own web site's unique appearance and content makes a difference see Custom-designed Layouts under Web Site Development.

Pages on the for-all-Realtors sites can be useful. Links from there to your independent site can draw more prospects to you and enhance your professional image, giving you the competitive edge. and your own site can have links to your other pages, if you want. So if you have them, use them!

The web address you put into all your ads, on your business cards, and in all other investments you make to market yourself should bring business to YOU -- not to another company or to other agents.