Don't get an "off the rack" website. You need a custom website that projects your personality and style of doing business. NO TACKY TEMPLATES (they can actually lose your prospects).
Don't have a 'flyer' type page with slogans, mission statements and repeated exclamation points. They tell the prospect you are offering nothing but hype.
Don't do an internet version of the brochure that you spent hundreds or thousands of dollars to develop. Start from scratch and build your site with solid useful information. Speak directly to the audience as though you were sitting across the table from them.
Do make sure that you and your web site developer understand the trouble you can get into if neither of you is aware of the basic necessity to protect yourself with all the disclosures required by your broker, your professional organizations (such as your state and local associations of Realtors®), RESPA, your E&O insurance carrier, and any other regulatory organizations that may have jurisdiction over advertising policies in your particular area. Think of this as "scary" because bad things happen to people who aren't aware of what needs to be on every web site and/or every page of a web site.
Don't load your Home Page up with pictures, sound bytes, animations that don't contribute to advancing your prospect's interest. You have about 10 seconds to capture the browser's attention before they click on their 'back' button and try the next site on their list. All of these elements slow down the download process of your home page.
(Since this was originally written in 1997 most people have faster connections so there is generally more leeway for pictures and graphics, but the principle remains--don't waste time unnecessarily)
Do make the home page simple with links to your important informational pages prominently marked and positioned so they appear on the very first screen.
Do use pictures to create warmth and emotion, but don't overdo it and be sure that the pictures are formatted so they do not take a long time to download. They should not be more than 10 to 15K at the most. Don't use too many of them on any one page.
Don't have sound on your Home Page, but if you must, make it optional so that your visitor can click a button to initiate it. Not only does it take up a lot of time to download sound bytes, but the music is universally unwelcome. Imagine a prospect at work taking a few minutes (on company time) to investigate real estate for their coming relocation. Just as your site comes up with its sound, the boss walks by.
Do develop an individual look for your site that is consistent throughout. Have a simple consistent navigation scheme. Contrary to belief most prospects are not highly sophisticated on the Internet. Keep your real estate web design simple.
Don't have long lists of links in your real estate web design that take your prospect to some other site from which they may not easily return. Especially don't link to sites that promote the competition as most listing database sites do (example: Realtor.com). If you want to present properties for sale have your own MLS search that allows ALL of the leads to come to you -- not your relocation department so you have to pay a referral fee for leads created by your page.
Don't use animated text crawling across the bottom of your screen like a procession of cyber ants.
Don't 'borrow' material from other sites even if they are public domain because it will be obvious that you have done so and, trust us, you don't want to mess with copyright law.
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