One question that many of our customers ask us pertains to the period of time it takes for SEO to produce results. Unfortunately, however, the answer to this is rather complex, and we would be remiss to tell you otherwise.
With that being said, a general breakdown outlining the process from the planning stages to the end results is possible. This is what this article will be about. Below, we’ll walk you through the many steps involved in SEO content marketing in order to provide you with a basic idea of how long the entire process will take.
Before anything else, though, we’d like to highlight how SEO is used in the real estate industry.
SEO in Real Estate
If you’re not familiar with the concept of SEO, then we’re here to give you a basic grasp of the subject. SEO, at its core, is about creating content that both machines and people can easily understand. Its readability, accuracy, and ability to provide meaningful information to both search engines and the end-user are what makes any type of content rank well in search engines.
In relation to real estate, SEO allows businesses several advantages. These include:
- The capacity to zero in on certain geographic areas that are relevant to the business
- The ability to establish itself as a credible authority in their given niche
- The power to simplify the complex operations surrounding real estate, in general
There are undoubtedly other benefits that SEO can bring to a business, but the ones above clearly demonstrate the importance of this type of digital marketing strategy in the real estate business.
Now, let’s take a look at the actual steps involved. We’ve broken down the process into seven steps that we’ve outlined below.
Stage 1: Initial Consultation
The first stage involves your preliminary meetings with your SEO agent. This is basically where both of you get to know each other and build a strong foundation on which to move forward.
The agency you work with will ask you what your goals are. If you are not certain as to what those might be, they will help you identify them. A few goals common in your particular field include increasing awareness of your brand, driving more traffic to your online presence, and boosting conversion rates which essentially means turning potential clients into real ones.
Stage 2: Competitor Analysis and Content Auditing
With your goals clearly set, the agency will then determine what your current situation is. This will involve evaluating your existing content, if you have any, as well as looking into what your industry peers are doing in the same regard.
This step allows the agency to identify any opportunities that might prove to be valuable to your growth. In addition, it also lets them spot any inefficiencies within your existing strategy in order to reduce or eliminate them.
Stage 3: Keyword Research
SEO is built upon keywords. These are terms or phrases that search engines use to identify what any piece of content is about. The keywords specific to your business can be set by you during the first step, but a good agency will work with you to find which ones might yield better returns.
Your keywords will most likely include terms such as ‘real estate broker’ and ‘houses for sale,’ and these will be specifically targeted to your given locality. However, longer phrases, known as long-tail keywords, will also be thrown into the mix. Phrases such as ‘best-furnished apartments in San Francisco’ can be good to target customers who have very specific intentions, allowing you to rank well in their searches.
Stage 4: Content Planning
Once the keywords specific to your business have been laid out, it’s time for content planning. This basically involves coming up with a structured workflow of all the content the agency will be producing. This will be organized by date, outlining specific times when fresh content will be published. It essentially serves as a guide that allows the agency to provide its services in a timely and efficient manner.
Stage 5: Content Production and Publication
Content production and publication will happen concurrently with one another. These are when the actual content pieces will be produced, edited, and eventually made ready for public consumption. The time involved in this aspect of the process will depend heavily on your needs.
To give you some idea, a 500-word article can take anywhere from one to three days to complete, while a 10-minute video could take much longer—up to a couple of weeks if you want it to be any good. It’s really difficult to say, and there are many other variables that can affect the outcome.
Stage 6: Monitoring and Further Optimization
Finally, the agency will also track the results and measure the performance of the content that was produced. This allows them to determine whether or not your goals are being met, as well as giving them the information they need to make further improvements.
This stage is arguably a perpetual process, as it is in your best interest to continually strive to produce better content all the time.
So, what is the expected timeline?
To be truthful, a timeline is impossible to achieve without knowing what your specific situation is. It’s entirely up to you to decide how long you’d be willing to work with any agency. However, we can say this:
From the time of our first publication working with them, most of our clients have observed increased traffic to their website in just under two weeks. We can also say that the momentum this generated for their business paved the way for their future growth in the long term.
Conclusion
Finally, we’d like to end by saying that SEO isn’t a strategy that you can expect instant results from. It’s also not something that you can simply drop once you’ve seen its effects. For it to be truly effective, SEO needs consistency and patience on your part. There are no shortcuts to success, particularly in the real estate industry as you’re undoubtedly well aware.
We are a full-service digital marketing agency, and our aim is to transform any business into stronger brands both in the real world and on the Internet. Get in touch with us today if you need our help with your real estate marketing in St Louis, Missouri.