23 ideas on how to get more leads with your real estate website

The number one reason you have your real estate website is to cultivate relationships with your clients or potential clients and turn them into leads. Homebuyers have moved online, and those agents who master online lead generation will be better off next year. That’s why when someone asks you a question: is your website looking professional and attractive, you’d probably be positive about it, as you invested in it loads of time and/or money. However, creating a complex real estate website featuring IDX property search functions is just the beginning, and it is not the same as building a website that effectively generates online leads. The site should be a rock-solid marketing foundation and a cost-effective way to promote your business, showcase properties, reach a wider audience, and generate more leads. There are a few keys to creating a website optimized for real estate lead generation, so let’s take a closer look at them. 

Best real estate lead generation ideas to use on your website

Whether you’re just starting out or looking to take your real estate lead generation to the next level, check out the below ideas.

1. Take care of user experience.

If someone is landing on your website because they Googled your name, your home page is like the front door of your professional house. But sometimes, users enter your website, and it is not always clear what exactly is supposed to happen after they arrive because a complicated or cluttered layout can be misleading. Visitors might leave if they find it challenging to navigate your site, that’s why you should make it easy for them to find what they’re looking for. Organize your site logically with a clear menu, search function, and intuitive navigation paths. This means every page on your website should have a purpose and direction that will ultimately direct visitors into your sales funnel of prospects you contact and nurture, depending on their preferences and stage. What can you do?

• Ensure your Contact details are easily accessible on your website, and provide multiple contact options for clients to reach your business 24/7. You can also encourage your visitors to fill out some basic form and ask them, i.e., if they are interested in buying, selling, or both. (Or did they come to you for rental help?). These responses are sent directly to your inbox, and you can reply to your new leads from there. You can also ask visitors to tick a box to prove they’re human, cutting down on spam.
• Consider preparing an About page. This is an introduction to you (and your team, if applicable), giving visitors an idea of what it’s like to work with your brand and why you love real estate. Agents should give details about their history and who they are as humans – interests, hobbies, board memberships or volunteer gigs, and other pertinent information that helps buyers and sellers understand why they’d want to work with you. If you’ve got a team or a brokerage, share photos of your team members and your office and explain who’s who, how long they’ve lived in the area, what drew them to real estate, and why they love working with you. Conversion isn’t a straightforward process and takes time. When your prospects get to know you better, they might convert quicker. If you are in doubt, check an article How to write a knockout biography. 
• Test your website by asking a few friends to browse it and listen to their feedback: was the experience pleasant and successful? Check its display in various browsers to ensure compatibility. It should function correctly and look consistent across all platforms.

2. Fix technical glitches.

Technical issues can frustrate visitors and potentially drive them away, that’s why you should regularly monitor and address them (things change, and even if your website was once virtually perfect, now it might lack some optimization). 

• Optimize for search engines. Use SEO strategies to enhance your website’s visibility on search engines. This will increase the chances of potential clients discovering your site when searching for real estate-related information. Low visibility means potential leads might not find your site in search results. If you don’t know where to start, check out How to optimize your real estate website for SEO.
• Slow loading speed: Speed matters. Optimize your site to load quickly to prevent users from bouncing due to slow loading times. Compress images, use caching, and employ efficient hosting to enhance speed.
• Lack of mobile optimization or non-responsive design: Visitors may struggle to navigate or view your site properly on their mobile devices, leading to frustration and a higher likelihood of leaving your site. Some content might also not be displayed properly.
• Broken links: Regularly check and fix links throughout your site to ensure a seamless browsing experience for your visitors. Simply click on the links to see if they’re working and sending users to relevant pages/ resources. 
• Get some backlinks: Backlinks, known also as incoming links, are hyperlinks from one page to another. They can originate from various sources, such as other websites, directories, social media platforms, or forums, and act as a reference and provide a pathway for users to navigate between different pages on the internet. These links play a significant role in search engine optimization (SEO) and website ranking and help draw more leads to your real estate business by having other sites link back to yours. Not all backlinks are equal. High-quality, relevant links from authoritative websites hold more weight in improving a site’s search engine ranking.
• Outdated design: An old-fashioned or outdated website design can convey a lack of professionalism or credibility, deterring potential leads. And it’s all about the first impression.

3. Integrate IDX on your website

Searching for houses online is usually the first step a buyer takes when they’re trying to purchase a home – and sellers will want to know that you can show their home to as many buyers as possible – so it’s important to include IDX search on your website. Websites with IDX integration offer a more streamlined and accurate search experience when browsing for properties, as you directly access MLS data, allowing potential buyers to search for properties directly from your site. The listings are updated every few hours, so your audience can always access the most recent listings and contact you for information about the available properties. Don’t limit yourself to just one listing page! Experiment to see which listing niches are most popular and ask your current buyers what types of homes they’re most interested in seeing.

4. Showcase sold listings

Why include sold listings on your website? One big reason: Sellers will be curious to see what other homes you’ve helped sell! Demonstrating successful transactions and showcasing satisfied buyers and sellers can reassure visitors that the agent or website has a track record of delivering results. Sold listings are also a fun place to browse if you’re a homeowner in the area who’s just curious about what’s happening but not interested in selling … yet. It’s another low-pressure avenue to possible future sellers who just might keep coming back to see what else has sold recently!

5. Prepare area and community pages

What’s it like to live where you help people buy and sell real estate? For anyone hoping to move to the area, you can offer a valuable resource to guide them through where the parks and recreation centers are, which businesses or events make the neighborhood stand out, and what the real estate market has been doing in that particular community. By creating community pages on your website, you can become the go-to resource for your area. Community pages can include topics like:

• Climate
• Demographics
• Economy
• Local businesses
• Schools and colleges
• Leisure amenities
• Medical facilities
• Transportation
• Shopping
• Restaurants

For example, Newport Bay Realty features neighborhood details on their website:‍

Start with the neighborhood where you’re most active and make the best resource page you possibly can for anyone who might want to move to that area but has either never been there before or visited a handful of times. Include links to your real estate business alongside the community information so that visitors associate one with another. And remember to optimize your web pages for the different keywords, so they show up in Google or other search engines’ results. This strategy is likely to secure both buyer and seller leads as it builds strong narration around your activities. Being engaged and well-informed about what is going on in the areas you operate in is a strong suit of any market leader in the real estate industry. Try to keep up to date and mention any interesting new business on your website that makes the area a better place to live.

The best real estate marketing happens locally, that’s why using geo-location to capture leads is effective. If you serve local customers, you can add a map to your website so people can find your physical location easily.

6. Use landing pages

A real estate landing page is a standalone web page that showcases and promotes a specific property for sale or rent. It provides detailed information, visuals, and a call-to-action to encourage potential buyers or renters to take the next step, such as contacting an agent or scheduling a showing (there is always a specific marketing goal). Users “land” on the property page after clicking on a link from an advertisement, search engine results page, social media post, or any other online marketing channel. The primary idea is to convert visitors into leads or customers by encouraging them to take a specific action, such as purchasing, filling out a form, subscribing to a newsletter, or downloading a resource. Landing pages can be tailored to specific purposes. For instance, a landing page for first-time homebuyers may differ from a page aimed at sellers or investors. This targeted approach resonates with the specific needs of the audience, increasing the likelihood of conversion. 

7. Include a social proof 

Client reviews help show that you understand what you’re doing as an agent (or a brokerage), and they’re becoming an increasingly important part of a brand strategy. Showcase testimonials, success stories, or client opinions on your website. Positive feedback from previous clients can build trust and encourage potential leads to get in touch. 

8. Write a compelling blog 

A real estate blog can showcase your personality and market expertise all at the same time without pressuring your readers to take any steps to work with you. It’s an invitation to get to know you, and it establishes your position as a local expert. Your content – blog posts, articles, guides, and market insights can attract visitors looking for real estate information. Avoid creating posts that are purely promotional or sales-driven. Instead, you can partner with local businesses, join a chamber of commerce, and re-post interesting tidbits about your area’s community, events, and activities. Address topics clients are searching online. Users often turn to Google with their questions — which means you should be there with answers. If you want to generate more real estate leads online, write blog posts that answer common questions your clients may have. 

Not only the things you write about should be relevant to your target audience, but attractive and original, in easy-to-read and understandable language. Perform keyword research (i.e., in Google Keyword Planner), but if you are still unsure what to blog about, you can check Answer The Public or topic suggestions from Google.

A good blog post can be “ever-green,” have years’ worth of value online and generate thousands of visits to your website.

If you struggle with ideas check out How to launch a real estate blog in no time or see all reasons Why start a real estate blog? 

Another idea is to encourage guest blogging by inviting industry experts or other bloggers to post on your site. Apart from exchanging links (back linking and SEO benefit), you might attract a new group of readers to your site, which means opening to fresh leads.

Once you have your topics ready, prepare a publication schedule so visitors to your site know how often they can expect new blog posts or videos. This can encourage them to return, and consistency may pay off and reflect an increased conversion rate. 

What are the best website’s lead capture areas?

Let’s say you have an abundance of appealing content that can direct more of your prospective leads right to your digital front door. There is no end to the number of inviting offers you can incorporate across your website to generate more real estate leads. Whether they’re featured on some, most, or all of your site pages or a dedicated custom lead capture page, you have myriad opportunities to obtain your visitors’ contact details, housing preferences, and other tidbits that can help you qualify and, eventually, grade and prioritize them in your CRM database.

Different lead capture areas on your website (specific sections or features) are designed to gather information from visitors who show interest in your services or content. They often include:

9. Capture leads with a newsletter 

When you already have a blog covering a variety of real estate topics, it’s not much extra work to set up a newsletter to blast out to interested recipients and entice them to your website. It will build a relationship with your brand and increase the chances of conversion. 

Newsletters provide a platform to engage with your audience, offer valuable content, and address their interests, creating a bond of trust and expertise. Regular newsletters keep you at the forefront of your subscribers’ minds. Even if they’re not actively looking to buy or sell, when they are ready, they’re more likely to reach out to someone they’re familiar with. This is a direct marketing channel: you can share promotions, offers, new listings, and success stories, which can lead to direct engagement and drive more traffic to your website. 

Differentiate newsletter sign-ups from other lead capture forms by creating separate opt-in areas for your newsletter with specially designated boxes, copy, creative, and colors. They can appear in the following areas:

• Sidebar: These boxes or forms appear alongside your website content in a fixed vertical bar.
• Top bar: Often, these are fixed thin bars with a short call to action and enough space for email entry. This type of opt-in generally stays in view as the user moves through your website.
• Top feature box: A prominent box you can include on pages to attract subscriptions. Because these appear above the fold, they often get lots of engagement.
• Floating box: These opt-in areas appear in a corner and can follow the user up and down the page as they navigate your content.
• End-of-post: Buttons and calls to action at the end of a quality post are a great transition for users who have indulged in and enjoyed a piece of content.
• Footer: Much like the top bar opt-in area, you can include a fixed footer bar to remind folks of your newsletter.
• Pop-up: This newsletter opt-in type tends to convert at high rates since it shows up prominently in the center of the page, blocks content, and makes visitors decide whether they’ll fill out the form or click away. But you should be careful with pop-ups in general: if you use too many of them, the effect will be adverse, and users might leave your site.

10. Implement lead capture forms

There could be simple contact forms that ask for basic details like name, email, and a message and serve as an initial point of contact for inquiries, requests for property viewings, or more detailed forms. The important thing is to give your visitors a reason to fill out a form. Incentives, such as free guides, e-books, or market reports, work well in exchange for visitors’ contact information when strategically placing capture forms on the website.

11. Free resources and gated content

Consider adding a free tool to your real estate website, like a mortgage/home valuation calculator. This is a helpful way to educate potential clients, whether they’re in the market to buy or sell. You can also have other interactive tools like property search widgets, value estimators, quizzes, or virtual property tours on your website. These features not only engage visitors but also collect their data and offer an instant response.

Offer free resources (e-books, guides, market reports) in exchange for contact information. This is known as “gated content.”, and it will help you to capture the lead’s information details

12. Delayed Forced Registration (DFR)

It is a strategy used in online lead generation where visitors to a website are granted access to specific content, such as property listings or market reports, without requiring immediate registration or providing personal information. However, before allowing full access to the desired content, the user is prompted to register or provide their contact details, so the choice is to either proceed with registration to access the content or to skip the registration and potentially miss out on the more comprehensive information.

Here are some examples of using DFR on your real estate website:

• Listing details unlock: Allow users to view basic information about a property (e.g., location, price, and basic features) without registration. However, to access more detailed information, such as additional photos, floor plans, or contact details for the agent, prompt them to register.
• Saved searches and alerts: Let users search for properties without any restrictions. When they want to save their searches or set up email alerts for new listings, ask them to register.
• Exclusive content access: Provide exclusive content, such as market reports, guides, or virtual tours, without requiring registration. Once users express interest in specific premium content, prompt them to register to access more.
• Customized home valuation: Allow users to estimate the value of their home using a basic tool. For a detailed and personalized home valuation report, ask them to register.
• Agent consultation: Provide initial consultation or advice without registration. If users want a detailed consultation, personalized recommendations, or assistance in buying or selling, encourage them to register.
• Interactive property maps: Let users explore properties on an interactive map. To access additional features like filtering options, neighborhood insights, or a personalized map with preferred listings, ask for registration.
• Virtual tours and 3D walkthroughs: Allow users to experience virtual tours of properties without restrictions. To save favorite tours, receive updates, or get exclusive access to upcoming virtual events, request registration.

13.  Incorporate lead magnets

A lead magnet is something you give subscribers in return for their contact information. So rather than simply asking them to subscribe, you make a compelling and valuable free offer. Some lead magnet ideas for real estate include a free consultation, home sale or documents checklists, home-staging ideas, buyer’s guide, market reports, access to exclusive property listings, property investment guides, video tours, and local neighborhood guides. It is possible that you already have enough content to prepare valuable lead magnets: it can be the case of changing the form (instead of a blog post a downloadable pdf or Excel, spreadsheet). 

If you are too busy to design effective lead magnets, at Placester, we can do it for you. Check out our DIF + Content plan for real estate agents.  

14. Display pop-ups (carefully)

These can be used for special offers, newsletter sign-ups, or to promote a specific service or content. No more asking prospects about their interest in your business. You can simply have a pop-up and grab the opportunity. All-time popular are exit-intent pop-ups. These appear when a user is about to leave the site, prompting them to reconsider with a last-minute offer or call to action. However, you must be super careful – if you use pop-ups excessively, they can have a reverse effect.

Best practices for pop-ups include:

• Clear value proposition: The pop-up should contain a clear and user-friendly proposition – not just a “give us your details and that’s it.” Instead of a generic request for information, provide something valuable in return. You should also align the pop-up with the content on the page. If it relates to what the user is viewing, it’s more likely to be perceived as relevant
• Delay activation: Avoid displaying pop-ups immediately upon a user’s entrance. It’s best to apply a delay of at least 20 seconds or trigger it after a 50% scroll down. This allows time for a calm exploration of the page content and reduces the risk of closing the popup immediately upon appearance (because it’s seen as an annoyance). Don’t bombard users with frequent pop-ups. Set limits to how often a pop-up appears to avoid irritating visitors.
• Mobile responsiveness: Ensure that your pop-ups are designed to be mobile-friendly. Use clear and readable layouts with appropriately sized fonts for various devices.
• Easy close option: Provide a simple and visible option to close the pop-up. Users appreciate a straightforward way to dismiss the window if they’re not interested.
• A/B testing: Experiment with different pop-up designs, messages, and triggers. A/B testing helps identify what works best for your audience.  

15. Include clear Call-to-Actions (CTAs) buttons.

Call-to-Action buttons with compelling text and design encourage visitors to take the next step, whether it’s “Contact Us,” “Schedule a Consultation,” or “Learn More.” Incorporate clear and visible CTAs on your website, prompting visitors to take action, such as signing up for a newsletter, or requesting a property valuation, or scheduling a consultation.

Some examples of successful CTAs:

CTA: “Want to hear about the latest mid-century modern listings in Belleville as soon as they hit the market? Sign up for newsletter alerts/Set up an appointment with me.”

CTA: “You’ve got real estate questions? I’ve got answers! Email me directly from this contact form.”

CTA: “Want to talk about how I can help you buy a house/sell your house? Schedule a meeting!”

CTA: “Sign up for email alerts to see new posts as soon as they’re published!”

You should split-test your CTAs to test different ones and see which works best.

16. Let clients schedule a quick phone call

Schedule a call and Click to call are both functionalities that facilitate communication between potential clients and real estate professionals, allowing website visitors to arrange a phone conversation at a later time. There is a form or a calendar where users can select a suitable date and time for a phone call. This scheduled call can be about property inquiries, consultations, or any other matter relevant to real estate. Click to call is a more immediate option for communication. It involves a button or link on a website that, when clicked, instantly initiates a call between the visitor and the real estate professional. Both options help to boost lead conversion.

17. Lead generation through a live chat

Visitors to your website don’t always want to fill out forms or call you. But they might be happy to engage in a live chat to get their questions answered instantly. Incorporate live chat or chatbots on your website to assist them in real time. There are plenty of live chat apps available including FreshChat, Intercom, and Drift, Most apps include the option to auto-respond to website visitors and then determine if a human response is required.

18. Create a vendor directory on your website

Although some real estate firms keep their preferred plumbers or interior designers under wraps, we believe in the benefits of sharing parts of your professional network. Publicly endorsing a vendor increases the likelihood of receiving referrals in return. To make the directory a better list-building strategy, you could use earlier mentioned gated content, where parts of the directory are hidden until someone enters their email address. You then have the perfect opportunity to send a complete vendor list to their email along with other lead nurturing content.

19. Rely on high-quality visuals

When prospective buyers or sellers visit a real estate website, the visuals are key in their decision-making process. Clear, well-composed images immediately attract attention and showcase the property’s best features, helping potential buyers visualize themselves living in that space. You can prepare 360-degree virtual property tours or do drive-around video tours of neighborhoods, pointing out parks, coffee shops, schools, etc. A professional 360-degree virtual tour is a super way to showcase homes on websites, social media, and Google Maps so that your listings stand out from the crowd. For buyer leads outside your location, this is an excellent time-saver as they can narrow their search before traveling to inspect the property.

What else can you do to generate more leads from your website?

A successful lead generation system uses detailed marketing to attract prospects and convert them into leads before they become customers.

20. Rank articles on Google for listings

Grow interest in a property organically by targeting niche-specific keywords on Google that showcase your listings by using dedicated single-property websites that capture local search traffic. The descriptions should be filled with potent keywords, to bring more traffick to your site. Keyword is the search term you want to rank for with a page on your website, something buyers use during the home search process, i.e., best realtor Boston, Wisconsin lake homes for sale, how long does it take to buy a house, New York real estate agents. By optimizing your content for those keywords, you are more likely to rank higher and appear in search engine results. Where to start with keyword research?

• You can think of your target audience and list words you want to rank for. 
• Try to put yourself in their shoes: type keywords from your list into different search engines and see what pops up. You will kill two birds with one stone: check if your keywords align with your intent and view top-ranking competitors.
• It’s time to use some tools to build a more extensive keyword list and see their difficulty, search volume, and how much it would cost to use them in a paid advertising campaign.

Free keywords research tools:

• Google Keyword Planner

Google has a few tools that make keyword research easy, and the Keyword Planner is a great place to start because it is a free tool. To use Google Keyword Planner, you need a Google Ads account (sign up for one at ads.google.com) Once you have an account, log in and navigate to the Keyword Planner tool to start your keyword research by entering words or phrases related to your business or services. These are called “seed” keywords. 

For example, if you’re a real estate agent, you might enter “buy a house,” “sell a property,” or “real estate Boston.” Google Keyword Planner will then generate a list of keyword suggestions related to your seed keywords. These suggestions include similar keywords, synonyms, variations, and related terms that users commonly search for on Google.

• Google Trends

It is another free tool from Google that lets you enter multiple keywords and filter by location, search history, and category. Once you enter that information in, it’ll give you results that show how much web interest there is around a particular keyword, what caused the interest, and where the traffic is coming from – along with similar keywords.

• Keyword Tool.io

This is a very simple online keyword research tool, but it can be useful if you’re just looking for a list of long-tail keyword suggestions related to one you already have in mind.

There are also many paid tools, some with advanced keyword research options. The most popular include Ahrefs, Moz’s Keyword Difficulty Tool, SeoStation, SEMrush, Ubersuggest, HubSpot, and TermExplorer.

21. Start an e-mail list

Once you sourced some contacts, you can implement an email marketing strategy. Collected email addresses through sign-up forms enable you to send newsletters, property updates, or market insights to engage potential clients. You can set up an email cadence that looks a little something like this and send it over the span of 2-3 weeks:

• EMAIL #1: Newsletter (even a mix of promoting local listings and sharing area news and business updates)
• EMAIL #2: Digest (promoting your latest blog posts and home buying or selling resources)
• EMAIL #3: Multimedia (embed a video, like a brand update listing tour or an infographic)
• EMAIL #4: Offer (explicit call to action offering something like a listing presentation or buying consultation)

22. Engage through Social Media

Integrate your website with your social media platforms and display their icons in the footer or/and in the Contact section. Launch a YouTube channel or have active LinkedIn and Instagram profiles where you regularly share content from your website to attract more visitors and potential leads. What kind of content can you share?

• High-quality photos and videos of your property listings.
• Post with a storytelling approach to showcase the unique features of properties.
• Visually appealing content related to the local community, events, and lifestyle.

Best social media practices:

• Use Instagram and Pinterest to showcase visually stunning images of properties.
• Create virtual property tours or 360-degree videos for a more immersive experience.
• Utilize Instagram Stories and Reels to engage with a younger audience.
• Provide regular updates on new listings, price reductions, and market trends.
• Share behind-the-scenes glimpses of your work and the real estate process.
• Run polls, quizzes, or surveys to encourage audience interaction.
• Host live Q&A sessions to answer questions about the real estate market.
• Incorporate relevant and popular hashtags to increase the visibility of your posts.
• Highlight local businesses, events, and attractions to show your connection to the community.
• Share success stories and testimonials from satisfied clients.
• Create a branded hashtag for your real estate business to encourage user-generated content.
• Respond promptly to comments and messages.
• Participate in discussions within local community groups or forums.
• Partner with local influencers to expand your reach.
• Influencers can create content featuring your properties and share it with their followers.
• Host social media contests or giveaways to encourage engagement and attract new followers.
• Offer prizes such as home decor items, consultation sessions, or local experiences
• Create or join local real estate or community groups on Facebook.

The point is that your website and social media profiles are connected, and they pass on traffic to your website (and potential leads). Buying property is a lengthy process, and it is often hard to pinpoint at which point the visitor became a “hot lead”, how long it took, and through how many channels or points of contact this particular person went.  

23. Use Facebook re-targeting

If you’ve ever looked at a fancy watch or cool winter boots on a website and saw the exact same item on a Facebook ad just minutes later, you know what retargeting is. It can be a bit spooky to have a product follow you, but the point is that you’re constantly reminded that it was something you considered buying. But you’re wondering: how does this work for real estate? Buying a home worth a few hundred thousand dollars is not the same as buying a $60 pair of shoes. True. But, the benefit is simply that you or your listing stays top of mind. If people looked at your site once when looking for a realtor and then decided to search a few days later, you’d pop up again, and repeatedly, before the competition.

Retargeting ads incorporate tracking as a strategy, which allows you to capitalize on behavioral data and increase the likelihood of conversion. 

Facebook retargeting is based on a pixel – a snippet of code that enables you to monitor visitors arriving at your website from Facebook and provides insights into their demographic information. This aids in gaining a deeper understanding of your audience’s preferences and requirements. Pixel is not hard to install on your site, and the benefits are numerous; you can repeatedly reconnect with the same audience (who visits your website), tailoring your messaging to align more precisely with their interests.

Eat, sleep, and repeat

After a few weeks or months of cultivating contact relationships, you’ll hopefully have a good percentage of leads becoming clients. Once new leads are on your email list, follow up with helpful content and clear opportunities to work with you. You should also enter them into your customer relationship management (CRM) software if you’re using one. Real estate CRM software keeps track of incoming leads and enables marketing automation to nurture them, so you can keep track of what’s happening with each person and ensure that nothing goes amiss.

Also, at this stage, it’s important to reflect and identify what worked for you. Was a certain element more fruitful for finding interested leads, or did contacts respond particularly well to a certain outreach tactic? Document your processes for repeatability – there’s no need to reinvent the wheel.

Why is lead generation on my website not working?

Sometimes there could be other issues that can impede your lead generation: unreliable service providers, incompetent website designers, or agencies you work with for advertising or website optimization. Sometimes, it is a case of unrealistic expectations: you’ve read marketing guides and expect instant results. Still, your knowledge of digital marketing is incomplete, so you end up paying more money without any viable results. Maybe your website is a project in the making: even though you spent weeks creating it, it still lacks some cornerstone elements, so your digital foundation is weak; hence, the leads aren’t there.