Not just a pretty face
What’s on the outside counts, and first impressions matter. But also think of the phrase, “not just a pretty face”, and that’s what we’re all about. Websites and printed material that are designed beautifully are also more functional.
Whether it is creating a great first impression or helping the customer to use the product seamlessly, a clear, simple design enhances every aspect of a product’s quality. In this article, we will discuss how beautiful simplicity appeals to a customer’s three main desires – functionality, ease of use, and a visually appealing design – and why those apply to real estate marketing.
Simplicity is Key
Unless you’re designing a cockpit for a Boeing 747, targeted only towards very highly trained professional pilots, the design of a product must be clear & simple, allowing untrained customers to easily get a grasp of it. Take the iPad, or the iPhone as an example – a brilliantly simple design that captivated dozens of millions of users around the world – as a well-designed consumer product.
With a minimal number of buttons and on-screen instructions, it creates a clear set of choices to the user. This avoids confusion and complex directions for the customer. It’s no wonder the product was a massive success!
How we apply these principles to our websites:
We believe in easy & minimalist navigation options.
We’ve all been to those websites that have a seemingly endless number of things to click on, then gotten lost and confused and, probably, didn’t even find what we were looking for. When people are faced with poor navigation options, the majority of them will impatiently leave your website, or hit the “back” button to go back to the Google results. Google also detects these Bounce Rates which can potentially hurt your search engine rankings!
Pairing a simple navigation system with great photos peaks interest and desire. People love looking at and clicking on beautiful things. With a fantastic set of photos for your listings, people will stay longer on your site.
By offering potential and current clients a fewer number of navigation options via clear grouping, visitors can easily find the answers they want and know that communicating with you will be the same. That’s how we design our real estate websites.
How these tactics lead to a better visitor experience and better results for you:
The longer a customer stays on your website, the longer they are exposed to your brand & name, thus putting you in the front-of-mind awareness zone.
More Time X Brand = More Brand Exposure
Another important aspect of the length of time spent on your website is Google’s analytics of visitor behaviour. As a potential client spends time on your website, Google monitors the time spend and evaluates how valuable your website is to users.
The more value that Google places on your website, the higher your search engine ranking can go. This of course leads to higher volume of visitors, converting into higher number of leads.
Listings & photos are the easy winners when it comes to page views
Taking up 95% of page views, the homepage & listing pages are the most popular pages on a Real Estate website. Like it or not, page views are still heavily focused on listings & listing photos, as opposed to About, Contact, and other pages.
First Impressions and other marketing strategies:
On the web
The moment a visitor first opens up your website, the first impression is made. You wouldn’t walk into a first meeting with a client wearing track suits, and your website shouldn’t do so either. Your website is your digital first impression.
On Paper
This applies to your printed material as well. When you hand someone a business card, the thickness, feel & design is judged. Is your presentation folder neat & heavy enough to make that impression? What about your listing sheets?
Now that you know how important design is, get better looking!
Brixwork Real Estate Marketing offers a full range of services for agents looking to make the best first impression, and a lasting one.
We offer web design, branding, social media marketing, search engine optimization, business cards, print media for mail outs, open houses and more. Our experts have been hand picked for their design skills and are ready to offer you their full attention.
As a high end, graphic design boutique, we are able to give you the best of the best. Your success is our goal.
Beauty and elegance should not have to be sacrificed in the name of function.
When designing a product to entice and please potential customers, functionality is key… and a clear, beautiful design takes the product to the next level. We can help you do just that.
