Your Real Estate website needs to embrace the technology available today and create a truly value-based experience for your visitors. They have to leave feeling that you are a reputable partner that is trustworthy for the information and advice and has the capability to make the utmost superior decision when it comes to buying and selling their home.
Colour:
Deciding on the array of colours that you can mix and match on your website play an extremely imperative part. Have you ever stopped to wonder why McDonalds uses yellow and red, or why Facebook unleashes the blue, or perhaps why Starbucks represents green? These colours were not picked by rolling a dice, they were selected based upon the emotion they emanate when a human being makes the initial stare and the subconscious mind begins to churn. Yellow is optimism giving warmth to the viewer, orange is friendly, vibrating cheerfulness, and red is excitement and speaks boldly.
“Colour plays a major role in mood associations that determine the way we feel about a product. Researchers have shown that up to 60% of a consumer’s first impression of a product comes from its colour” says Kathy Lamancusa a trend strategist and writer on Creativelatitude.com.
Whether the product be a small, one dollar and thirty-nine cent cheeseburger to huge extravagant mansions, which colours the product is presented by is always a key factor.
Logo:
Undoubtedly Realtors will always represent their brokerage’s logo, however, personal branding is equally significant. You need to set yourself apart from the competition and avoid assimilation from the masses of Realtors out there with the same generic logos. You want to be identifiable. If you do not, what is the benefit of the prospect choosing you over another agent? So as well as uploading your Realtor logo, you should consider creating a unique design that shouts you… It should be as significant as an apple is to Macintosh. Your website is a direct reflection of yourself, your goals, and services.
Layout:
As for the layout, deciding to be a minimalist, full packed with pictures, little text, or very informative should be dictated by who your audience is. You should have an idea of how you would like to present yourself as a Realtor (friendly, elegant, strong, mysterious) because the layout becomes the over all influence of your website. Uber Crystal shows great efficient and detailed examples in her post: Real Estate Websites 101: A Successful Homepage.
Font:
If colours are emotions, then the font is the voice. Although it can be easily neglected, deciding on the right font is crucial to a successful website. What is the feeling you want to convey? Strong? Fancy? Open? Fonts are emotional on a subliminal level because of the connotations it portrays. When deciding what typeface is applicable to your website and what it is you are marketing (Townhomes, Condos, etc.), it is important to remember: legibility is essential.
A designer’s perspective:
I took some time to speak to expert designers about some guidance they can give to Realtor’s to understand the designers a bit better as they create the design masterpiece that resembles the specific Realtor.
Particular factors stated in order to create an outstanding website are:
- Colour: Colour scheme sets the mood of the website and also indicates the accents of the various options the client may select. Colours should also indicate what you are selling. Colours are vital.
- Pictures: Exact images for their site (banner photo) or even an idea of one.
Here are free stock photo sites that are available here. - Font: Extensive contemplating on which font they select because “Fonts have the potential to destroy the overall design and fonts should be easily read and should not be outdated because fonts reflect personality.”
- Personal Logos: Distinguishable word mark to brand your own self, creating individuality. How do you represent yourself as a brand?
- Layout: The layout of a website should not be overly cluttered. Important items on the front, other relevant information spread throughout.
- Originality: It is great to be inspired by another website but MORE ORIGINALITY is appreciated by the designers because other designs are purely for inspiration, not plagiarism.
- Focus on what you are selling.
Reach out to our talented Approved Vendors or contact our team for any questions. Leave yourself stress free, concentrating on being a Realtor while you leave it to an expert team to conjure up the perfect website balancing the representation of yourself, creating an emphasis on your product, and sincerely catering to your audience.