Build a real estate investor website that converts

Why your website decides your deals

Now you are an absolute expert on motivated sellers (if you read how to find motivated sellers, that is). You know who they are and, equally important, who they are not. With this newfound knowledge, we can now begin to talk about how to generate them.

As established earlier, the only way to reliably get in touch with motivated sellers is to make it extremely easy for them to find you. Where do you think this happens?

Internet. Google!

AND???

Aren’t you forgetting something?

YouTube. Correct. When considering the sheer usage of all search engines (this includes video search engines), YouTube is second only to Google. When it comes to Google, we mainly deal with websites. When it comes to YouTube, we mainly deal with videos. This guide is about the website: the place where a stranger who found you decides whether to pick you.

Here is how we are going to strategically and analytically transform your website into a lean mean lead-generating machine, all driven by data and numbers. No fluff, no opinions, and no “experienced-based strategies” (that may work for me but not you), just analytics, and data.

Why your website is not performing

I am sure you are starting to realize the absurdity of website host providers claiming that their templates (or any generic “nothing-to-do-with-you” templates for that matter), somehow “are proven and tested to be high converting”.

The entire notion of a “template,” which implies one size fits all, a generic base, goes against the very principle for a conversion to happen: your specific individuality. It’s the unique essence of you that truly drives conversions, something no generic website template can provide.

The Problem: Everyone seems to be hiding behind a “beautifully designed website”, filled with flashy animations and trendy design elements. However, the true key to conversions lies in showcasing yourself as a credible, competent, kind, and likable person. Yes, a PERSON. After all, would you trust someone who hides behind a mask (or a website)?

How are you going to give anyone a “feel” for who you are, when you hide behind a mountain of text that no one wants to read, generic pictures no one cares to see, or a city landmark that somehow proves you are a real cash buyer(!?), especially when everyone else is doing the exact same thing?

The difference between converting in person and online is you

To start improving website conversion rates (converting inbound motivated traffic into leads) we first need to understand what exactly makes traffic want to convert into leads.

Now you’ll say, “it is their motivation level that will convert motivated sellers into leads”.

Sure, but where in that equation does it say that they will become YOUR leads? Because of their motivation, they will take it upon themselves to find a solution to their problem, or in other words, a buyer for their house, but that doesn’t mean that motivated sellers are not picky. In fact it is the exact opposite. The more motivated the seller the more selective they are, because it is important to them that they get their problem solved.

Let me ask you this: I am willing to bet that if I handed over the address of a motivated seller, and you knocked at their door, you would walk away with a signed contract. You are amazing at what you do. You can convert any motivated seller into a contract. Yet, it is nearly impossible to convert the exact same audience through a website. Why is that?

Think about it. What is the difference between you converting leads in person vs online through your website?

Obviously, the difference is you!

It’s your presence. As silly as this may sound, it is your endearing smile, your demeanor, the way you talk, what you say, and how you say it that makes people like you, trust you, and want to do business with you. There’s a reason why building rapport with your seller is universally recognized as crucial to getting a contract signed.

In person, you can shake someone’s hand while putting your other hand on their shoulder, giving your prospect a warm, confident wink that signals you are there for them with authority and reliability, all without saying a word. They experience your demeanor; they feel it. But can you shake anyone’s hand through a website? No. Can you place your hand on their shoulder, conveying that they are in trustworthy hands? No.

Let’s go on a date

Imagine creating a profile on a dating site: You finish your profile and excitedly start browsing users. You see that beautiful person, with the perfect picture, perfect smile, and perfect profile text. Everything seems just right.

You go on the date, and that person is nothing like what you envisioned once you’re in front of them, experiencing their being. It’s not something you can pinpoint, just simply not your vibe, different humor, different way of thinking, acting, processing information, and it just feels like you have to work too hard at it to force a good time.

But but but, the profile was amazing! The picture, the text, everything seemed perfect. Obviously, their essence, their being, persona, and character were not captured in their profile.

On the other hand: Imagine the date went well, extremely well. You step into your car, shut the door, and sit there staring at the space between the windshield and your nose, with this stooopid, moronic smile on your face reminiscing about the amazing experience you had. You recall the little, seemingly meaningless instances that made an impact, like the way they laughed at that one joke you told.

Just like that, when your traffic is done visiting your website, they should be left reminiscing about how knowledgeable you are in this space, how amazing of a person you are, and how overwhelming the evidence is that you have successfully helped tons of people in their exact situation.

It’s not “adding pictures” that does the trick; your entire website should embody your personality, reflecting who you are and what you stand for. Your audience needs to feel like they know you and trust you on a personal level.

The 3 pillars of a high-converting website

After they see you (stage 1), they notice you (stage 2), and they are interested in your message (stage 3), your goal is to convince them to choose you (stage 4). That is conversion, and it stands on three pillars: competence, personality and credibility (more in the 3 pillars of a conversion).

Just as a real-life converter needs these three key elements for a seller to create an emotional and logical bond with them, a website (the online converter) requires the same three key elements, but then mapped from real-life space over to the online space. Here is how they map from a person to a website:

Buckle up buttercup because things are getting very intense!

• Layout: No matter how amazing your content or presentation is, if the timing, order, or placement is off, your website’s message won’t make sense to anyone. It ensures that information is not presented out of order, such as having an introduction at the bottom of your home page.
• Content: No matter how amazing the layout or presentation is, if your content is poor, people will bounce and you won’t get any leads. Worse yet, high bounce rates can lead to a drop in rankings! Quality content drives credibility.
• Presentation: No matter how amazing the layout or content is, if no one wants to dive in and read your content, you won’t get any conversions. Think colors, visuals, video, pictures, art, lines, buttons: anything that makes the content appealing and engaging.

Motivated sellers aren’t looking for a company. They’re looking for one they can trust.

People don’t turn to Google to find an answer to their problems. People turn to Google to find the right answer to their problem, i.e. the answer that resonates with them the most, on a personal level.

There is a clear distinction. If sellers were simply looking for any company to sell their house to on Google, traditional marketing tactics like direct mailers, handwritten letters, cold calls, or postcards would suffice. But obviously, they don’t.

Motivated sellers don’t choose you simply because your website mentions that you buy houses or because of the aesthetics of your website. Rather, they choose you because your website effectively portrays who you are, and what it would be like to work with you, all of which must also align with their perception of the ideal company or person to work with.

The 4 key elements of a conversion

A conversion occurs when your prospect genuinely believes that you are the “right” person for them. You want them to feel that it would be their loss if they didn’t work with you specifically. From this, I have extracted 4 principles that drive conversions:

1. The Conversion Trigger: Conversions occur when prospects perceive you as the right person for them.
2. The Value Proposition: Your Unique Value Proposition (UVP) is what sets you apart from competitors and convinces prospects that they would be missing out if they didn’t choose to work with you.
3. Exclusivity & Scarcity: Making it apparent that your offering is exclusive or scarce increases the perceived value.
4. The Emotional Connection: The language you use and the way you communicate with prospects evoke emotions and influence their decision-making process.

Now consider this: In the highly saturated space of Real Estate Investors, where everyone seems to offer the exact same thing and presents themselves in the same way (hiding behind a cookie-cutter website), what is the one thing that sets each person apart from everyone else?

So now, let’s revisit the 4 key elements with this in mind:

1. The Conversion Trigger: is you, through your pictures, your videos, and your lingo on the website that gives your prospect a feel for who you are, what you are like, and what it would be like to work with you.
2. The Value Proposition: again, is you. How you show yourself, how you portray your personality on the website, the warmth of your smile, and the trustworthiness of your demeanor. While your competitors go the extra mile to blend in hiding behind a generic website, you will present your UVP openly: a feel for how it would be like, working with you!
3. Exclusivity and Scarcity: As prospects become more drawn to you based on their experiences of you on your website, they begin to fear missing out on the opportunity to work with you.
4. The Emotional Connection: While text can convey information, it’s through the images or videos of you (capturing your facial expressions, eye contact, and body language) that a deeper emotional connection is established. Prospects are more likely to feel emotionally attached when they can put a face to the words they’re reading.

For this synergy to occur, every aspect of your website (design, wording, and images) must align with your persona. If you’re a serious, no-nonsense individual, a template featuring playful elements and bright colors will feel mismatched and may deter potential leads. Your traffic may sense that something is off.

Your website is a funnel, not a page

The first and most important concept to understand is that your website is not some random “thing” online that traffic lands on, as we hope they will see exactly what they need to see in the exact order they need to see it in, to be convinced to fill in our forms. Absolutely not!

The base page: your home page

If treatment “X” is only successful when the subjects undergoing it have attributes X, Y, and Z, all you have to do to get a guaranteed 100% successfully treated subject, is EITHER make sure only subjects with attributes X, Y, and Z undergo that treatment, OR, make sure that everyone and anyone that applies for treatment “X” will acquire attributes X, Y, and Z, before the treatment begins.

This is exactly the point of the base page. Random people with different backgrounds, different levels of understanding of the process, different expectations, different levels of concern, different reasons for selling, with different preconceptions of what we cash buyers are, all end up here, in one way or another. The job of the base page is to initialize all these people into a standardized level of knowledge, expectations, and trust level in us. This is what I call “Initializing”.

From my research, tests, experiments, and data collected, it is clear that before anyone would even consider filling in your forms, they need to know how it all works, and they need to know more about you. And their immediate need for knowing how it works takes precedence. So the order of pages is:

To get them there, your home page needs to give them:

1. Who you are, what you do.
2. Who this is for.
3. What are the next steps.
4. Acknowledgment of understanding their problem.
5. Presenting the solution.
6. Providing proof that the solution works.
7. Show of force that you are the authority.

Instead of focusing on cramming as much crucial information as possible to win them over, focus on addressing imminent concerns and pain points someone in the mindset of a motivated seller could have. Conversions come in the form of eliminating resistance, and not forcing or punching them into taking action.

Lure pages

Lure pages are the transitional pages that direct (or guide) people to the Base Page. Example: a City Page lures people who need to sell their house in that select city from a Google search onto your website, and directs that traffic to your Base Page. You can (should) have a ton of Lure Pages. More in SEO for real estate investors.

Landing pages vs. supporting pages

A landing page is a page people land on from a source other than your website, such as a Google search, a backlink or social media. They have no exposure relevant to who or what you are. This is cold traffic. The purpose of the hero section is to make your traffic want to scroll down within 2 seconds of landing on your site. If your traffic is not convinced within 2 seconds that your site may be a good option, they will bounce and pick another website.

A supporting page (like the About Us page or the How It Works page) is where traffic most likely lands from another page on your website. You can assume they are already interested enough in you to be looking for more information. Try not to sell yourself too hard here. They are not on these pages to be sold.

Write your How It Works page first

We used heatmaps to see how motivated sellers behave on our own websites: where they scroll, click, and stop. Clearly, motivated sellers want to know how the process works and more about who we are, as those are the areas where the most clicks occur. What this means is that, to get your forms filled, people need to understand the process and who they are dealing with. That’s why we start with the How It Works page.

Anyone that is about to click on the How It Works page wants to know how it works (duh).

You don’t try to sell yourself, you don’t talk about how amazing you are and that you bought 5,000 houses last month, or that you have 300 years combined experience buying houses. That is NOT what they asked for. Remember, they WANT to choose you, otherwise they wouldn’t be reading your How It Works page. So stop selling yourself, and stop looking desperate.

The How It Works blueprint

1. Introduction.
   Tell them what they will find on this page: what they will learn, what information they will find, and what it is good for.
2. Sell your house in 3 steps (plus a form).
   Explain clearly the steps to sell, using graphics. Make sure to show how easy the process is. So easy, why not just do it? Show them where to click next, why they need to click that next, and what they will gain.
3. Detailed explanation (case study).
   How the offer is generated, what the offer entails, how long before it’s ready, the timeline to the closing table and to cash in hand, how the offer is presented, and the cost of your services. Show that the approach is fair. Explain the offer formula, each part of it, and let it make sense.
4. Reviews.
   Not too many, just enough to make whatever you are claiming on the page credible.
5. Benefits and features.
   The things that make working with you easier, like closing on their schedule. Only list what you actually do.

Crush seller objections before they come up

If you can eliminate all the reasons why they wouldn’t sell to you, the only thing left over is the reasons why they should sell to you. Crushing seller objections is one of the most overlooked strategies in this space.

Write your home page

The home page should be a teaser. It should contain adequate information on all topics on your website, yet not all information about all topics. Give a short explanation of the steps involved, and leave the detailed explanation for the How It Works page.

The goals of the home page are:

• Credibility is always the #1 thing we need to focus on (with “Value” a close second). This is the first exposure your traffic has of you. If you fail to establish yourself as credible immediately, they will not dig deeper into your website, and they will bounce.
• A centralized hub, much like a manned information center in a mall, giving out directions where the most relevant pieces of information can be found.

Ask yourself what a complete stranger (that doesn’t trust or know this business) who desperately wants to sell their house would need to see or know to be convinced to fill in your form. Remember, they most likely know nothing about you, or how any of this works, and believe me when I say, our reputation as investors does NOT precede us (well, it does… but in a bad way).

The home page blueprint

1. Introduction.
   Who we are, what we do, how we do it, who this is for. Show a picture of you. Write correct English. Look and sound educated. Show personality.
2. How it works, short.
   A quick, easy step-by-step procedure, how to get the offer started, and a form. Link to the How It Works page for the details.
3. Who this is for.
   Present a list of the problems you solve, provide the solution, and show it works with a few reviews.
4. Expectations and features.
   What they can expect when working with you: your timeline, fees, and what you take care of. Make them an offer they can’t refuse. This doesn’t mean a great above-ARV offer. This means making them an offer that makes sense and that is fair.
5. Customer reviews.
   Show examples of what you did for other people, in their words.

Write your About Us page

The About Us page is a supporting page. They have already seen your home page and probably your How It Works page. So what are they still looking for?

You can tell them all the personal information about you, but nobody cares about anything about you, unless what you are telling them about you is of interest to them with respect to credibility and trustworthiness. So if you talk about yourself, make sure that what you’re saying complements the reason for them to fill in the form even more.

They want to see more about you with respect to what they’ve already learned about you. If I say on my home page that I was a NASA robotics scientist, they more than likely want to see more about that and how that relates to why I flip houses. You whet their appetite, so now you feed it.

We have gotten offers accepted even though my competition made far higher offers. And that is all because of these kinds of pages. It’s how they feel about us.

When pen meets paper: how to write it

Resist the temptation to write the content first and then place it into a layout that makes sense. By figuring out the layout first, the layout itself will guide you on what to write and the tone of your writing. Example: we can’t talk about “the benefits of working with us” before talking about “who we are” and “what we do”.

Control what they want to read next

You need to set early on “who is in charge.” You direct and control what your traffic is interested in reading next. The goal is to write content in such a way that the user is left with a question that you want them to have. An example:

The way this is done is by giving users a collection of bits and pieces of information, leaving one (and only one) crucial bit out, in a way that without this piece of information, the entire paragraph feels (literally painfully) incomplete. Then, to satisfy your traffic’s desire and need to know more, they need to read the next paragraph. The result is that your user will be left with a feeling of satisfaction, that your website was informative and answered every question or concern they had. To them, you provided value! To Google, you should rank #1!

Use curiosity-provoking words where your traffic starts to get bored: “The conclusion is:”, “But that’s not all”, “The downside is:”, “However:”, “How?”

Write emotion-provoking content

It’s one thing to say: “Are you stressed?” Yet, it’s completely different and a lot more powerful to say: “Are you losing sleep at night? Are you short with your loved ones or even losing your temper way too quickly? Fights with the spouse, losing sleep, not eating, not taking care of yourself because of that house that keeps draining your wallet every month?”

If your traffic is literally going through the exact same thing you have put into words in full detail, they will be instantly convinced you know what they are going through.

Be realistic, and cut the fluff

Imagine someone who knows nothing about buying and selling houses for cash is reading this, in utter desperation to sell their house fast. They are nervous, anxious, maybe even worried. Can your content calm that person down and give them the confidence that you can help them, in a very realistic manner? If they owe $500K on the house and the ARV is $90K, do not tell them that there is no problem.

• Is this the absolute shortest and most efficient way to convey the message I want to send to my traffic?
• Will my traffic fully understand the point and message?
• Is the information complete?
• Can this be rewritten in a better way?

And AI?

Do you think AI can craft content based on these strategies designed to subtly influence your audience to fill out your form? It can’t, not on its own. AI can assist you in generating content, but it’s essential to first understand the principles behind effective content writing so you can then guide AI to write the content so that it applies all these strategies. I encourage you to initially write your own content.

Take the right pictures

Come here, sit on my lap. Wow, that did not at all sound the same in my head. But what is written is written, so I will leave it. Pictures, you need to take some good ones. For Pete’s sake. Do you know how many times I have to tell students “take good pictures,” and they all say “got it,” and then they come at me with CRAP: horrible, blurry pieces of filth! Smile, be personable, sharp, confident!

Recipe vs. perception

Credibility is not achieved by completing or checking off a set of actions from a list, like: “taking a picture of yourself in front of a cool bad-ass pick-up truck and put it on your website.” Credibility is the desired effect that completing a set of actions has on someone.

Miss Betty and I completed the exact same set of actions. Same truck, same logo, same house, same pose. Although we completed the exact same tasks, I look far more credible, competent, and trustworthy. In fact, more than likely, not only will I appear more credible than her, but she will also appear like a scam. It has a negative effect doing exactly what I did.

The assignment

Get yourself a ton of pictures, with your logo polo, without your logo polo (just make sure you are wearing something). Don’t make it look like all the pictures were taken in one day. Make it look like this is what you do daily and not a one-time event like a photo shoot. Different shirts, different locations. Be safe so you have pics that can’t go wrong, but also be daring, creative, show personality. Usually, the dumbest picture ideas turn into those that make millions.

When to add a picture

• When a visual is more powerful than just words. You can say that you buy houses in any condition, but a picture of a house full of garbage and junk makes the seller aware that you really do mean it. Warning: don’t go overboard. You do not want your traffic to think that you only buy houses when they are absolute poop-holes!
• To make otherwise dull content interesting. Put a friendly face next to a plain paragraph, and suddenly someone is talking to you. Your site now is alive and has a feel, a character, an attitude, personality. This builds rapport without you needing to interact with them personally.
• When words alone aren’t effective. Everyone can type “we buy houses”. Visual proof that you indeed buy, rehab and flip houses eliminates doubt no amount of text could.

But never add a picture for the sake of having a picture. Pictures take time to load. If you claim that you buy houses in cash, you do not need to add a picture of you handing over a stack of cash to the seller. The text alone is quite obvious.

Presentation: make them want to read it

Not only do you need to be undoubtedly credible, but you also need to ensure that your proof, evidence, and content are presented in such a way that people will bother reading it. That is key! First and foremost, your website NEEDS to look, sound, and feel professional. That is the #1 rule of Credibility.

• Fast and responsive. No one wants to wait for a website to load.
• One coherent design. If it isn’t, BAD User Experience (BUE). Let BUE now forever be the most obscene swearword you can possibly imagine. Do not use 3 different fonts on one single page.
• Embrace white space. When a lot of text and pictures are cramped together, the page becomes intimidating. Give the content its own space and life on your website. Let it breathe.
• Ups and downs. Like a movie, a plain section followed by a sudden burst of interest keeps people engaged. “Everyone is special. That is the same as no one is special.”
• Power headlines. “We Will Help You With Your House Problems” is passive and vague. Are you going to kill my termites for me? “Fill In The Form To Get Cash For Your House In 5 Days” resonates with the reason they are on your website and has a clear call to action (use the timeline that is true for you).
• Calls to action, sparingly. Six sections asking people to fill in the form comes across as too pushy and desperate. It removes credibility. Put the form where you provide the most value or credibility.
• Paint the walls with them in mind. A bright, sharp yellow might not be the best choice if your audience is anxious or stressed. Your brand colors should not be the deciding factor. Pick colors that calm people and motivate them to act.

Look like a real, local business

You will get better conversions when you look like a legitimate business. Get a local phone number: most people do not like national companies because they have become more commonly associated with scams. Display your business address, so it is abundantly clear that “This is me, here I am, you can find me here”. And get a professional email address. What looks more credible? Jon@Nike.com, or Jonnike@aol.com?

Build it, step by step

1. Pretend you are a motivated seller.
   You need to sell, you want cash, and you are wary of scams. Look at your own site through those eyes, as a complete stranger. Write down, honestly, your opinion of the person on it.
2. Plan the funnel.
   Home page (base page) → How It Works → About Us → form. City pages later, as lure pages.
3. Lay out each page before writing.
   Decide the page’s goal, list everything a visitor needs to reach it, group those points into blocks, and put the blocks in order. Use the blueprints above.
4. Write How It Works first, then Home, then About Us.
   Give them exactly what they came for, crush the objections, and leave one crucial bit out so they read on.
5. Take the pictures.
   Lots of them, on different days, showing what you are like, not just what you look like.
6. Dress it up.
   One coherent design, white space, power headlines, calm colors, calls to action where you’re most credible.
7. Wait a day, and re-read it all.
   Cut the fluff. Would it calm an anxious seller down, in a realistic way?
8. Get traffic, then listen.
   When you start interviewing your first leads, their feedback will provide invaluable insights into how your site is performing. Tweak from there.

Questions