How many have a website?

[Bob Sully]

Bruce, I don't mean to be rude but your website is awful and looks like something built in the mid 90's. The music and sound effects are very amateurish and the entire site is one big flash movie. You do know search engine can't read the flash files right? If I landed on this page as a consumer I would immediately hit the "back" button. I could list 101 things wrong with this site but it just goes to show you what you can get away with in the appraisal industry.

The only reason you would have any rankings in Google is because there is very little competition that actually performs any online marketing. And just so you know, submitting your site to search engines does absolutely zero. Google uses very advanced metrics to determine website rankings, relying heavily on links from other sites and citation of your business name and information. If your business has been around for a long time, then you naturally have a lot more of these than your competition.

Here are a few reason people spend good money to have a professional site designed:

1) Proper usage of the latest technologies to be compatible with all devices/browsers. This includes making your site mobile friendly by using responsive design, HTML5 and responsive CSS code. Half the people visit my site do so on mobile or tablets.

2) Proper onsite SEO - crucial for ranking well.

3) Professional looking design that keeps visitors attention and gets them to complete an action such as filing out a quote or request form.

etc etc.

Your customers are becoming more and more sophisticated and these goofy looking template sites just aren't going to cut it.

 

[Bruce Marcom]

Oh you must one of those guys that charge insane amount of money to appraisers to market for them online. Of course your going to whine. You can make fun of my site if you want but it gets me results I want and it is only $10.00 a month. My business comes for 100% off my website. My post was for people that don't want to pay people like you thousands of dollars for internet marketing and still get business from it using less money.

Bruce, I don't mean to be rude but your website is awful and looks like something built in the mid 90's. The music and sound effects are very amateurish and the entire site is one big flash movie. You do know search engine can't read the flash files right? If I landed on this page as a consumer I would immediately hit the "back" button. I could list 101 things wrong with this site but it just goes to show you what you can get away with in the appraisal industry.

The only reason you would have any rankings in Google is because there is very little competition that actually performs any online marketing. And just so you know, submitting your site to search engines does absolutely zero. Google uses very advanced metrics to determine website rankings, relying heavily on links from other sites and citation of your business name and information. If your business has been around for a long time, then you naturally have a lot more of these than your competition.

Here are a few reason people spend good money to have a professional site designed:

1) Proper usage of the latest technologies to be compatible with all devices/browsers. This includes making your site mobile friendly by using responsive design, HTML5 and responsive CSS code. Half the people visit my site do so on mobile or tablets.

2) Proper onsite SEO - crucial for ranking well.

3) Professional looking design that keeps visitors attention and gets them to complete an action such as filing out a quote or request form.

etc etc.

Your customers are becoming more and more sophisticated and these goofy looking template sites just aren't going to cut it.

 

[Bob Sully]

Oh you must one of those guys that charge insane amount of money to appraisers to market for them online. Of course your going to whine. You can make fun of my site if you want but it gets me results I want and it is only $10.00 a month. My business comes for 100% off my website. My post was for people that don't want to pay people like you thousands of dollars for internet marketing and still get business from it using less money.

Well trust me, you are only getting that business because appraisers in Houston aren't marketing online so you have no competition. If I were in your market, or working with a company who was, no one would every see your website in a google search.

With that said, you'd be well advised to start working on updating your site and get a real marketing plan in place. Sites like yours have their days numbered as far as ranking well in search results - even with no competition. Google is quickly converting over to an algorithm that measures site metrics and user behavior while on site to determine rankings.

You may have been able to skate by with template sites and zero marketing, but in the near future you'll be clamoring to find a guy like me that knows how to really market online.

 

[SpartanAG]

Bob, those last couple of posts were awfully rude and condescending.

 

[Bob Sully]

Bob, those last couple of posts were awfully rude and condescending.

Well, when someone says something totally ignorant I'm going to correct them. When someone professes to others that they can get by with a shoddy little template site, I'm going to interject and strongly disagree. When someone claims they are ranked highly in Google because they "submit their site regularly to the search engines" I'm going to educate them in how the search engine really work.

I don't think appraisers need to spend thousands on design or SEO work, but to take the other extreme and say you shouldn't spend a dime is just very ignorant. The benefits far outweigh the cost if you work with a reputable firm.

If I showed his site to 10 people they would all say the same thing. "It's unappealing, the sounds are annoying, no call to action, no easy way to contact, contact information isn't prominently displayed, no online order form, etc etc."

I see no point in mincing words - I tell it like it is. Bruce would do wise to heed my advice. And here's another tip. Bruce, your site is only ranking for a few terms in the local map listings. Those do not show on many devices, especially mobile. That means you are missing out on 40-50% of the searches for your services.

 

[SpartanAG]

Bob, you really need to work on those people skills.

 

[Franco2]

Anyone here have a site from appraisersites.com? I am looking to build a good website but don't want to spend much. I'm just a 1 man operation with a goal of doing 20 appraisals per month.

 

[Rick Stillman]

Bob is right

I have to stick up for Bob. I have looked at Bruce's website, as well as Bob's. Bruce - your website is painful - I'm sorry. I would say you would be better off without one at all. Bob is not trying to insult anyone. Bob's site is clean, professional, and immediately engaging. In fact, for an appraiser, I'd say his website is the best I've ever seen, and I've seen hundreds, as I have studied them in designing and upgrading my own. I respect Bob for saying he is not going to mince words, and he doesn't. I personally like to hear criticism, as it is the only way I am going to improve. A pat on my back does me no good, except to make me feel good, and I'm not in business to get compliments and feel good, so please do me a favor, and do me no favors in your critique. If you can wrap yourself around that thought, you will improve - and isn't that the name of the game?

 

[Marty Boone]

Hey Bob, nice website.

I was checking out the sample appraisal on the site. Looks like it was completed by the owner, Mr. Smith. I Don't know the Austin market but I was surprised that buyers there don't value a half bath and they appear to value uncovered patios more than the covered kind. Must be a nice area $65 per sq.ft. adjustment, even for an 80 sq. ft. difference, high end neighborhood?

 

[Mile High Trout]

"Don't call me. I'll call you."

Works well for me. But I'm just a part timer lately.

One day may pick up another website, but for now it's all I can do to just keep up with the few select clients that I solicit with targeted sales.