Over on the Diverse Solutions Community Forum Michael Reilly asked:
We just launched a brand new site at www.cedarparkhomelistings.com. We are driving traffic to this site using google PPC ads so I want to make sure I’m getting the most leads for the $. Does anyone have any thoughts on the best settings for forced registration? I had the registration options set at 10 searches and 4 detailed views but we only got two registrations out of 50+ unique visitors yesterday. I’m curious if anyone out there has done any serious testing on this?
My response:
First and foremost, test everything.
Test forced vs. non-forced registration. Don’t test day-by-day as I don’t think there’s enough data there. Instead, test traffic over a period of a couple of weeks. How much traffic did your Home Search page get? Then, how much of that traffic resulted in a conversion (a registration)?
What number should I set it to?
I’d start by looking at the competition. What are their registration numbers set to? Maybe you can match that number. Then, after a few weeks of analytics, you can set your registration settings higher or lower. Again, collect some data for a few weeks.
Once it’s all set and done, you have enough data to determine which type of settings convert best.
Ultimately, if you don’t test things, how do you know which method works best?
What about you? What are your registration settings set to? What works for you?
wow, I’d be really happy if I got 2 registrations for every 50 unique visitors … I’m nowhere near that number! I wonder what I could do differently?
Always be testing. Did you try lowering your registration numbers? Anything change from that?
Parking here. Great topic. I don’t know my stats off hand, but I think I have my settings at 5 and 3 so I’m much tighter. I’ve found that craigslist ads that point back to the direct link of each listing is a great and free way to get more visitors. I use adwords too, but only spend abbot $50/mo.
Hey Steph,
When you use the Craigslist ads to point to a direct link, you can force the registration form to pop-up. Just add /#ShowRegister to the end of the link url and it’ll force the registration form on that page.
You don’t need to edit any settings within your Control Panel.
My registration allows 3 searches and 4 property views before forcing registration. But after extensive testing, I find that the best results from my Craigslist ads comes by pointing them to a separate landing page instead of directly to my IDX. My best landing page averages one registration for every 7.5 unique visitors to the landing page.
Hey Jim,
Mind sharing an example of the landing page you’re referring to? Or are you linking directly to a details page?
http://land.ctrehome.org is the landing page that works best for me. There are two choices, fill out the form or leave!
If they register, they are in my AgentReach database but without IDX user privilege. I have their name and contact info. They are immediately transferred to a page that gives them access to a RSS feed for the search that I am advertising, in this case, homes with lots of at least 1/2 acre.
I use the RSS feed because it immediately gives them what I promised in the ad but still leaves me a carrot for the end of my stick. I get an immediate notice from AgentReach, I then call them with an offer to meet and set up privileges that will allow them full access to the IDX.
If I do not set an appointment, I may manually set up a search based upon what I was advertising and set it to email weekly updates. They are added to my drip campaign and I also follow up with personal emails and phone calls.
I track using Google Analytics. That way I know which Craigslist ads are producing the most registrations. Sometimes the ads that produce the most hits are not the ads that produce the most registrations! I use Google’s tools to do A/B testing to optimize the landing page. Simple landing pages with NO LINKS work better than pages that offer a ton of different choices. I keep the pages short so everything is above the “fold” on most monitors. My most productive landing pages offer only one choice — fill out the form or leave!
My next step is to improve my “Congratulations” page so that it does a better job of pre-selling the benefits of meeting with me to gain full access to the dsSearch tool.
Jim. I love that landing page. I find it interesting that you use RSS – I find that most people don’t understand what RSS is. I’d imagine that a lot of people look at that Google Reader list once, but never see it again (because they never open their Readers). Do you find that happens?
I wonder is Reader views help you get indexed more often?
Hi Stephanie.
I believe that you are correct that most people don’t understand RSS. That is one reason that I use it as I do. I’ve been around long enough that I still remember the printed MLS book. Back in those days, anyone looking for a home would salivate just at the thought of getting to spend a few minutes with that book!When I run an ad, I promise, in exchange for the visitor’s contact information, immediate access to information about homes that meet a certain criteria . I have experimented with different ways to fulfill that promise (without giving away the farm so to speak). The RSS feed is a simple way for me to give the visitor something of value in exchange for the contact information they give me.I know from my statistics that the large majority of my site visitors are using either Internet Explorer or Firefox as their browser. With either of those browsers, the visitor will see a nicely formatted list of homes as soon as they click the link to the RSS feed. It updates automatically so, once I set it up, I never have to worry with it again.The RSS feed is simply a teaser – my hope is that they will see it, like it, and forget how they got to it. That way I still have an excellent incentive to entice them to meet me. If I simply give them access to my search engine without meeting with them, I am shooting myself in the foot. Why would I want to do that???In short, dsSearcAgent is one of the most powerful tools that I have. I do not want to waste it on “looky-lews” – I save it for serious prospects that are willing to talk with me.After having said all of that, if I have a lead that I cannot contact and who has not responded to my phone and email communication, my last shot is to set them up with a “Guest Account” on dsSearchAgent and send them automatic notifications once a week. I monitor the guest accounts. If I can see activity on the account, I put a push on to make contact with that prospect. If I still can’t speak with them, I send one last email letting them know that the “Guest Account” is expiring. Then I put them on long term maintenance newsletters and spend my time on more likely prospects.
How about if the agents in my area don’t force registrations at all? Would I be good to set myself apart by going with a diff IDX than everyone here and offering a forced reg or would that just be shooting myself in the foot?!
Alex, the goal is to get them to your site and convert them. You must have forced registration to do that IMHO. 9 out of 10 consumers won’t realize that they can go elsewhere and search for free.
Stephanie is right. Without registration you have nothing at all.