As the world of business is becoming increasingly digital, it has become imperative for real estate businesses and professionals to establish and strengthen their online presence. The modern-day internet has become a diversified platform that allows users to access information instantly. These users consider Google and other search engines to be the primary source when gathering the required information to make a purchase. In such a scenario, improving visibility in search engines is a top priority for all sectors, including real estate.
For every real estate professional, the goal is to get more quality local leads that can convert to buyers. On-Page Search engine optimization can make this dream a reality. In a highly competitive market like Ottawa, On-Page SEO is one of the most effective digital marketing techniques to improve organic visibility among your target audience and stay ahead of competitors.
In this blog, we will discuss an example of an Ottawa-based real estate company that has seen a lot of success through the use of these On-Page SEO tactics.
Real Estate in Ottawa Search Query
Real estate is considered to be one of the most searched subjects on the internet. So, let us find out which player in the real estate industry is scoring well from the SEO perspective. For this example, we will search for “Homes for sale Ottawa”.
“Homes for sale Ottawa” has a monthly search volume of 8,100 and an SEO difficulty of approximately 21. The search volume refers to the average amount of times this search is conducted in Canada per month. The SEO difficulty refers to the difficulty for a business to rank highly for this specific search query. The SEO difficulty is ranked from 0 to 100, from the easiest to the hardest.
Thus, “Homes for sale Ottawa” is considered a relatively easy search query to rank for. That being said, to rank highly in the search results for a keyword like this is still very difficult and requires the right SEO tactics. If done properly, your business will be ranked on the first page of Google for a search query that is searched approximately 8,100 times per month.
Royal LePage
One of the top-ranking companies that appeared on the first page of the Google search engine results page (SERP) for the search query “Homes for sale Ottawa” is Royal LePage.
Ranking highly in search results takes a lot of effort and requires strategic On-Page SEO tactics such as keyword implementation, optimized meta tags and alt-text, and more. Let’s dig a little deeper to see how Royal LePage improved its visibility and managed to rank higher in search engines.
Meta Tags (Meta Title and Meta Description)
What Are Meta Tags (Meta Titles and Meta Descriptions)?
The meta title and description are sentences written by the business that describes the web page. This content is placed in the HTML of a web page and is used by search engines to display a web page’s title and description in the search rankings.
Now that we know what each of these terms means, let’s see what Royal Lepage did for each of them. To do this, we will analyze the character count and keywords used by this real estate listing company. We will also be listing the use of other related keywords since these also have an effect on the Google search rankings.
Royal LePage’s Meta Title
Full Meta Title: Ottawa, ON Real Estate – Homes For Sale in Ottawa, Ontario
Character count: 58
Keywords from the search query: Ottawa, Homes, For Sale
Other important keywords related to the search query: Ontario, Real Estate
Meta Title Thoughts and Tips
The title tag has been written with an optimal character count and proper usage of keywords. Apart from optimizing the content with keywords, the company has managed to add relevant information and the location of the homes for sale in the description. Additionally, by using the optimal amount of characters, the entire meta title is shown in the search results and includes as much content as possible.
Royal LePage’s Meta Description
Full Meta Description: Find Ottawa real estate listings and browse homes for sale at Royal LePage, Canada’s leading real estate brokerage.
Character count: 98
Keywords from the search query: Homes for sale, Ottawa real estate listings
Other important keywords related to the search query: Ottawa, Homes, Sale, Listings, Canada, Real Estate
Meta Description Thoughts and Tips
The optimal character count for a meta description is generally between 150 and 160 characters. Royal LePage has kept its character count well below this recommendation. Having such a short character count often makes it more difficult to express the optimal message for users. However, the message delivered through the description is direct and has been optimized with proper keywords. The content has also discussed the services they are providing without creating any confusion in the mind of the reader.
Headers
What are Headers?
The headers are the title and subheaders within your web page. Just like the meta tags, this content is included in your web pages’ HTML and used by search engines to rank your web page.
Royal LePage’s Header
Headers (H1, H2, H3, H4, H5): Very Good Overall
Header Thoughts and Tips
They have used the main header ‘Real Estate and Homes for Sale in Ottawa’ that attracts visitors and informs them that Royal LePage deals with properties in the area. Below the main header, the website has various secondary headers which help users browse the webpage effectively.
Image Alt Text
What is Image Alt Text?
Image alt text refers to the written content used to describe images in the web page’s HTML. Having alt text allows the search engine to better understand your web page and therefore, rank it more appropriately in the search rankings.
Royal LePage’s Images Alt Text
Images: Very good
Example:
Images Alt Text Thoughts and Tips
Royal LePage has made the smart move of putting the address of the home on the image alt text. This is an effective step as it brings in site traffic, consisting of people who are searching the same address. This has created a favorable impression for Google and hence, Royal LePage is ranking high in this search query.
Final Thoughts
In this competitive real estate market, it is imperative to work on your On-Page SEO to establish long-term authority in the market. If your business does not have prior experience in this, it’s easy to avail professional services to help in perfecting your SEO strategy.
