How to Create Unique CMS Pages J. Rockcliff Training Module 8
Table of Contents Your Expertise + Boston Logic = Agent Success
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Introduction Three Key Types of CMS Pages Don’t Forget the Metadata! Best Practices for Adding Images
Introduction The Boston Logic Platform gives you the tools to create pages for our website. The platform has a built-in Content Management System, or CMS. This training module will focus on how you can use the CMS to create and manage digital content on our site. What you’ll learn: ● The difference between a CMS page and a search page ● How to create a CMS page and a search page ● Why you need to add metadata ● Best practices for adding images
Why is this important? Unique, well-written content can help our site rank higher in search results and help us get found by prospective clients easier.
CMS Pages info@bostonlogic.com / www.bostonlogic.com
How to Create a CMS Page Let’s look at the nuts and bolts of creating a CMS page. Log in to your account on our website. Go to the Dashboard. Hover over Content and select: Pages
On the Pages screen, you’ll notice two orange buttons: Create CMS Page and Create Landing Page. Select: Create CMS Page
On the screen that opens, you’ll see this. This is where you’ll start adding content, from the name of the page to body content.
Why is this important? Let’s take a minute to focus on the importance of creating high-quality content on our website. Real Estate Happens Online Real estate transactions are increasingly driven by technology. Online interactions often happen long before face-toface contact between agent and customer. Neglecting the digital side of your business can damage that allimportant lead pipeline.
Your Customers Need Information Only You Can Provide According to recent NAR data, 52% of all homebuyers said that finding the right property was the hardest step in the homebuying process. And 44% of all homebuyers found neighborhood information “very useful.” That’s where you and high-quality content come in. In today’s digital age, homebuyers are looking for this information online. And you are the expert who can provide it.
Create Content That Meets Your Customers’ Needs CMS content is not the same as as a property listing. It’s an opportunity to provide information your customers need. As a real estate agent, you are the person who knows your customers the best. Who are they? First-time home buyers? Empty nesters who want to downsize? Luxury home buyers or second home buyers? Every customer segment will have different needs, priorities, and homebuying preferences.
Customer Need Example 1 First-time homebuyers will need to save for a downpayment and apply for a mortgage. They need to know about all the steps in the homebuying process. You could create a first-time homebuyers’ guide. Customer Need Example 2 Empty nesters have to answer the big question of where to downsize. You could create a real estate downsizing guide.
Focus on providing high-quality content your customers will want and will use. When content marketers say content is king, it’s because relevant, engaging, and informative content will drive traffic to your website and generate leads. Want to learn more? Check out this Boston Logic blog post, How to Make Your Website Reign S upreme With Killer Content.
Now that you’re inspired to create killer content, let’s get back the nuts and bolts of creating a CMS page. You’ll start by filling out CMS Info.
Here is where you will enter: Name This name is visible to back-end users only. Use a name that is clear and short. Like for a homebuying guide use: Homebuying Guide. Path The path determines the page’s url. Do not enter the full url here. Start with a forward slash, “/”, followed by text after it. Do not use spaces or special characters. Use lowercase words separated by hyphens. An “About Our Agents” page, for example, would be like this: /about-our-agents
The next section you’ll fill out is Page Content. Page Header What you put here will be visible to your customers. Good page headers increase traffic and improve search results. Make yours clear and useful. For example, a first-time homebuyers guide might be called “First-Time Homebuyers Survival Guide.”
After the Page Header, you will see a section called Body Content. This section gives you a text editor. The toolbar across the top allows you to input, paste, and format text. You can also add images and external links.
Let’s take a quick look at the toolbar. You can input content directly into the text editor box here.
Use the editing tools across the top to format your text.
Formatting you’ll use often include: Bold This allows you to boldface text. Link This allow you to add an external link. Flush Left and Center This lets you place text flush left or in the center of the page.
The best way to learn how to use the text editing box is to create a test page and just start adding content. You can always delete the page afterward. Just select the Cancel button in the top right corner of the page.
Search Pages
info@bostonlogic.com / www.bostonlogic.com
How to Create a Search Page What’s the difference between a CMS page and a search page? A CMS page generally displays content that you or another back-end user creates. A search page shows property listings based on search criteria you select when you create the search page. The criteria includes a location, like a town, and search parameters like price range.
You can create a search page to display properties for sale or sold listings. To create a search page, go to the Dashboard. Hover over Content and select: Search Pages
A new screen will open. Select: New Search Page
A new screen will open. Look at the area below highlighted in the blue box. By default, search pages are “attached� to a CMS page. You can attach a search page to an existing CMS page. Or you can create a new CMS page to which the search page will be attached.
To attach a search page to an already-created CMS page, select the arrow to find the CMS page in the drop-down menu. The list will appear in alphabetical order. Select the page you want.
Fill out the fields to set the search parameters. Start with your location. When you begin typing, the platform will autocomplete what you enter. Be sure to enter just ONE location.
Then complete the Type section by checking off the boxes. It’s best practice to choose just ONE type so that you target the properties your customers are looking for. To show residential properties, for example, choose: Residential
Next complete the Status section. Use the slider to see the complete list. To display properties for sale, check: Active To display sold properties, check: Sold and Pending
Next you can set parameters for price range, number of bedrooms, and number of bathrooms. However, to return the most robust results, leave these areas blank.
Next you can set search parameters that return results that can help you increase leads. Zip Code Enter one or more zip codes to show listings in the zip codes where you work most frequently.
Open House Create search pages that show open houses.
Another best practice for a search page is to display exclusive properties. What a great way to showcase our exclusive listings!
Remember that you need to create a CMS page BEFORE you can create a search page. If you haven’t already created that CMS page, here’s how to do it. From the Dashboard, hover over Content and select: Search Pages
A new screen will open. Select: New Search Page
On the next screen that opens, select: Create a New Page
When you select “Create a New Page,” you’ll see the same CMS page you learned about earlier in this module. But you won’t have to fill out all the sections to create a search page.
First you’ll give the page a name and a path. Remember the Name here will be visible on the back end only. Best Practice For a homes for sale search page, use these naming conventions: Name: Path: Search: Homes for Sale: [Location] /[location]-[ST]-homes-forsale
Best Practice For a search page showing sold listings, use these naming conventions: Name: Path: Search: Sold Listings: [Location] /[location]-[st]-soldlistings
Why is this important? Using consistent naming conventions for Name and Path will help you find search pages much easier when you are logged into the back end of our site. That saves us time and effort!
The next section you’ll need to fill out is the Page Header. Best Practice For a homes for sale search, use this naming convention: Page Header: Homes for Sale in [Location], [ST]
To create the CMS page, select the green button. That will automatically open a new search page that you can fill out according to the previous instructions in this module.
Metadata info@bostonlogic.com / www.bostonlogic.com
What Is Metadata? Here’s a basic definition of metadata.
Metadata is a set of data that describes and gives information about other data. Well, what does THAT mean? And why does it matter? Let’s break it down!
Metadata Drives SEO Metadata drives search engine optimization (SEO). Without metadata, your customers can’t find you on search engines like Google. Metadata helps bring customers to your website so they can look at your listings and become leads. Metadata appears in SERPs for each page of our website. Metadata is the title and snippet of text that appears in the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) for each page on a website.
Metadata in Google Search Results You see metadata when you search on Google. Here’s what it looks like for Boston Logic.
Where Metadata Lives on Our Website In the back end of our website, the Metadata fields exist at the bottom of each CMS page. Why is this important? Metadata helps improve your site’s Google rankings. In brief, metadata is essential for our customers to find us online.
How to Fill Out Metadata You’ll see a section for metadata at the bottom of CMS pages. It looks like this.
Be sure to fill out these fields: ● Page Title ● Description
Page title best practice The Page Title should always include the name of our brokerage. Keep to a maximum character count of 60, including spaces. Follow this naming convention: [Name of Page] | J. Rockcliff Realtors Examples: Natalie Bianco, Realtor Associate | J. Rockcliff Realtors Browse Homes for Sale in Walnut Creek, CA | J. Rockcliff Realtors
Description best practice The Description should be clear and informative. Avoid abbreviations, special characters, and exclamation points. Keep to a maximum character count of 250, including spaces. Examples: Explore all single family, multi-family, condos, townhouses and other residential properties currently on the market in [Location], [ST]. Get insights into the [Location] real estate market from the local experts at J. Rockcliff Realtors. View market trends and recently listed and sold real estate in Alamo, CA.
Should Search Pages Have Metadata? The answer is YES. It’s best practice to have relevant metadata on every page, including search pages, to help Google understand the pages better—and return them in search results! Focus on the following elements: Page Title, Page url, and Page Header (also called the H1 head). That’s the lowest-hanging fruit that will give you the best SEO results!
Need More Help with Metadata? Check out our User Guide article on how to optimize metadata.
Best Practices for Images info@bostonlogic.com / www.bostonlogic.com
How to Optimize Your Images Size does matter when it comes to images on our website. So does image resolution. Follow these best practices when you add images to our website. Image resolution Ideal screen image resolution (the detail an image holds) should be 72 pixels per inch. If an image is less than 72ppi, it will appear fuzzy or pixelated.
Image size Reduce the file size of your images. The Boston Logic Platform does not yet have automatic image compression. They recommend using Compressor.io. It’s free and easy to use. You can find it at https://compressor.io/compress. Why is this important? Google uses page load time as a ranking factor in their algorithm. Nearly 50% of consumers won’t wait even 3 seconds for an ecommerce site to load. Quick-loading images will help keep customers on our site.
How to Add Images Boston Logic has a handy help doc with step-by-step instructions for adding images to CMS pages. Check out Adding Images to a Page.
Sources for Low Cost Images Boston Logic recommends the following sources for low-cost, royalty-free images. Istockphoto.com
shutterstock.com
dreamstime.com
Boston Logic Help and Support Help and support are always there when you need it. â—? Boston Logic Help and Suppor t is the online help center. â—? Daily Training Schedule & Use r Guide is a searchable guide with step-by-step instructions for using the Boston Logic Platform.
If you need more help, you can always contact Boston Logic’s client success team by phone at 617-266-9166 Ext 2 or by emailing them at help@bostonlogic.com. Support is available Monday through Friday from 5 AM to 5 PM Pacific Standard Time (8 AM to 8 PM Eastern Standard Time).
info@bostonlogic.com / www.bostonlogic.com
Recap In this training, we covered: ● How to create CMS pages and search pages ● Why metadata is important for SEO rankings ● Best practices for adding images to our site
What’s Ahead In the next training, we’ll focus on how to create landing pages and dynamic forms. A landing page is a website page that allows you to capture a visitor's information through a form. Landing pages are important because they are used to generate leads.
J. Rockcliff Training Module 8