Setting up Website/everything else

[Jay Terpenning]

ok so I passed my test on the 30th and thought the hard part was over! I've been having a real hard time getting things set up and running, and finding/making a website that's not like every other realtors is driving me up the wall.

I was told to get one from this site http://www.proagentwebsites.com/ but I hate how busy and generic everything is. And I'm not paying $60 a month for something I hate!

Can anyone please give me some advice? I was think of setting things up myself with a Wordpress platform (I'm not tetchy, but I can figure it out) but I have no clue how idx and all that stuff works. :(

Thanks guys!

[Micki M.]

Great question, I went through the same thing last year as I prepped to go independent and launch my own company & site. The question I had to ask was, what purpose does my website serve? Realistically people are not going to find me through my website (my favorite client and SEO expert agrees) because "real estate agent Denver" is pretty generic. I connect with clients through my in person and online social networks, my website is a pretty place they can go to learn more about my approach to business and give me some legitimacy. As for IDX, once you're bigger and have more advertising dollars, it is definitely a tool for capturing leads, but you can do the same thing by buying zip codes, or interacting with leads on apps like realtor.com. Most of my clients start searching on redfin or Zillow, and then I get them set up on an autosearch through my MLS where I can monitor their activity.

I totally agree about the blandness of stock real estate sites (even the custom ones look the same IMHO). I've gotten compliments on my my free wordpress site for being different. Check it out and see what you think. www.33zenlane.com