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JohnRWood.com is the #1 Real Estate website in Florida
In real estate, winning companies offer winning Web sites. Find out what the judges saw in the top winners of the Florida Realtor® Magazine/Florida Real Estate Headlines contest that could help your company site be tops too.
1. www.johnrwood.com
With innovative tools and information for consumers and associates, John R. Wood Realtors® captured first place in Florida Realtor’s company Web site contest for the second year in a row and the fourth time in the contest’s history.
“We keep adding new features to our site, and we’re always trying to drive traffic there by promoting it in our marketing,” says Phil Wood, president of the Naples-based company. “It’s definitely meeting our company’s goals.”
For consumers, the site offers sophisticated tools for community, subdivision and home searches. In the past year, the company has added a copyrighted feature developed by its in-house team called “My HomeLook™ Account.” Consumers can create very specific searches, save their criteria and be notified of any new listings. “Buyers can search for communities or subdivisions in any area of Southwest Florida,” says Wood. “This tool gives them a summary of how many listings there are in each of those categories, and they can rate those listings using an icon. It’s like an expanded spreadsheet.”
Because of the importance of golf and country-club communities to the regional market, the John R. Wood site has a link on its opening page to www.teeupflorida.com, the company’s “Golf Guide” site. Consumers can search any country club and get detailed information on the course as well as club members. “Buyers can also search for clubs that meet specific criteria,” adds Wood. “It’s an important part of our service.”
Judges Randy Eagar, Dan Gooder Richard, Allen Hainge and Ira Serkes praised the site’s clear, uncluttered design, in-depth information and multiple search features. “It has excellent content, professionally displayed, with cascading menus for ease of use,” says Eagar. Richard liked the lead capture forms for buyers and sellers, as well as mapping capabilities included with the property search functions.
The John R. Wood site has also received high marks for its associate-oriented features, such as recruitment sections for both new and experienced associates. About 10 to 15 people a week are taking the company’s interactive real estate simulator test for potential associates, says Wood. “This simulator puts people into typical situations and asks them how they would respond,” he adds. “They get a score and a rating as to their likelihood of success in real estate. It helps them decide, and it helps us as well.”
John R. Wood associates can easily access the site to receive the latest market and company information as well as various sales and marketing tools. The company also uses its site as a model to create semi-customized sites for its associates that retain the overall John R. Wood design and features. “We know that our agents appreciate that functionality,” says Wood, “since the Web is such an important part of everyone’s business today.”
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