Here are the steps laid out to make it as easy as possible for you to start your own appraisal website.
My first appraisal website was built in 2018 and I had ZERO clue about what I was doing but I jumped in, made mistakes, and just kept learning a little bit at a time.
In March 2020, I began heavily researching the website/blogger world because I wanted to build a better appraisal website.
All the guros said the most important part was making sure you are on a self-hosted WordPress website.
I had no idea what this meant at the time, but if ALL the successful bloggers were saying that was so important, I figured I should listen. (Turns out this is very good advice.)
Then I watched a ton of Youtube and bought a course to learn about websites, SEO and blogging. This course was written by a college girl who paid her way through school with a blog. The course was very helpful and reasonably priced as compared to what’s out there.
In 2023, I bought another course to learn how to set up email automations, create digital products, and promote my appraisal business on social media. This course was super cheap to start and then had a four figure upsell which I bought. It was worth every penny for the support alone.
Now that I have been at this for a few years I am so grateful that I invested in the courses and spent the time to get my appraisal website and blog set up.
Because otherwise, I think our appraisal business would be suffering a great deal if I had not made those choices.
I am happy to show you the basics of what I learned and has worked for me so far!
#1 – Choose a host for your appraisal website
You need to pick a host to get your appraisal website viewable to the public. Basically, it takes care of all the “background” information.
There are many hosts on the market, but I use Bluehost because it’s a basic set up, easy to use, and perfect for brand new websites.
Also, their customer service is amazing. I’ll message them at all hours of the day and they always respond so quickly with ways to help me.
When just starting you really only need the $2.95 a month option but the $5.45 gives you much more if you want to spend the two dollars more. Either of them will work great!
#2 – Choose an appraisal website name/domain
I got my domain from Bluehost. It was super simple and their website walks you through it.
Be sure to choose a domain that relates to your business.
I have learned that it’s best to use a .com domain (instead of .co, .net, .life, etc)
Avoid using your personal name if you think you may want to transfer or sell your business one day.
#3 – Connect to WordPress and choose a Theme
There are tons of themes and it can seem overwhelming.
The Sinatra theme is the one I use for our appraisal website. It’s free and easy to navigate once you get the hang of it.
Plan on spending some time just playing with the site to learn how it works.
It’s basically like most software – the more you use it, the easier it becomes to navigate.
Pro Tips for a Unique Appraisal Website
When creating your appraisal website it’s a good idea to look at the websites of the local “competition” websites for inspiration.
DO NOT COPY their sites.
Create an appraisal website that is unique to you if you want to stand out from the crowd.
People hire people. They are looking at your site to decide WHY they want to work with you.
So be sure the include information in your website that lets a potential customer know who you are both personally and professionally.
Also, show them WHO you serve and HOW you can serve them.
Start off with just this info ^ on your home page + a contact us page. Then slowly build your appraisal website over time.
Don’t Wait to Go Live with Your New Appraisal Website
Go Live right away.
Do Not Wait until your appraisal website is perfect. Because it will never be perfect. Just accept it.
Google needs time to see your site and figure out who to show it to. No one will see your website at first (unless you send them the link).
It takes time to pick up traffic.
Each week, add something new or different. Your new appraisal website will be a constant work in progress.
Keep it simple and easy to navigate.
Automations
Once you have your basic appraisal website up and running you will want to add automations to build an email list.
Offer something of value in exchange for an email address. (a checklist, market stats, etc)
Then you will send a monthly email with helpful info, stats, faq’s, blog posts.
Never, ever send an email looking to sell your services. That’s spammy and people will be turned off.
People will only open your email if there is something in it for them.
I promise you that your first email will not be very good. Just send it anyway.
I also promise you that each email will be better 🙂
Blog
If you decide to add a blog to your appraisal website here are a few tips you should know:
Be consistent. Google loves consistency. Decide how often you will post and stick to it.
Write several posts at once during a dead week and the schedule them to go out in the future.
Pay attention to the questions your clients are asking – then write a blog post about it.
Use the free version of All in One SEO or Yoast to help write posts that will be found by Google.
Helpful Tools / Plug-Ins
Jotform: for Clients to place an order. Form-filler that automatically sends a copy to me and to the client. This is a good alternative if you don’t use Anow.
Trust Index: syncs Google reviews to my website and provides an official banner
Systeme.io: this is where I build my email list – super important for monthly emails
Canva: this is how I add my company name/logo to graphs and photos.
Keyword Surfer: search for keywords (free)
Google Trends: another way to search keywords (free)
OneUp: how I schedule updates to Google Business Profile and LinkedIn
Perfecting Blogging: The course I took to to learn about websites, SEO and blogging.
Legendary: The course I took to learn social media and email marketing
How to drive people to your appraisal website:
You can use social media or Google Business Profile.
I use both.
Sign up here for your Google Business Profile.
GBP is free and you can link it to your website.
Once you have GBP set up be sure to update it daily. This is really important.
Updating GBP daily helps Google connect people to you.
Always add a quick caption with keywords
Update ideas:
- Clear, bright photos of houses
- Floor plan / sketches
- Interior photos of houses (I never use the photos from my client’s homes)
- Photo from my blog post with a link to the blog post
- Market stats graphs
- Review image
Scheduling Updates
I like to sit down once a week to schedule a bunch of updates in advance otherwise I will forget to do this daily.
Again, it’s about being consistent – Google loves consistency
And it’s about sharing something helpful. Not selling your service. Especially on social media. No one goes to social media to get sold to. They go there to be entertained, inspired or educated.
OneUp: this is how I schedule my updates. OneUp has a free version and a paid version.
The free version limits you to scheduling on 1 social media account /6 updates.
I like the paid version ($6/month) because then I can schedule a bunch of posts and it allows up to 3 social media accounts so I use it for Google Business and LinkedIn.
The majority of our private work comes through Google and then LinkedIn. I wouldn’t worry about Facebook or Instagram until you have a handle on everything I just mentioned above.
Have fun!!
The links in this guide will take you to the exact methods I use and love. If you take action (ie: make a purchase) after clicking a link I’ll earn some coffee money….which I promise to drink while continuing to support your journey 🙂 You do not pay a higher price.