Most real estate investors don't understand the importance and relevance of blogs in the real estate business. Speaking from my own experience, it took me a long time to figure it out myself.

It wasn't until late 2012 that a friend introduced me to the Smart Passive Income Blog by Pat Flynn. After spending a few days reading through Pat's blog, everything made sense. Pat had a writing style that was thorough and easy to follow. Also, he gave away a CRAZY amount of value-packed content for FREE! We're talking about stuff that I would have gladly paid money for.

Most importantly, it also made me realize the value of a blog.

RELATED: Real Estate SEO Guide

Why Do Blogs Matter?

A blog isn't a prerequisite to succeed in real estate. Generally speaking, it has very little to do with making money from real estate deals. However, you may want to consider building a blog for your business for a few reasons. A blog:

1. Draws a ton of new traffic to your website.

Regardless of what your existing (or yet-to-be-created) website was designed to do, a blog can draw in many new visitors—visitors you'd otherwise never get. If you take your blog seriously, you could get a lot of new eyeballs to your website. And it doesn't matter whether it's a standalone website like this one or a separate section of a larger website.

Search engines love blogs, especially blogs with great content. At the time of this writing, more than half of all the traffic that comes into the REtipster blog (that's several thousand hits per month) are hits from search engines. Why?

Because people are looking for answers.

If you invest a lot of time and effort into creating content that provides legitimate answers for people, they will eventually find their way to your website in droves. And much of their ability to do so is thanks to search engines like Google and Bing.

2. Creates a new stream of income for your business.

Adding a new income stream to your business is possible with a real estate blog—even if it's not your biggest concern. That said, let me warn you that creating and maintaining a blog may take:

• A lot of time
• Mental energy
• Good content
• Relentless promotion

Plenty of bloggers have made some serious coin from their blogs, but it doesn't happen overnight. It also doesn't happen without a lot of patience, persistence, and work. This shouldn't surprise anybody; most of us know how much work it can take to make money in real estate.

But just in case you weren't aware, I wanted to reiterate this little piece of reality. The money is there if you're willing to pursue it.

3. Builds your credibility as a real estate professional.

Blogs are funny—anyone can start one in a matter of minutes for virtually no investment. But readers regard a well-designed, professional blog with a good logo and solid content as an expert on a subject. Bloggers can build a lot of trust and respect for themselves—a priceless asset—and this only comes from the helpful content they contribute to their sphere of influence.

If you want people to view YOU as an expert, a blog is a fantastic way to get there (assuming you know what you're talking about). This kind of credibility can go a long way in any business endeavor. The beauty of a blog is that it's a platform that you own and control and that you can turn into an amazing resource for people.

If you need more credibility in the realm of real estate that you're working in, I can't say enough about how instrumental a blog can be for this purpose.

Building a Blog Is Easy!

I realize this is easy to say; after all, I've been blogging for a while now. But if you don't believe me, I'm about to prove it to you! Give me 10 minutes, and I'll show you exactly how to get your first blog up and running step-by-step with Bluehost.

For a quick refresher on how to get your website online (starting from square one), this short video will show you how to:

1. Register your domain;
2. Set up your hosting;
3. Finally, install WordPress (your blogging platform).

If all of this sounds foreign—don't worry. Just follow the directions in this video:

Once your website is online, you can build a blog in just a few minutes by following the steps in this video:

Note: Some links in this blog post are affiliate links. At no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you purchase these particular tools or services. I recommend these resources because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions I will make if you decide to buy something. Please do not spend money on these products unless you feel they will help you achieve your goals.

StudioPress has also provided many free video tutorials and a seriously detailed manual that will guide you through the entire process. This will be particularly helpful to those who are completely new to WordPress.

Getting the Right Plugins

To get your blog fully functional with the Genesis Framework, you’ll have to install a few plugins with your blog. Don't worry; they're all free.

• Genesis – eNews Extended Widget
• Simple Social Icons Widget
• Recent Posts Widget

There are thousands of plugins available to download in WordPress, but the Genesis Demo used these.

Genesis Is Responsive!

This is one of the coolest features of this particular theme.

“Responsive” means this theme will show up correctly whether your visitors are using a desktop or a mobile device. In this day and age, this is a HUGE benefit for people with websites. More and more people are doing the bulk of their internet browsing on mobile devices (smartphones and tablets). When using a responsive theme, your website will display dynamically in the best possible format regardless of the device they use to access it.

Resources for Bloggers

I'll be totally honest—blogging isn't for everyone. Some people have no business building and managing a blog because they just don't care enough, or they're not gifted in this area. Or both.

I spent many years thinking that blogging was a total waste of time, but I had no idea how much I would enjoy blogging until I tried it. Building a successful blog doesn't materialize overnight. Over the long haul, though, I've found it extremely rewarding financially and professionally.

If you want to dig into this, let me share some of the resources I've found particularly helpful during my blogging journey.

• Smart Passive Income Blog – This is the original blog that piqued my interest in blogging. Pat Flynn has become one of the most well-known names in the world of blogging; it's not hard to understand why). He brings a lot of original ideas to the table with proof to back up his methods.
• Fizzle.co and the Fizzle Show Podcast – These guys have one of the most entertaining and inspiring podcasts I've ever heard. If you're serious about building a business around your blog, there is an ocean of knowledge and wisdom buried in every podcast episode these guys publish. Seriously, check it out sometime.
• Social Triggers – Derek Halpern shares some remarkably insightful (and entertaining) ideas on how to save time, reach more people, get noticed, and build a blog that converts. I think you'll find it quite useful.
• ProBlogger – Darren Rowse has been in this business for a while now and his wisdom is quite evident. His blog contains a massive library of useful ideas, tips, and tools for building and maintaining a successful blog. Check him out.

Related Reading

All kinds of websites can serve your business in many different capacities. If you need detailed instructions on how to build a different type of site, you can check out these other dedicated video tutorials right here on the REtipster Blog:

• Creating a real estate website
• Designing a selling website and a buying website
  
• How to create a squeeze page

Do You Need a Blog?

A blog won't solve all your problems. On the other hand, if you want to generate a lot of extra traffic for your website (which can allow you to build up significant credibility, do more business and make more sales), a real estate blog is one of the best ways I know to do it.

You can certainly live without a blog (I did for years), but I think it's less a question of “Can I live without it?” and more a question of “What am I missing out on without it?”

Trust me—this is an extremely helpful tool to have at your disposal. I'm promoting these tools here on MY blog because I know a blog can be an exceptionally useful resource for your business. It has been for mine!

BONUS: Seth's Traffic Toolkit

Since I'm a referral partner for Bluehost and StudioPress (i.e., I make a few bucks when you purchase either of these links), I wanted to give you a little bonus if you decide to use either of these services.

I took some time to write a detailed report explaining how I've managed to generate a lot of quality traffic for my various websites (about several thousand unique visitors per month). I'd like to show you exactly how to generate this kind of traffic for your website…

If you purchase through any of the referral links above, simply forward your receipt to me at REtipsterBonus@gmail.com. Within 24 hours (pending anything crazy), I'll send you a link that you can use to download a copy of this guide.

There is no extra charge for this report—I just want to make it available as a special “THANK YOU” for those helping keep the REtipster Blog afloat.