Property Ad Guru on Property Owl

In a recent blog post, Inman News marketing manager Katie Lance pointed to nestrealtygroup.com as one of her favourite websites. Always on the lookout for good examples, we decided to look into what’s working for nestrealtygroup.com, with the aim of giving you some inspiration.

What’s immediately obvious when you open nestrealty.com is its emphasis on place rather than real estate agents. After a few seconds scrolling over the “Charlottesville area guides” links, users already have a sense of what the city is like.

Out-of-town house hunters can then follow the “life in Charlottesville” link to find out more about what the city has to offer. With a simple mix of photos, video, and well-written copy, nestrealtygroup.com does a great job of communicating Charlottesville and positioning themselves as the local experts.

The website’s blog only adds to the sense that Nest Realty know their area, promising information on “all of the great things Charlottesville, Albemarle County, and Central Virginia have to offer.” It seems they’ve also taken a leaf from clarkcountryrealestateguide.com with their own “365 things to do” series. These posts are interspersed with market information, reinforcing the brokerage’s authority on the area.

Of course, the website also offers a listing search that invites users to “search for your nest”. House hunters who know what they want can search either by criteria or via the map, while those looking for more inspiration can scroll down to find out more about popular neighbourhoods, where they also see featured listings. Nothing too fancy here, and nothing that will overwhelm users.

There are two more things this website does well throughout: colour scheme and fonts. These might sound like afterthoughts, but it’s clear a lot of effort has gone into choosing the muted tones and classical typeface nestrealty.com uses. The result is a relaxing user experience.

Remember, you don’t have to have a huge budget, or be the winner of Inman’s most innovative brokerage award, to put these principles into practice on your own website. The nestrealtygroup.com formula boils down to:

- An emphasis on place,
- Proof they know their area,
- Simplicity in design and search.

Of course, we’re keen to hear your take on nestrealtygroup.com, along with any other agent websites you think are working well.

If you’re in need of more inspiration for your own website, check out more of our articles here.