Individual banner advertising for an agent is just about cost prohibitive on the Web, but there is a viable alternative that makes a lot of sense. How about being included as part of a banner ad with a group of top agents known as NUMBER1EXPERTS?

As a NUMBER1EXPERT, you will be advertised as part of a unique directory of top agents. Best Image Marketing offers a Web site design and lead capture program which includes online banner ad marketing in the top search engines such as Yahoo!, AltaVista, Snap, GoTo, as well as on mortgage site iOwn.com. They submit your listings, each with its own domain name to Yahoo! Real Estate, iOwn.com mortgage center, Snap.com, and Homes.com. The company says that deals are also pending with other large listing services.

The lead capture tool on NUMBER1EXPERT.com is the "Ask the Experts," in which online consumers are invited to ask questions to home buying and selling local experts. The Experts who live in their area are invited to respond. Answers are forwarded to the consumer instantly by the Expert who can then initiate further dialog and capture the lead into a sale.

NUMBER1EXPERT.com allows buyers and sellers to anonymously go in and ask for free advice from a highly experienced Realtor in any community. They can view the personal Web sites of those agents with complete information about communities, mortgages, and schools.

To participate, you must buy a Best Image Web site, which is routinely submitted to search engines through a custom submission to each one. They host the site, market and promote it with search engine positioning and advertising on many high-traffic real estate web sites.

The consumer has an interactive experience with the agents. A particularly popular lead capture tool is a Hot Homes form that appears on all the agents' Web sites which asks visitors for more information. Questions such as "Are you relocating?" are designed to qualify the lead for the agent.

Anytime the agent gets a new listing, or sees a cool listing from somewhere else which may meet the buyer's criteria, s/he can email all the people on that page and use the listing like a instant online newsletter.

The company serves over 800 agents. They only cater to top agents in their areas, often no more than one or two per area. In large cities, where they can handle more, they will sign up multiple agents, but limit the number according to the population. That way, the company says that consumers can find the top Realtor in any community.

The costs for a Web site are between $2,000 to $4,000 depending on which package of services the agent selects, and there is also a $49 to $75 a month service fee. Renewal fees are much less - $1,185 a year, and the company boasts over a 90% percent renewal rate.

Published: June 15, 2000

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Blanche is a renowned author of five real estate books. Her newest, Bubbles, Booms and Busts: Make Money In Any Real Estate Market, McGraw-Hill, was rave-reviewed by The New York Times. She was also selected from hundreds of real estate experts to contribute to Donald Trump's book, Trump: The Best Real Estate Advice I Ever Received: 100 Top Experts Share Their Strategies, Rutledge Hill Press, and is featured on page 68. Order Now Review - Honors In 2006, Blanche was selected among scores of candidates to author two consumer real estate guidebooks for the National Association of Realtors: The NAR Guide to Home Buying, and The NAR Guide to Home Selling, Wiley & Sons. She is currently planning two new books for the NAR and its members.       Known for her keen insight into real estate industry issues and for her ability to make complex subjects easy to understand, Blanche is a sought-after keynote and continuing education speaker. Real estate organizations from MLSs, to brokerages, to franchisors, to associations hire her to provide up-to-the-minute analysis of real estate industry news and advice on how to improve revenues. Her passionate delivery, peppered with stinging wit, is a huge hit with audiences and fans. Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors, Blanche Evans, Richard Courtney, president 2007, GRAR "The GNAR membership meeting last week featured Blanche Evans as the keynote speaker. Her comments and insights resonated extremely well with those in attendance and we have had many requests for copies of her PowerPoint Presentation. She was a terrific part of the membership meeting and convention program!" - Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors Coverage from WSMV, Nashville - 8-14-2007 That Interview Guy - Get Inside The Head Of Today's Generation 2007 AE Institute Session - To purchase 2006 AE Institute Session - Parts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 HouseValues Mastermind call - Parts 1 2 Blanche's fireside chat with Jeremy Conaway, HAR - Click here. For more articles by Blanche, click here.