Web Site Strategies For Construction and Real Estate Companies

I just received a press release from a company announcing the launch of their new corporate web site.  The release was filled with all sorts of jargon with a link to the new site, but getting to the meat and potatoes of the site was not so simple.  Its flash feature took forever to process and I eventually lost my patience.  It wasn't worth the wait.  Here's my advice to construction and real estate companies when it comes to web site design:

Avoid flash.  Flash features do more to annoy prospects than win them over.  It's like using the phone and being placed on hold.  Nobody likes to wait.  Show me a website that takes too long to navigate and I'll show you a company that loses more clients than it should.   

Avoid jargon and communicate clearly.  Simple messages stating what you do and why you should be hired work best.

Make it easy to navigate and don't bury your contact information.  Make it easy for clients to contact you and you'll win new jobs.  Make it difficult and see good prospects disappear. 

Provide useful information.   Clients want to know what you can do for them.  Companies that understand this concept tend to do better at marketing and recruiting than companies that don't.

Add a blog to your web site.  Blogging kills two birds with one stone.  It helps construction and real estate companies appear higher on the search engines and it's an easy place to provide information for clients you want to reach. 

Attracting clients and winning new jobs does not have to be complicated.   It's about letting them know you exist, communicating what you can do for them, and then making it easy for them to contact you.  Keep it simple and improve your chances at being successful.