How RicketyRoo Achieved Explosive Organic Growth and a 122% Increase in Conversions for a Home Builder
“We discovered RicketyRoo and after our first meeting it was apparent that we had found a ‘cheat code’ to counter our competitors.”
Strategic SEO Improvements for New Era Homes
New Era Homes has designed and constructed semi-custom homes in Central Oregon since 2010. Despite their established reputation in the region, they struggled to get found online and convert visitors into leads. In January 2020, they partnered with RicketyRoo to improve their SEO performance and increase user engagement.
The Home Builder Challenge
Improving Visibility and Conversions
The community in Bend, Oregon—New Era Homes’ home base—has highly regarded the builder for years. However, expanding their reach beyond Bend and into the rest of Central Oregon was crucial for long-term success.
Moreover, like any business, New Era Homes thrives on a steady stream of new leads. RicketyRoo couldn’t just worry about getting people on the site; they needed to induce conversions with a full-funnel strategy.
“We were finding it very difficult to maintain a 1st page presence in web searches. Our competitors were continually increasing their spend on ads and committing more resources to SEO than we could afford.”
A New Era in Organic Performance + Conversions
Solving the Challenge with a Full-Funnel SEO Strategy
Customized SEO & Content Strategy
With a targeted topic cluster approach for top-of-the-funnel, informational content, RicketyRoo massively expanded New Era Homes’ keyword profile, leading to rankings that have exploded organic traffic and earned valuable backlinks.
RicketyRoo also created and optimized new floorplan pages for users in the middle and bottom of the funnel, ensuring a seamless experience as they move closer to conversion.
Conversion Rate Optimization Using Microsoft Clarity
Recognizing that traffic alone is never enough, RicketyRoo utilized UX data from Microsoft Clarity to investigate how real users interacted with the New Era Homes website. RicketyRoo utilized session recordings, heatmaps, and detailed user metrics to uncover critical user insights.
Continuous Monitoring and Iterative Improvements
RicketyRoo’s strategy involves ongoing enhancements to this day. Fine-tuning site speed, addressing dead clicks, and experimenting with different page layouts continues to promote the highest possible user experience and satisfaction—which all serve to boost New Era Homes’ organic engagement.
“I’m busy running a business and frankly don’t have the time to become an expert at SEO. With the personalized updates, I receive a summary of what happened during the month and an outline for future projects. This type of communication tells me they are on top of their game and gives me the comfort to know my business is important to them.”
Results Through the Roof
Organic Traffic Growth
With estimated organic traffic at around 370 users in January 2020, results have since skyrocketed.
In July of 2024, New Era Homes had at least 4,700 organic visitors. That’s an 11x increase from when New Era Homes started with RicketyRoo.
More recently, comparing the periods of January through June of 2023 to January through June of 2024, clicks from organic search are up 117%.
Conversion Rate Increase
After implementing Clarity-driven UX/UI improvements, conversions increased by 122%. By June 2024, New Era Homes consistently generated more form submissions and phone calls than ever before. RicketyRoo’s efforts not only attracted visitors but effectively converted them into leads.
Rise in Referring Domains
RicketyRoo also increased New Era Homes’ referring domains by 300%. Through a targeted content strategy that attracts links and effective outreach, New Era Homes’ referring domains rose from 200 in January 2020 to 500 in July 2024.
A Blueprint for Home Building Success
RicketyRoo’s holistic, full-funnel approach has helped New Era Homes establish itself as one of Central Oregon’s leading semi-custom home builders. From technical SEO and incisive content strategy to targeted CRO and UX improvements, RicketyRoo takes in the whole picture to help its clients achieve long-term success.
With more leads flowing than ever before, it truly is a New Era for Central Oregon’s favorite home builder.
“It is hard to measure the full impact of what RicketyRoo has meant to our business. It has been significant enough that we have stopped all advertising and increased our budget with RicketyRoo.”