By Ralph Roberts

RISMEDIA, June 29, 2007–If you are like most Realtors, you plan on taking a little break this Fourth of July to celebrate with family and perhaps even mingle with fellow residents of your community. However, you could be missing out on a tremendous marketing opportunity.

While local stores are stocking up on flags, ribbons, and fireworks, you may want to think about purchasing a couple cases of flags yourself and distributing them in your area. My brother David has made a tradition out of it in his market the Royal Palm Yacht and Country Club.

Every year in anticipation of the Fourth of July, David and about 15 volunteers, including his own family members fan out across his farm area, planting 18-inch American flags on every lawn in the neighborhood–about 800 in all. The team meets at about 6:30 pm for pizza and soft drinks before setting out on its mission and wraps up a couple hours later.

In the morning, they do one last drive around to make sure they haven’t missed any homes. David also sends cards to all the people who receive the flags, saying, “Happy 4th of July, Enjoy your flag!”

The residents of this small, tightly knit community love it, and every year, David receives about 50 handwritten letters from residents thanking him for their flags. The flags pull the residents of the community together and stand as a reminder of the fact that this community and the United States overall are great places to live. It also demonstrates David’s commitment to the community.

Ralph R. Roberts, official spokesperson for Guthy-Renker Home and author of Flipping Houses For Dummies and Foreclosure Investing For Dummies (John Wiley & Sons), can be contacted at 586.751.0000, or by e-mail RalphRoberts@RalphRoberts.com ^[1].

For more information, visit www.aboutralph.com ^[2].