Jack Cotton, owner of Sotheby’s International Realty in Osterville, Mass., insists that affluent buyers are easy to find, since even if they’re not local, they will have a connection to someone local. However, to reach them, you have to establish yourself as the top player in a market.
“Whether you’re working with a buyer or seller, your strategy is the same,” he says. “You must be perceived as the absolute expert on properties, people, prices, and values in your marketplace. I advise you to create a two-year history of everything that has occurred in your marketplace: every sale, every offering, every buyer, every owner.
“You need to write,” adds Cotton. “You can write a book. It’s not as hard as you think. Start articles, blogs, and reports. Get over your fear of public speaking, and volunteer to present at Rotary clubs, country clubs, or any groups or organizations that will have you.”
Richard Rocker, owner of Hawaii Luxury Homes, reveals that he built his luxury practice almost entirely on client testimonials.
“Whomever I work with, I ask them to write a letter about doing business with me,” says Rocker. “I say, ‘Just write your experiences.’ I have letters from presidents of investment firms, CEOs of REITs, owners of development companies—all on their most powerful letterheads—saying things like, ‘He showed us things about the property that we wouldn’t have noticed.’