…for some people.  Wow, did I actually write that?  I am launching one of the biggest technology platforms of my career right now and have worked on the cutting edge of technology in our industry for 15 years and yet today, I am going to say, some agents just need to surrender and forget about ever incorporating technology into their business and stop investing time and money in the newest and greatest widgets.  They just will never use it and it is a waste of time and money and can …

Most infomercials cover themselves with a tag line that goes, “Past results are no indicator of future results. Results may vary depending on the individual”. This is meant to explain why you didn’t lose 30 pounds in a week, or double your portfolio in a month, even though you bought that diet pill or ordered that DVD. So it is with economic statistics. It’s easy to tell what’s going on when everything is going the same way at the same time. But as we learned several years ago past results …

The last nine steps I’ve shared what I believe to be crucial keys to being successful in this new age of real estate. But this final step is the most important step of all. And more importantly, if you skip this step, you may as well not do any of the other nine.
I believe there is one major obstacle you must overcome before you can achieve greatness on any level, and certainly greatness in real estate. You have to conquer the six inches of ground between your …

An abundant mindset is the hallmark of a consummate luxury real estate marketing professional. Here are two ways to cultivate an abundant mindset

1. Practice being appreciative of that which you value in your surroundings
2. Practice recalling moments of sheer abundance

The pending sales index issued by NAR is up for the fourth month in a row. The Schiller-Case Index shows that prices are still down, but declines are abating.  Which of these is a better read on the market? Well, that depends on whether you like to drive looking through the front window or at the rear view mirror. The pending sales index, of course, is a window on what’s ahead, while the Schiller-Case index shows the past. More importantly, in any real estate cycle sales react first and prices lag. …

As a luxury real estate marketing professional it is important to tune into the way in which opinion leaders define luxury—not just those in the real estate realm. It will help you ascertain your own definition of luxury. Here’s an interesting quote about luxury and the recession from Michael Burke, the president and CEO of the famed Italian fashion house, Fendi:
“Luxury should not be affordable. It cannot be, it shouldn’t be for everybody. The way the products are made, the quality and the work, luxury is not for instantaneous gratification, …

In previous articles, we focused on targeting a niche, the WHO that benefit most from your services. Now we turn our attention to generating leads from that given niche and creating a marketing plan for success (the HOW.)
Once you have identified the WHO, you must set about a plan to communicate with them in order to capture that business. Don’t neglect a single person within the target. If you have singled out a particular neighborhood, for example, every waiter from every restaurant and every manager/owner of every business in …

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Professionals should embrace consistency as one of the essential practices in their marketing. Consistency in any field is one of the standards of success. It is one of the most overlooked secrets of a successful business formula.

What if I offered you a choice between two options.  Option 1 you earn $1,000 every day, starting July 1, for the entire month.  Option 2 you earn one penny on July 1st, and double your earnings every day for the entire month.  Which one would you choose?
If you chose Option 1, at the end of the month you would have earned $31,000.  Not a bad month!  For most of us, Option 1 is the easy money.  The sure money.  The safe money.  On the other hand, if you chose …

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Professionals know the importance of disclosure when it comes to representing and selling a property. There are laws that ensure the protection of all parties and the adherence to these is the price of admission, when it comes to longevity in the real estate business. In luxury real estate marketing, it is important to maintain the spirit of transparency regardless of the circumstances that present themselves.

May existing home sales are in and they’re up. But, because the median price is down, and because one-third of all sales were distressed properties (of course, these last two statements are directly related), “analysts”–here defined as Wall Street economists whose business it is to sell assets that are alternatives to real estate–will not believe that the real estate market is clearly on its way back. Additionally, they fear that the banks are holding back massive amounts of foreclosed properties and regular sellers are keeping their properties off the market. …

A Champion Agent can convey the six key rules that equate to professional value to any prospect or client.  They are able to drive home the key points to raise their value to the prospect.
 
1. We don’t sell properties
 
We are sales people, but we are really selling something other than a property.  What we really sell to the marketplace is our knowledge.  Our knowledge is better and more complete than our competitor’s, which enables us to charge a higher fee for our service.  Why is one Attorney $500 an hour …

Sunflowers need to be seen by the sun to thrive.  In Italian they are known as “girasole”, which means turn to the sun!

To thrive as a luxury real estate marketing professionals you have to maintain visibility no matter what the marketplace is doing. Staying visible online is very cost effective especially if you can delegate the busywork to assistants. Combining online and print within the same media company can be very effective for maintaining visibility. Here’s why visibility is so important to you:
When we owned our commercial real estate firm …

Have you ever had so much business that you couldn’t even keep up? So much that when you eventually got through that wave of business, you took a deep breath, and realized you didn’t have anything else going on?  You suddenly realized that you had to start from scratch again filling that pipeline of business.  I don’t know about you, but it’s definitely happened to me.  It’s what I call “the slinky effect”.
 
Stopping the Slinky Effect
Remember the cool little toy spring that stretched and contracted, flipping end over end to …

 
A Residential Masterpiece in Sonoma Valley Wine Country
Sells for Highest Price in 2009
Congratulations to our client, Maurice Tegelaar, of Pacific Union, Sonoma for marketing and selling the most expensive listing to close in 2009 so far in Sonoma County, California! The 3600-square-foot custom home, plus guest house of 720 square feet is located on a knoll in Kenwood with majestic views of the Mayacamas mountains and vineyards.
Among the many features of the home is the masterful blending of old-world style and materials with attention to modern “green” construction, …