Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials: Are you a Lemonade Tycoon, Or Are You Feeling Sour on the Economy?

Attention luxury real estate marketing professionals:  Are you a Lemonade Tycoon or are you feeling sour about the economy?

The headlines roar exclaiming that the economy is in dire straits. The Christmas Grinch is on his way. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah!  Every economic prognosticator has his or her opinions based on fact and statistics. It doesn’t matter which side of the argument they are on, they are right.

CNBC reported that retail sales over the holidays would be bleak and many stores would close because they would not be able to get the credit necessary to purchase holiday inventory.  A Wall Street Journal online headline read, “Kohl's makes a Grab for Market Share as Holiday Season Nears; Retailer Opens 46 More Stores” Clearly, here are two opposing viewpoints discussing the same thing.  Some retailers will evaporate, while others will expand, such as Kohl’s, who sees an opportunity to expand.

Those who own the commercial real estate that Kohl’s occupies will also prosper. They may become luxury home buyers

or sellers who want to upgrade.  The luxury retailers are expanding in other parts of the world as well as domestically where opportunities abound.  For instance, Houston has a new luxury mall that is thriving. The ones who survive focus on the lemonade side of the equation rather than the lemon side. They are the Lemonade Tycoons.

There are many industries that are doing well.  One of them is the private jet industry with waiting lists of three years or more.  The vendors who supply that industry are also thriving.  Hermes has a three to five year waiting lists for its $15,000 handbags.

Every economy has its opportunities and its people who prosper.  While you are reacting, grumbling, complaining and blaming someone for this mess you are blind to opportunities, and you are a bear to be around.  A better use of your time would be finding out where the fish are biting in your market place.  It is a wonderful time to secure and expand your market share and include the new fish.

Now is the time to:

• Meet new people
• Be visible  
• Explore new worlds
• Look beyond the headlines and find out who is prospering  
• Think of all the fun you will have drinking lemonade!

Are you going to be a Lemonade Tycoon?

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column.

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials:Is Your Service Remarkable? Part 3

  

This is part 3 of a 3 part series on creating a remarkable brand as a luxury real estate marketing professional. Part 1 addressed the importance of remarkable service in triggering word-of-mouth advertising. Part 2 addressed the importance of consistently keeping your brand’s promise. Here we discuss genuineness, which is defined as having the qualities or value that you claim.

We are drawn to genuine people; in our eyes they are remarkable. They are undaunted by political pressures, impervious to peer demands and unimpressed with their achievements. They feel it is normal to excel, and normal to respect everyone regardless of stature. In a relationship, they are predictable. You can count on them. You can trust them and over time develop a high trust relationship with them. Here is an example of genuineness in action.

In 1982, actor Paul Newman and author A.E. Hotchner founded a food company as a for-profit corporation. 100% of the profits from product sales are donated to various charities. The first product was salad dressing. Then the company expanded into items such as pasta sauce, tea, lemonade, popcorn and pet food. His daughter, Nell, added an organic division, and also contributes the profits to charity.

If you are drawn to this brand because of its generosity, you are apt to pay a little more for the salad dressing or the pet food knowing that you are getting a great product, and contributing to a great cause such as the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, a summer camp for seriously ill children. Also, if you like one product, you are more likely to choose Newman’s Own as a brand preference in other food categories.

That is genuineness in action and that is remarkable!

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials: Is Your Service Remarkable? Part 2

This is part 2 of a 3 part series on creating a remarkable brand as a luxury real estate marketing professional. Part 1 addressed the importance of remarkable service in triggering word-of-mouth advertising. Here, in part 2 we address the importance of consistently keeping your brand’s promise.

A remarkable brand must communicate and keep its promises, consistently. Only then can you achieve brand loyalty. For instance, there is a luxury real estate firm that promises that you can speak to one of its friendly representatives 24/7, and not have to deal with voice mail. To succeed they have to consistently keep this promise which means their team must be well versed in representing their brand message. Every time the phone is answered by a live representative there is an opportunity to demonstrate and communicate the essence of their brand.

A great example of a brand that consistently keeps its promises is Nordstrom’s. If you ever need to return anything to the store, the entire sales force is trained to cheerfully accept your purchase and give you credit without any hassle. The good will that this generates is worth far more than the cost.

Another example of a brand that consistently keeps its promise is the Swiss Army Knife. It has achieved an iconic status because of its versatility, dependability and quality. Over the years the design has remained virtually the same and the product continues to sell itself. That in and of itself is remarkable!

At Napa Consultants, International our promise is to help you accelerate the process of developing an abundance of high-trust relationships that naturally lead to referrals. What is the promise of your personal or company brand?

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials: Is Your Service REMARKABLE?

Your most highly valued asset in your luxury real estate marketing practice is your database of contacts, particularly those who would go out of their way to refer business to you because you have earned their trust and respect. It stands to reason that understanding and consistently implementing the best practices for building a high volume of high-trust relationships will not only yield a high volume of referrals, it will also open up the opportunity to sell your practice in the future at a premium.

Have you ever wondered what it takes to inspire people to spontaneously go out of their way to refer business to you? What sparks the urge to originate word-of-mouth advertising on your behalf?  People are still lining up to get their iPhones. Why? The answer is creating extraordinary value far beyond the fundamentals that are expected of you. Your service must be REMARKABLE to trigger word-of-mouth advertising.

This morning we felt the urge to tell a friend about a spectacular online computer backup system that is extremely easy to use called Sugar Sync. What makes Sugar Sync so great is that it has web and mobile access, file sharing and sync built right in. Best of all prices start at only $2.49 per month (we pay $4.95 per month for extra storage).

When one of us writes an article on the laptop, for example, and saves the document it instantly becomes accessible on the other's desktop computer and vice versa. Five versions of edits are kept too so we can always go back to a previous version. When we travel all of our documents, photos, music and contacts are accessible online through any web browser. And, any changes we make on our remote computer is automatically synced with our office computers.

What prompted us to go out of our way to tell our friend about this was an email from Sugar Sync announcing a new feature. Now, we can access all of our data from an iPhone and send it to others via email from the phone! That’s remarkable!  This feature alone did not cause us to spread the word about Sugar Sync. We have been raving about  it to each other for some time. But, the iPhone feature was the tipping point that prompted the urge to tell others, like you! 

Is your service REMARKABLE?

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column

Luxury Marketing Essentials: The Magic of Dolphins

By Alexandra Seigel

To keep your luxury real estate marketing practice in perspective, take the time to commune with nature. Exploring the wonders of your environment can help you stay happy, creative and stress free.

Our favorite way to commune with nature is walking on the beach in Santa Barbara and Carpinteria at low tide, when the ocean recedes and reveals more land. New sea shells abound, crabs rush to bury themselves so do the clams.

One of the joys of these nature walks is spotting dolphins frolicking near the shore. Like the ancient Greek sailors we welcome them as a good omen for a smooth voyage.

Earlier this year, we took a whale watching trip around the Channel Islands that are just off our coastline. The whales were a “no show”. Instead, we saw a super pod of dolphins which number over a 1000, indicating that there was an abundance of food in the area. A regular pod averages a dozen. Although, the membership in pods is not rigid, they establish strong bonds. Dolphins will stay with injured pod members helping them breathe by nudging them to the surface.

Dolphins are also known to help other species. Moko, a dolphin in New Zealand was observed guiding a whale and her calf out of shallow water after they were stranded several times. They also protect swimmers from sharks by either swimming circles around the swimmers or charging the sharks. My father, while swimming in the Mediterranean Sea, was guided out of the strong downward pull of an eddy by a pod of dolphins. I owe my existence to these creatures.

Dolphins are part of human culture. They are common in Greek, Roman as well as in Hindu mythology. They are considered to be one the most intelligent animals. In 2005, Australian scientists discovered that some dolphins teach their young to use tools, (one of the benchmarks for rating intelligence). While foraging the dolphins protect their snouts with sponges that they break off to cover their snouts. The male river dolphins in Brazil use weeds and sticks as part of a mating display.

Watching these magical creatures always brings a smile to our faces. Time stops when they appear. They seem to be having so much fun. What a great reminder of the magic of life.

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials: Attracting Your Ideal Clients

As a luxury real estate marketing professional it is vitally important to deliberately clarify and craft your marketing message so that you attract your ideal clientele. As long as we interact with people, we are continuously in the process of marketing ourselves to others, presenting ourselves in such a way as to attract what we want. But, are you projecting your authentic self, the self that you would ideally like to be if you were not concerned about what others thought of you. Or, are you trying too hard to please people and lose your authenticity in the process. That is a big question!

In your luxury real estate marketing practice do you love all of your clients? Do you believe it is possible to work only with ideal clients? Are you willing to fire the clients that are not ideal? Think about what your day would be like if you only were working with your ideal clients. Would you look forward to waking up in the morning and going to work?

The great thing about working only with your ideal clients is that they usually hang out with people like themselves. That means when it comes to referring their friends and family to you, chances are their referrals are going to be ideal clients too.

To discover your authentic self, be still and quiet your mind. Get the idea that you are looking at yourself in a still body of water, like a pond or a lake. If the water is turbulent you will get a distorted image of yourself. If it is still, the water will reflect your authentic self.

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials: The Nest Egg of Your Brand

It is said that ostriches and some people bury their heads in the sand when they don’t want to hear bad news. The fact is that most people should be like ostriches as they are not hiding themselves in avoidance. They are rearranging their eggs. So, as the bad news arrives, this is an opportunity to become a sophisticated investor in your brand which is one of your nest eggs. This applies to luxury real estate marketing professionals in particular.

For most the knee jerk response to bad news it to  cut back on marketing their brand. By not reacting to the economy you stand to take over the territory that the rest are abandoning. Also, advertising rates drop as demand slows, and you are getting more for your dollars. Sophisticated marketers understand this. For instance, in the down market of the 90’s Nike realized a significant increase in profits from a modest increase in marketing. Think of the numerous times you see the famous swoosh logo. It seems every sports team, both amateur and professional, has it somewhere on their clothing.

Invest in your brand during these times. Be the stand out in your marketplace. Invest in your future so that when the good news returns you are way ahead of everyone. They will be scrambling to catch up to you.

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials: What you can learn from Emily Post and MickeyMouse

Photo by JoeyGil in Los Angeles Chinatown Parade

In the luxury real estate marketing arena excellent manners are important to a successful career in selling fine homes. The concept of manners was developed as a way to express oneself in order to be viewed as polite, sophisticated and refined. Sociologists define it as a standard of conduct and as a norm. Manners adapt to reflect social changes. Manners differ from culture to culture and occasions such as a wedding, an audience with a royal, the president or the pope. If you intend to have an international clientele of buyers, it is important that you are well versed in their customs and manners, and invest time in learning these.

The importance of manners can be seen in the number of books written and courses taught on the subject. Education on manners is a viable business. Emily Post was one of the first American's to write a book on manners in 1922. Her name is identified with etiquette and manners. Today, her family runs the Emily Post Institute and writes bestselling books on the subject. Disney Princess Academy is also a school for manners. They produce videos on table manners, waltzing etiquette and appropriate make up for their target market.

Manners are a form of communication. They are not the province of the elite; everyone should be treated with the utmost courtesy regardless of their status in your eyes. Senior to communication is the unspoken understanding, respect and acceptance of the whole world at large. You cannot fake sincerity, no matter how many manner classes you take. Sincerity is the very thing that will save you if you make a faux pas, or are ignorant of the necessary protocol.

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials: How to Stay on the Leading Edge Without Falling OFF!

Professionalism in marketing for luxury real estate agents now includes being web-savvy and tech-savvy. It is one of those brutal facts that you must face if you are to be successful in the Web 2.0 era. Get with it! Or, get someone on your team who is with it, someone who has the passion to stay on the leading edge. But, do not get carried away by technology. Find the right balance for you and your target market.

"They say a year in the Internet business is like a dog year. It is equivalent to seven years in a regular person's life. In other words, it's evolving fast and faster."

— Vinton Cerf, one of the "founding fathers of the Internet", co-created TCP/IP protocols

The internet age is the closest example of perpetual motion. Every day we are bombarded with the latest and greatest technology. How do you stay up with all of it? When presented with a new invention to add to your already groaning table of tech tools and web enhancers, use common sense. Ask yourself, how often will I use this? Will this be easy for my clients? Do I really like it? Is it easy to use, or do I have to spend time on a tutorial? Will this save time or become aggravating in the long run? Research shows that sites that talk to you as you click on them are annoying to the viewer. The initial novelty wears off after 5 seconds. They do not want to come back to the site, to hear it again.

Most new idea sounds good at first glance. Take the time to research before you buy. We recommend Walter Mossberg’s column in the Wall Street Journal, every Thursday. He reviews the latest and greatest, and he is not paid by anyone to promote their goods. He reviews items, uses them, and sends them back to the source. He and his Wall Street Journal colleague, Kara Swisher co-edit All Things Digital which includes all his columns, her blog, video interviews and other posts. The site has an archive for all types of technological advances and is a wonderful resource.

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials: Successful Luxury Web Design for Lead Conversion—Part 2

This is Part 2 of a 2 part series on creating a lead converting luxury real estate website.

A lead is a visitor who finds your site or is directed to it. A lead conversion is a visitor who voluntarily gives you their contact information. Your luxury website must be just that. It must feel luxurious to visit your site. But, use restraint with special effects.

1. Limit Flash Movies or Animation. Better yet, forget it.

Good Flash sequences can be eye-popping and make a great first impression. But, it does not make a great second impression, if you want return business. Your site is like a gateway to information. Flash can be a gatekeeper that wastes your visitor’s time or distracts them, once the effect has been created, the first time.

Whatever you do, do not bore your visitors with a movie where you walk onto the screen bubbling with your welcome message. It is like an annoying, effusive salesperson who accosts you the moment you walk through the door. They will not come back just to avoid seeing you again.

2. Make Information Easy to Find.

One of our clients was approached by a famous luxury real estate magazine to place an ad on their website. It took five clicks and eye strain to get to the advertising section. In today’s technological world, we expect speed and immediate search results. Consider Southwest Airlines. It is easy to choose your destination. You do not have to look up airport codes. Buying a ticket is quick and easy.

3. Be Discriminating with your Outbound Links

If your site has community, lifestyles, and educational links make sure you know who these people are before you link to them. It is better to have real referrals than the whole phone book. You are building a relationship with you new prospects and existing clients. Refer only people and companies that you know, or those your friends would recommend to you.

4. Keep it Simple!

Be kind to those website visitors who may be technologically challenged. Insist that your website software is compatible with the majority of web users so that your visitors do not have to download the latest and greatest gizmo just to view your site. Otherwise, if visitors do not upgrade their browsers, plug-ins or media players, they may not be able to see parts of your website. And, they will quickly abandon it .

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials: Successful Luxury Web Design for Lead Conversion—Part 1

Fortnum and Mason Fruit & Flower Department

This is Part 1 of a 2 part series on creating a lead converting luxury real estate website.

1. Build Trust, Convert Leads

Keep in mind that your website is a relationship marketing tool. Give your visitors what they came for. Build trust, and they will give you their contact information. That is called a lead conversion.

2. Resist Clutter

Your potential and existing clients are looking at your website with a purpose in mind, their purpose. That is, they want to search and gain information about luxury homes. Limit the focus of your site to that information. Make it easy for them to find what they want in just a couple of clicks. Resist the temptation of adding weather, news feeds, and financial reports. If you are going to include mortgage think luxury, think private banker. Become a minimalist. Less is more!

3. Your Website Must Be Like a Luxury Store

Visit stores that sell luxury goods. Note the way things are displayed. The majority of the great brands do not encumber the space with every size and every item for sale. They leave room for you to admire the items, to get interested in the design. The windows are usually sparse and thematic. The entry is dramatic as well as welcoming.

4. Give Your Website the Look of Luxury

Select colors that exude luxury. Black and gold are not the only colors associated with luxury! Your website should be in concert with your personal brand and the geographical area of your marketplace.

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column

Luxury Marketing Essentials: Time for Slow Travel

Every so often, you need to put your brain and your body on pause in a grand way. We have friends who swear by the six day Transatlantic Crossing aboard the Queen Mary 2. The service is legendary as is the food. QM2 is the largest ocean liner ever built. It has every conceivable amenity on board including the Canyon Ranch Spa Club.

The company brochure bills it as “the Golden Age of Ocean Travel was a time when travel by sea embodied the good life and the Transatlantic Crossing was a rite of passage. It was a time when elegance and refined British traditions ruled the day”. Given that you arrive either in New York or England refreshed without jet lag, there is something to be said for this mode of travel as a time saver.

Ah, the ultimate luxury as expressed by our favorite Latin American toast: Salud y amor y peseta y tiempo para disfrutarlo . Simply put it means: salutations to love, money and the time to enjoy it.

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials: The Art of Advertising

Photo by Eric Pouhier

Advertising is a form of communication. In the realm of luxury real estate marketing, it needs to be an art form as well. An ad, like a fine home with curb appeal, must offer a great first impression. The majority of luxury real estate magazine ads look the same. They basically say the same things as do the agent’s profiles. It is as if the luxury real estate industry adheres to a template and does not deviate from it. The color black is the dominant color in those magazines. In most cases, the only distinguishing factor from page to page is geography.

Your first goal is to grab your readers’ attention. You almost need to startle them with the extraordinary. Check out ads for luxury brands outside of real estate. For example, in the Chanel ad depicted above, you can see a reflection of the Place Vendome in Paris, site of the Chanel headquarters. The Place Vendome is home to famous hotels such as the Ritz and the Bristol as well as famous jewelers, and clothing designers.

Study high end magazines that cover fashion, autos and sea craft. Each brand looks different in color, layout and presentation. Their appearance is intriguing. It invites the reader to participate by asking questions which can be answered by visiting the store or the web site.

People love a mystery, the process of discovering something special. Most fine homes have some exceptional features. Look for a unique selling proposition. It is the unexpected that sells them. Don’t spoil the surprise by editorializing about it. Just give them a hint. Evoke the participation of the reader with a call to action. That is what makes your phone ring or your email box full. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to make a new friend by answering the query, or better yet, showing the home and letting them form a bond with it.

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column.

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials: Building High Trust Relationships

Paris Bridges

Building an abundance of high-trust relationships with your clients is the name of the game for luxury real estate marketing. Whoever develops and maintains the most high-trust relationships wins! It is all about becoming a trusted advisor with your high net worth clientele.

Click On the Book to Buy Now!

Our business partner John Ullmen, Ph.D., also teaches about high-trust relationships at UCLA Anderson School of Management. He studied managers, executives and professionals from different industries to discover what the “best of the best” do to build strong trusting relationships and social networks—invisible bridges--that generate ongoing business results such as referrals.

Ullmen and his co-author, Melissa Karz put their findings into their popular book, Invisible Bridges: Building Professional Relationships for Results. This book is a brief and powerful story that demonstrates the principles and practices of relationship building in professional life.

Here is a summary of the principles found in the book:

1. Understand The Strength Of Invisible Bridges

• Whatever you’re reaching for, the right relationships can get you there faster, easier, and with more enjoyment.
• Relationships lead to the best things in life.
• Relationships are the best things in life.

2. Choose Bridges to Build

• Decide what you want and who you’d like to connect with.
• Find creative ways to make new connections.

3. Build Your Bridges from Both Sides

• Find out what others value, in work and life.
• Let others know what you want, in work and life.

4. Keep Your Bridges in Good Repair

• Follow up on new connections, and stay in touch with your existing ones.
• Take action for the benefit of your relationships, new ones and old ones.

5. Be Ready For New Bridges

• Anyone can build stronger relationships at any point in their lives.
• You never finish building relationships, and you can always get better.
• Life-changing relationships can come anytime, anywhere. Get ready.

For a great read on building high-trust relationships in your luxury real estate marketing practice, we wholeheartedly recommend buying and reading John’s book. Click here to buy it now.

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column.

Luxury Marketing Essentials: The Days of Wine and Brand Differentiation

As a luxury real estate marketing professional you must differentiate yourself from you competitors. We say, “Stand out or Bow out”! Here is an important way in which premium wines are differentiated in the marketplace.

In the abundant world of the wine production, the finest wines are distinguished from every other wine not just by price but by their origin. This principle of the differentiation is based on a French word, “terroir”. The basic components of terroir are climate, soil type and topography. Labels will often identify the estate on which that wine was grown, or the particular section of the vineyard because there are microclimates in each section. This concept was in practice by the ancient Greeks. As they poured the wine into the amphoras, they would stamp the wine’s region on the seal. It is said that the Benedictine monks went as far as tasting the soil in the different parcels in which their wines grew, because one could taste the various terroirs in the wine.

Sauternes wines are sweet wines balanced with acidity. The most famous of them is Chateau D’Yquem, which Thomas Jefferson hailed as, “This is the best white wine of France and the best of it is made by Monsieur de Lur-Saluces,” the then owner of Chateau D’Yquem. Aficionados still agree with that assessment when it comes to pairing it with their foie gras. At an auction in London in 2006, a 135-year "vertical" (containing every vintage from 1860 to 2003) was sold for a record price of $1.5 million. The estate next to Chateau D’Yquem also produces excellent Sauternes wine. However, it is not as highly rated as its neighbor, because its terroir is different.

Terroir is a brand resulting from natural forces. Your DNA is akin to the terroir of the great wines. Express your uniqueness and you will always stand out!

Luxury Marketing Essentials: Developing an Effective Strategy

As a luxury marketing professional it is important to develop a strategy to achieve your goals. Strategy is not tactics. Tactics are means of achieving immediate goals. A strategy is a long term plan of action. Strategy is making a choice of direction which will affect the outcome of your goals. To develop a successful strategy you must integrate your brand and your passion for the business you are in. It is the result of defining, aligning and refining your brand and your position in the marketplace.  A strategy without grounding in the basics of marketing is like putting the cart before the horse.

One of our friends was a successful realtor prior to the days of web 2.0. She loved historical homes and had remodeled several of them, and she began specializing in selling these types of homes. She knew through her own experience what it takes to restore these homes and had a list of vetted people who could help her buyers/sellers in the process. Her passion led her to join a historical society. Her enthusiasm and participation in the organization created lifetime friendships and referrals in abundance. This was a strategy based on a passion for historical homes. It has not waned; she still works with the group.

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column.

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials:Gain New Perspectives

Art: You may not always like it but it gives you a new perspective. It takes your mind to new places where it has not explored. As a luxury real estate marketing professional, we recommend frequent trips to art galleries and art museums. It opens you up to new experiences, new idea and increases your “vocabulary” in the Language of Luxury.

This weekend we drove to Los Angeles from our home in Santa Barbara, for quick hit of culture at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. A new outdoor sculpture was installed since our last visit there and it takes center stage in the expanded campus of exhibit buildings. It is comprised of rows of streetlamps clustered in a square pattern, adjacent to the new Broad Contemporary Art Museum building.

Contemporary art often causes me to scratch my head and wonder, “what were they thinking”? Where is the meaning? How does a single blob of color on an otherwise blank canvas constitute art? It wasn’t until I walked through this sculpture and noticed the shadows that it cast, did this sculpture became art to me. From a distance it was mildly intriguing. But, when I got up close, where I was able to participate with it and move between the lampposts, it truly captured my imagination.

I took one of these photos while on my back looking up to the sky. It occurred to me that streetlamps are never next to one another. They are always spaced apart to do their job. Together, they now create a beacon of light guiding people to the museum and inviting them in to gain new perspectives.

By Ron Seigel, Partner – Napa Consultants, International

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column.

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials: Originality

Cote d'Azur, France

Writing a luxury real estate marketing blog takes commitment. But, the rewards can be spectacular if your content is original and you offer extraordinary value to your readers.

When you blog you become a researcher, a reporter and a syndicated columnist. You must develop a unique voice that is in a class unto itself. You need a special bent, a distinct perspective that is compelling enough to attract readers who follow your blog from one post to the next.

You may have heard about the Russian billionaire who paid the record sum of 752 million dollars for Villa Leopolda. According to the media, Villa Leopolda is one of the most magnificent mansions in the world. It is located on the French Riviera. This event was reported repeatedly on blogs and other media throughout the world.

But, but there is nothing original in the news story itself. If your reader already has heard the news before reading your post it is no longer news. That is why your unique slant on the story is so important.

One of our subscribers, Alice Held, read our August 21, 2008 post, entitled “The Russians Are Coming!, in which we indirectly referred to this sale. She commented that our coverage was both original and personal. We appreciated that comment, as Alexandra, who wrote this particular post, shared her personal experience about her Russian background. Alexandra also underscored the importance of learning more about the cultural background of your clients if you want to easily connect with them, earn their trust and also earn the big commissions associated with major international luxury real estate transactions. You do not necessarily need to speak Russian, in this case. But, it does help to be fluent in the Language of Luxury.

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing. Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column.

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials: The Business of Luxury

“Why do I need to know how the watch market is doing? I’m in the business of luxury”, Patrick Heiniger, CEO, Rolex

Real Estate marketing professionals can learn from this quote, because luxury is a product category by itself. Like Rolex, you are in the business of luxury. Stay focused on the luxury market and its trends. Every market has its opportunities, and the luxury buyers can afford those opportunities. Make yourself visible in those circles where people are thriving and buying. Pay attention to the good news out there. It is more plentiful than the bad news, if you look for it.

Get acquainted with the people who are buying. Did you know that it is projected that by the year 2009, there will be 135,000 millionaires in India? Did you know that Brazil and China are also spawning new millionaires? If an Indian, Brazilian or Chinese millionaire buyer crossed your path, what would you know about their countries, their customs, and their luxury mindset?

This is the perfect opportunity to start learning. The internet is a treasure trove of free information. Learn a word or two in their language, connect, and be real. Here is one of our favorites, Indian salutations, “Namaste". Namaste is a word in Sanskrit, which means; I salute and respect that divinity within you that is also within me.

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing . Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column.

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials: Southwest Airlines

As Luxury real estate marketing professionals, it is essential that you stay focused on the world outside of real estate and learn the lessons of some of the best companies. They are the manifestation of the tenets of good business practices especially in terms of marketing, branding and good business sense.

Southwest Airlines is not a luxury brand. However, they do have a luxury mindset; simplicity and the luxury of time. They have the easiest booking on line system and simple policies. They are customer driven. For instance, if you have to cancel or change a flight, there are NO additional fees assessed to your new ticket. In terms of time, they pride themselves on turnaround time, so that the flight in quickly turns into the flight out.

It is not surprising that Southwest Airlines is one of the most profitable airlines in the world. In January 2008, they again posted a profit for the 35^th consecutive year.

Here are some questions to answer:

1. How can you simplify your web site, so that your clients can have an easy experience? (Luxury of time and ease)

2. What is your turnaround time for requests, returned phone calls and emails?

This is part of an ongoing series about Luxury Real Estate Marketing . Get Fluent. Get Affluent! Subscribe to The Language of Luxury by Email or RSS Feed. Comments? Please use form in left column.