Marketing Luxury Real Estate: The Ultimate Service- Providing Peace of Mind

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing Tip: Put a New Twist in Your Marketing Approach

May 10, 2012

Remarkable service with a twist that distinguishes you from your competition can create an indelible impression and enchant your clients.. Look for evidence of enchantment, times when you have enjoyed exemplary service in your daily life, and reach for ways that you can incorporate enchantment into your own luxury real estate marketing practice.

Saint Alexandra’s Day (Alexandra’s Name Day) provided the perfect opportunity to seek out evidence of enchantment marketing. We googled “the best steak house in Thousand Oaks” (nearby Santa Barbara and close to Malibu) and found an entire page dominated by great reviews of Mastro’s. Since we very rarely order beef we wanted to find the best place.But we were seeking an restaurant just outside of town so we could turn it into a new adventure.

Mastro’s, we discovered, has multiple locations in Arizona, Nevada, California and Illinois. It definitely lived up to its reviews. Here are some of the quality cues that lead us to a very favorable opinion of this fine establishment:

We were served an assortment of scrumptious artisan breads that were fresh out of the oven. That could have been a meal unto itself. Our favorite was the pretzel bread.

Our server reminded us of a European professional waiter who really knew his wines. We were allowed to taste a couple of them prior to ordering and the dialogue was educational.

He was equally knowledgable about the extensive menu. He had definite personal opinions about it when asked.

We ordered creamed spinach and the crunchiest snap peas as our vegetables. We asked if the creamed spinach was made with bacon. Our server said, “No. But, everything tastes better with bacon”, and he disappeared only to return with some of the best bacon we had ever tasted.

We did not order dessert. But, we were presented with an enormous slice of St. Alexandra’s Names Day cake and a side of whipped cream that must have been more than a pint. With only room for a couple of nibbles, we were more than delighted.

When we left the restaurant, the valet brought our car and handed us some bottled water for the road with the Mastro’s logo on the bottle. We had previously been given a shopping bag with handles to cary three box full of food items that we could not finish.

Seek out quality cues, evidence of enchantment marketing in peripheral aspects of your life, not just in your field. Get a sense of how it feels when you are treated exceptionally well. Then incorporate as many ways as possible to enchant your clients. It will put a twist in your marketing approach that will help you to standout from your competition.

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Marketing Luxury Real Estate Tip: Staying on the Leading Edge Part 2

May 8, 2012

Fear of change is another of the top vulnerabilities of market leaders. For luxury real estate marketing professionals who are bent on gaining or sustaining market leadership you need to keep evolving as an individual, a team or as a company. The common adage of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”, or “I am doing well, why rock the boat” does not apply if you intend on maintaining your position.

We are experiencing a tidal wave of change on a daily basis in every aspect of life. If you want to successfully keep moving forward, you have to keep reinventing yourself. One of the most important elements in this process is to be willing to break down your business model on a regular basis and reexamine every aspect through a magnifying lens. You may have to throw out what “ain’t’broke” altogether and adopt and adapt consistently. You have to stay nimble and be able to turn on a dime. If you don’t do it, your competition will rapidly surpass you without any hesitation, or find a way to profit from your passivity.

Some companies capitalize on the “fear of change” and develop business models which take advantage of this mentality. An example of this is “show rooming”. Many consumers visit showrooms note model numbers, and then find the identical item on line using their Smartphone’s and purchase them for a lot less. What caused this? Fear of change and the unwillingness to adapt. Companies such as Best Buy are now looking for ways to prevent the show rooming epidemic. In real estate lending, companies such as the Lending Tree captured consumer leads for loans, routed them to the banks and received a commission. They understood that banks are not quick to respond to change, and they could step in and profit.

What must not change are your core values, your integrity and your commitment to superb service for your clients.

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing Tip: Staying on the Leading Edge

May 7, 2012

Photo by Chris Dorney

Complacency is one of the top vulnerabilities of market leaders. For Luxury real estate marketing professionals who are bent on gaining or sustaining market leadership staying on the leading edge is not an option, it is an imperative. Harrods’s department store in London exemplifies this principle.

Harrods is already known for its outstanding service private client service and was recently given an award at the Luxury Briefing awards for its customer service. According to Luxury Briefing, “Beyond is an extension of Harrods’ service available to private clients and goes above the realms of what consumers expect from a department store.” So why would they send their employees to study with Minding Manners (etiquette and protocol consultants) to learn about etiquette? The employees enrolled in a two full-day sessions that emphasized etiquette aspects of multi-cultural awareness.

Global capital cities as well as globally known luxury resort destinations are regularly visited by buyers of goods and real estate from all parts of the word. What is considered to be great manners in the European or American cities can be interpreted as an insult in other parts of the world. Since Harrods has an extensive VIP clientele from the Middle East, Asia, Europe and the Americas, the training by Minding Manners covered all aspects of meeting, greeting and interacting with cross-cultural respect.

At one time, every shopper entering the store was greeted with a handshake and a glass of champagne. Now this tradition has been revisited as many cultures and religious sects practice alcohol abstinence, and do not shake hands with women. Also the friendly Western physical touches are not necessarily welcome, particularly when it comes to opposite genders. How to dress is also important when meeting customers from other countries if not in a standard store uniform.

Whether or not you are dealing with an elite global clientele or culturally integrated Americans, it is important to avail yourself of the knowledge of every community’s cultural and religious preferences. In order to stay on the leading edge and successfully earn the trust of global communities, take the cue from Harrods. Impeccable cultural etiquette is one way to differentiate you as a luxury real estate marketing professional. To stay on the leading edge avoid complacency at all costs.

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Marketing Luxury Real Estate: 100 Bottles of Tequila on the Wall

May 4, 2012

On the eve of Cinco de Mayo we thought it would be appropriate to discuss the iconic brand of tequila which is associated with Mexico. Mexico has the international rights to the word “tequila”, and they have made it clear that they will take legal action against anyone or any country that uses the word to describe blue agave spirits. Mexico law also states that tequila can be produced in the state of Jalisco (Tequila is a city in Jalisco), and specific regions in the states of Guanajuato, Michoacán, and Tamaulipas.

Furthermore, the Tequila regulatory Council has stated that authentic tequila must be made from 100% agave. Only then can it be designated as “100%” agave. Everything else is“mixto” tequila.

Artisanal tequila is a thriving industry. Recently we dined at the bar of Cielito, a wonderful restaurant in Santa Barbara, and learned that they carry over 70 brands of artisanal tequila. Like wine, the producers of tequila create variations in taste based on the extent of aging and also on the type of wood used in the barrels where the tequila is aged. Other varietals can be created using agave that is grown at high altitudes giving it a sweeter taste, as opposed to lower altitudes which can give tequila an herbaceous taste.

While we were dining, we noticed that there were three bottles of tequila on the shelf shaped like human skulls. Our friendly bartender told us that these bottles of tequila were made of hand-blown glass. The black skull bottle with hand glued rhinestones is the most expensive ($70 a shot) because it had been aged the longest.

ENJOY CINCO DE MAYO!!

CHEERS, RON & ALEXANDRA

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Tip: Perform a Time-saving Audit

April 30, 2012

In a time-pressed world, time becomes the ultimate luxury. Affluent consumers will pay a premium if you can save them time and the aggravation of wasted time. As a luxury real estate marketing professional, think about how you can save your clients time and aggravation every step of the way. Perform a Time-saving audit on all aspects of the service you provide.

Saving time applies to the user experience on your website from their first encounter with you. And, it applies to every other encounter they have with you or your team. Here are few items to consider when you perform your Time-saving Audit:

Does your website navigation save the user time in finding exactly what they came for?
The simple act of listening to your client’s specific needs and only showing them the properties that match those needs saves them time. Do you preview the homes you show your clients.?
If you are the listing broker, do you prepare detailed home-showing instructions for cooperating brokers so that they do not waste their clients’ time? Their clients may be the perfect buyer for your listings.

This will get you started with your Time-saving Audit. Your high net worth clients will certainly appreciate you for doing these things because time is the ultimate luxury. But, just as important as it is to save your client’s time, you should also be including, in your audit, all of the ways you can save yourself time. Value their time and value yours as well. Only then will you see that the time your save can turn into money. Does that make "cents"?

Let us know some of YOUR questions that you think should be included in the Time-saving Audit!

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The Two Biggest Thieves of Time in Our Digital Age: Tech Support & Learning Curves

April 29, 2012

When marketing luxury real estate, understanding the priority values of your high net worth clients is one of the keys to your success. Fine craftsmanship, innovation, elegance of design, uncompromising quality of materials, and superlative customer service are standards of excellence that must be understood by purveyors of luxury goods and service professionals who cater to this demographic.

No one understood these benchmarks of luxury better than Steve Jobs, who infused these values into every aspect of Apple, the organization and its products. But, the one luxury priority value that Jobs knew that still baffles Apple’s competitors is the luxury of time saved. He understood that tech support and the learning curve are the two biggest thieves of time in the digital age and he set out to counter this by saving customers time.

How does Apple save you time and aggravation? Apple controls the customer experience of using computers and digital devices from end to end. Moreover, every product they produce is fully integrated with the others. An integrated product line saves you time in tech support because there is only one tech support number to call. It also saves your time on the learning curve because the various devices become more intuitive to learn having already understood the basics. According to Jobs,

“People pay us to integrate things for them, because they don’t have time to think about this stuff 24/7. If you have an extreme passion for producing great products, it pushes you to be integrated, to connect your hardware and your software and content management. You want to break new ground, so you have to do it yourself.”

Think about what your time is worth in dollars.Then, the value of saving time and aggravation will become crystal clear. Here are some questions to ponder:

How much time did you spend in tech support last year? How much did that cost you in time if one of your hours is worth $100-500.
How many different tech support providers did you need to go to for help because your computers and devices use separate operating systems or were manufactured by separate companies?
How much time did you spend on the learning curve to use your various computers and digital devises?

If you are lucky enough to live near one of Apple’s physical stores you can have unlimited one-on-one sessions with an Apple expert for $100 per year! If you have a specific project that you are working on and have questions you can also join a group session and get the personal help you need as needed.

Tech support via the phone is with support representatives who reside within your country and speak your language the way you do. This costs Apple 50% more than outsourcing tech support. But, the user experience is superlative.

As a luxury real estate marketing professional, how can you save time for your clients and for yourself? Perform a Time-saving Audit. See our next post to learn how.

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Marketing Luxury Real Estate: Luxury Camouflage in Beverly Hills

April 26, 2012

We had an early morning meeting in Beverly Hills today. After grabbing a warm just out of the oven bagel from St Urbain, we had a few minutes to meander and look around at the newest retail. Whenever a store is remodeled in Beverly Hills, the business creates a beautiful structure to camouflage the constructing inside. Here is the Bulgari version on Rodeo Drive which is one of the famous luxury retail streets in the Beverly Hills triangle.

The brilliance of erecting an aesthetically pleasing camouflage is that it creates visibility and anticipation for the new store. At the same time it markets the Bulgari brand in a way that is harmonious to its luxury brand strategy!

Wishing you a superb Thursday, Cheers Ron & Alexandra

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50 Top Luxury Real Estate Markets in the USA: Jackson Hole, Wyoming

April 24, 2012

Most major ski resort can claim natural beauty as one of its greatest assets. But, only Jackson Hole, Wyoming is nestled between two of the most spectacular national parks in the United States: Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park. Tourism helps to enrich the local community, year-round. But, the tax benefits of owning property here makes Jackson Hole one of the most compelling luxury real estate markets in the USA.

Marketing Luxury Real Estate: Resting on your Laurels or Increasing Your Visibility?

April 23, 2012

As a luxury real estate marketing professional, when you are already the market leader maintaining your top-of-mind status should be your focus. Although, resting on your laurels (your achievements) is tempting, it is an invitation for your challenger to seize market share from you. Therefore, continuously increasing your visibility is very important. Being active in your community and championing a good cause is one way of doing this. Here is an example.

Ralph Lauren is the quintessential American clothing lifestyle brand. It is also a world class brand recognized on every continent. One could ask, “Why is Ralph Lauren bothering to outfit the US Olympic Team and the Para Olympic Team? The Olympics is one of the most global viewed events. It occurs every two years alternating summer and winter Olympics. The publicity this event creates will add to the brand’s awareness among its target market. It also emphasizes the brand’s support of the US Team, which make people think highly of the brand.

Ralph Lauren has also created a line for US Olympic fans that will range from $10 pins to $198 dresses that can be customized. The special Olympic web page on the company’s site includes a countdown clock and will also feature each individual on Team USA with their bios and their stats in their sporting venue.

If you are the market leader in your area, how can you maintain your visibility? If you are the challenger, up against a market leader who is resting on its laurels, how can you seize this opportunity to outshine your competition?

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Marketing Luxury Real Estate: Entertainment Marketing—Lessons from Major Luxury Brands

April 20, 2012

The internet has ushered in a whole new way to reach prospective clients and develop a strong referral base of raving fans. Entertainment marketing is no longer exclusive to major companies; it is now within your reach, too, as a luxury real estate marketing professional. But, you can get some great marketing ideas by studying how the major luxury brands leverage new technology to create buzz.

German fashion label Hugo Boss has set a new standard for live streaming fashion shows for their event in China. Their Black Collection will be streamed in 3D! This is a first which makes it buzz-worthy. They also gave away a limited number of signature 3D glasses (too late, all gone) and offered fans a chance to win a trip to China.

The internet has ushered in a whole new way to reach prospective clients and develop a strong referral base of raving fans. Entertainment marketing is no longer exclusive to major companies; it is now within your reach, too, as a luxury real estate marketing professional. But, you can get some great marketing ideas by studying how the major luxury brands leverage new technology to create buzz.

German fashion label Hugo Boss has set a new standard for live streaming fashion shows for their event in China. Their Black Collection will be streamed in 3D! This is a first which makes it buzz-worthy. They also gave away a limited number of signature 3D glasses (too late, all gone) and offered fans a chance to win a trip to the show in China.

For the event, Hugo Boss has launched a comprehensive multimedia campaign that includes print, Web, mobile, social media, and out of home advertising (outdoor advertising venues) for its runway show in Beijing. Their print ads will be embedded with “augmented reality”. This is a technique that employs invisible watermarks that can be read by your smartphone which then has access to video and other added content.

In October of 2007, Fendi and Karl Lagerfeld staged a fashion show atop the Great Wall of China. It took Fendi one year to get permission for the show, and rumor has it that the show cost $10 million. Five hundred guests attended the spectacle and giant logos were projected onto neighboring mountains. The chairman of LVMH, Bernard Arnault, which owns Fendi joked, “This was the first fashion show visible from the moon.”

Paying attention to the ways that major luxury brands employ entertainment marketing can give you clues on how to outsmart your competition when marketing luxury real estate. Leveraging the viral marketing capabilities of the internet and word-of-mouth advertising can significantly amplify the effectiveness of your marketing efforts and even reduce costs.

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Marketing Luxury Real Estate: Impressions of Costa Rica

April 17, 2012

We were fortunate to be invited to consult on the local and international marketing of a beautiful luxury residential development project on the east side of San Jose, in the Central Valley of Costa Rica. From the Central Valley it is an hour to an hour and a half drive to either the Caribbean/ Atlantic coast or the Pacific coast. The mild climate is consistently in the low 80’s with relatively low humidity.

Our experience in meeting our clients and the various people we were introduced to was nothing less than enchanting. When discussing the various aspects of the project, each individual in charge was passionate about their expertise. In planning the site, the developers agreed to keep all the mature trees and bushes intact and incorporate them as part of the common areas. This included the coffee trees which had migrated on the property from the coffee bean plantation next door. The landscape architect also decided to identify the trees and plants by both their Spanish and Latin names. There are walkways designed to explore the grounds and benches to sit on where you can reflect upon the magnificent flora.

Our strongest impression on this adventure was the friendly nature of the people we met. Everywhere we went, kindness and acceptance was abundant. Time was not a pressing issue in the many meetings we attended. There was no sense of urgency or the feeling of being rushed. What was more important was feeling good about each other.

We asked our new friends, colleagues and clients, “What makes Americans and Europeans move to Costa Rica?” Here is what they said, essentially: “We have a strong sense of family, a deep caring for each other, and a slow paced lifestyle. Our people are well educated with a 94% literacy rate. We are also pro-business as we attract many companies who want to move here. These companies are aware of the value of an educated work force”.

Intel was offered as an example. They had identified 10 cities where they could open offices in the South and Central America’s. With everyone wooing them, Costa Rica was not even on their radar. The people rallied, as did the President and all other luminaries, to convince Intel to choose Costa Rica, which they finally did. Now, Intel continues to grow and expand there.

Advising our Costa Rican clients on marketing luxury real estate was a sheer delight and we have made some wonderful friends in the process. We encourage you to reach out and connect with your counterparts in this fine country.

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Luxury Real Estate Branding: Identify, Define, Then Dominate Your Market Niche

April 15, 2012

Photo Courtesy of Apple

Most luxury real estate marketing professionals think of branding as a creating a new look for their product or service. But, the realm of branding actually occurs in the minds of your target market. And, it occurs in product or service categories. Whoever comes up “top-of-mind” in a category becomes the market leader.

For every product or service category that is meaningful to us, we have a category. Often there are many sub-categories in our mind. For example, personal computers have a sub-category for desktops, laptops and tablets. Some sub-categories even have their own sub-sub-categories.

For example, when Apple introduced that Mac Air, a very slim and light-weight laptop that runs on a Flash drive (not a hard drive) a new sub-sub-category was born. As Intel and many other companies jumped on the band-wagon to copy the success of the Mac Air, the category was given a name: “Ultrabooks”.

It can also be said that ultrabooks are a niche within the product category of computers. A niche is a specialized but profitable corner of the market Identifying and dominating an uncontested or under served market niche is the fastest route to market leadership in that niche. The operative word in the definition of niche is ‘profitable’. A niche would simply not exist if there was not a market for it that was profitable.

The iPad actually redefined the category of tablet computing, as there were several attempts at creating this new category prior to its launch. Apple has so outdistanced any of its competitors in both quality and quantity of units sold that it is next to impossible for any other company to catch up.

Only Amazon’s Kindle Fire which uses Android as its operating system, has been successful at making a dent. But, the Kindle Fire can only complete on price (not on features and not on the the number of available apps). Because, Amazon sells their tablet at cost or below they have made it very difficult for other Android based competitors to enter this category. And, other tablets using alternative operating systems, such as Windows 8, will have a very tough time entering the market.

We offer this discussion of market categories to get you thinking about potential uncontested or under-served market niches, as luxury real estate marketing professionals. Here is why: What is the first brand to come to mind when you think of the category of tablet computer? For most people tablet and iPad are synonymous. What would it mean to you if your name was synonymous with the profitable niche that you decided to dominate?

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Marketing Luxury Real Estate: Fine-tuning Your Appreciation of Landscaping-Part 2

April 12, 2012

One of the many skills involved with successfully marketing luxury real estate is having an appreciation for fine landscaping. For example, do you know your tropical flowering plants? Each time you spot a plant or a tree that you have not seen or have not focused upon before, you have the opportunity to learn something new. This quest for a greater depth of knowledge about landscaping can enrich your life and also demonstrate your marketing savvy when you are showing a potential buyer a property.

If tropical plants thrive in your marketplace, it would be time well spent to take an occasional trip to your local nursery and learn about these magnificent species. The more common ground you have with your clients the faster you can establish rapport and trust. The speed of trust can translate into more transactions and significantly increase your earning power.

Can you identify this plant? Don't go bananas! It's a Plantain.

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Marketing Luxury Real Estate: Fine-tuning Your Appreciation of Landscaping

April 11, 2012

One of the many skills involved with successfully marketing luxury real estate is having an appreciation for fine landscaping. When we lived in Los Angeles we looked forward to seeing the coral trees bloom each year. They were planted along the center divide of a 4 mile long boulevard that lead to the ocean. We spotted this one at the Santa Barbara Airport. The sculpture of the branches of the tree depicted above, silhouetted against the bright blue sky reminded us about these magnificent deciduous trees.

Marketing Luxury Real Estate: Message on the Bottle

April 9, 2012

As a luxury real estate marketing professional you can have a superior value proposition, but will you be able to capture the attention of your ideal client? As the world becomes more democratized with technology, the competition for attention has become one of the biggest marketing challenges. First, you have to capture the attention of your ideal clients, (so they can hear you loud and clear above the din of your competition), and then you have to hold on to it.

Here is a clear example from the world of wine. According to 2009 figures, over 20 billion bottles of wine were produced globally. Competition for attention is fierce. We recently discovered two Spanish wines produced by La Granja (the farm) 360 from Spain. Modestly priced at $3.99 and $4.99 a bottle, it is thriving in sales side by side with similarly priced California wines (California makes 90% of wines in the US). What makes is different is its message on the bottle.

Both wines have eye catching labels. The first bottle pictured above is a 50/50 blend of Tempranillo and Garnacha grapes. Wine connoisseurs describe it as, “An everyday drinking soft rounded juicy red wine, with rich ripe raspberry flavors, and great match for barbecue, roasted pork chops, spare ribs, sausages, grilled vegetables and cheeses.” The ordinary zebra has made itself extraordinary by painting his back end in red!

The second is a Syrah with a 100% juice Syrah grapes, planted for the first time in this region. Unlike its North American cousins, this wine is not jammy. Here is the review, “It's ripe with blackberry-fresh-off-the-bramble flavor with hints of dried herbs and well-balanced tannins. And as the label of the rooster with the golden egg portends, this wine is provocatively irreverent... it keeps you pouring.” The rooster is crowing about producing a golden egg!

Like wine there may be several comparable luxury real estate marketing professional in your market place. This is where graphics and design come into play. Graphics are a shortcut to get the message across of how you are different, and to be great it has to convey your message at a glance.

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Marketing Luxury Real Estate: The Power of Passionate Messaging

April 8, 2012

One of the key components of strategic branding and marketing, when marketing luxury real estate is thoroughly knowing the mindset of your target market and speaking to them in their language. That is what is known in marketing terms as messaging. When you can communicate your extraordinary promise of value succinctly, i.e., with an economy of words and graphics, and you can do so on an emotional level, with passion, your chances of success increase exponentially.

Luxury Real Estate Marketing: Are you Ready to Bury the Sardine?

April 6, 2012

As a luxury real estate marketing professional it is important to be well versed in all the cultures that surround us and particularly those in your marketplace. It is a great way to establish rapport with a potential client, and to become the go to person for that community. In our previous post, we discussed several spring events; here is one from Murcia, Spain that is delightful, and would be well worth attending if you find yourself in Spain.

One of the autonomous regions of Spain is Murcia. Murcia borders are the Mediterranean Sea, Andalucía and Valencia. Unlike its neighboring regions Murcia is a one province region. One of the notable festivals in Murcia is the “Entierro del la Sardina (Burial of the Sardine)”. This festival is held after Easter. This traditional parade began in 1850. A group of students decided to form a group whose leader is a sardine (symbolizing fasting and abstinence) in order to relive the Carnival Fiesta.

On the 14^th of April 2012, a grand parade of floats representing the various sardine (Sardinero) groups, will be accompanied by musicians of every variety including Samba bands, costumed Giant heads representing the gods of Olympus, and all participants will be throwing thousand of toys to the crowds.

The evening ends in the wee hours of the morning with the burning of the papier-mâché effigy of the Lenten sardine in Plano de San Francisco.

What a great way to celebrate the end of the Eater holiday. Happy Easter Everyone!

Cheers, Ron & Alexandra

Luxury Real Estate Marketing: From Confetti to Rosemary

April 5, 2012

As a luxury real estate marketing professional it is important to be well versed in all the cultures that surround us and particularly those in your marketplace. It is a great way to establish rapport with a potential client, and to become the go to person for that community.

The Spring Season is a time of celebration. It signifies rebirth, new life, and the beginning of a New Year. Here are a few of the rites of spring from around the world.

The Persian New Year is known as Nowruz. It is celebrated by the Iranians, as well other parts of the world, Central Asia, Crimea and some groups in the Balkans It is based on the Zoroastrian religion, and it celebrates the day of or the day after the spring vernal equinox, depending on the region.

The Buddhists celebrate the New Year with Buddha’s birthday on April 8^th. In Thailand, Burma, Sri Lanka, Cambodia and Laos, the New Year is celebrated for three days from the first full moon day in April.

Easter is the Christian celebration of the resurrection of Christ. Emperor Constantine decided the date would be celebrated on the first Sunday after the first full moon of the vernal equinox. This date may fall in a 35-day range from March 22 to April 25.

The Greek Orthodox Christians celebrate Easter after Passover. The logic in their celebration is that Christ died after Passover, and this is a more accurate time to celebrate. This year the Greek Orthodox Easter will be celebrated on April 15^th.

Passover is observed to commemorate the freeing of the Jewish people from slavery in Egypt. A special meal, (Seder) is prepared accompanied by a reading of the Passover story.

In South and Central America, Catholics celebrate Easter and La Semana Santa, or Holy Week as one of the highest holy days of the year. In Latin America and Spain, the week leading up to Easter involves solemn processions, prayer, masses and other preparations for Jesus' rebirth. Cascarones or confetti eggs are made by hollowing out a chicken egg and filling it with confetti or small toys. The outside of the shell is also decorated. To have a cascarone broken on your head signifies good luck.

In the Sweden Walpugisnacht is celebrated. The legend is it that witches filled the skies on the eve of St. Walpurgis Day on April 30 or May 1^st. Torches are made of rosemary and burned so that the smoke will repel the witches. This festival is also celebrated by the Czechs, Dutch, Estonians, Finns, Germans, Latvians, Lithuanians, and Austrians.

Get acquainted with the people who are buying. As the planet seems to shrink and people from more nations are in the market for luxury real estate here in the United States, it is important to learn the different customs and unique slants on luxury. Being knowledgeable of the various cultures of our planet gives you an appreciation for all the people who make up our global melting pot.

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