One of the best ways to marketing your real estate services is to specialize for your local community. The approach many real estate agents take is to buy a mailing list and repeatedly send out mailings to those within a specific zip code, but that can get expensive. An alternative approach is to tap into the power centers of your local community and build relationships with community leaders.

No matter where you live, there are people who hold political, financial and social power within your local community. These people usually have great connections and make business and political deals happen because of the people they know. If you can tap into their network, you can become the go-to real estate agent for your local community. Here is a six-step approach to targeting the influential people in your area.

1. Build a Personal Brand – Building trust and credibility in the eyes of highly influential people starts with how you present yourself – including how you dress, what car you drive, what your office looks like, how you speak, and how you present your services. You must convey professionalism and success in each interaction. Take time to define how you want people to see you by thinking about the strengths, talents, and passions that make you unique. When you meet people, what impression should they walk away with?
2. Specialize for a Real Estate Niche – Highly influential people often are business owners, so they appreciate and respect when you can clearly define what types of prospects you want to attract. Pick a real estate niche and create your unique selling proposition so you are ready whenever someone asks “What do you do for a living?”
3. Target Referral Partners – Make a list of people within influential social circles who would make great additions to your referral network and start looking for opportunities to meet with them.
4. Participate in Business Organizations – Join and regularly attend at least two local business organizations like your Chamber of Commerce branch to get to know the influencers at these organizations. Volunteering or speaking at events can help you rise through the ranks to gain status.
5. Attend Town Halls and Local Community Meetings – If your local community holds town hall or community meetings, start attending to see who is voicing their concerns and presenting ideas. While the meetings, themselves, may be boring, you can meet highly influential people just by attending and listening to their concerns.
6. Get Involved with Local Charity Fund-Raisers
   Find a charity in your area that you strongly advocate and get involved with fund-raising activities. You will not only meet high-power donors, but you’ll have the opportunity to give back to your community.

When targeting highly influential people, make a list of all the events they attend, associations they belong to, and businesses they own. Then, find ways to meet and network with these people. If you can become one of the influencers, it could take your real estate business to a new level.

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