Broker-to-broker leads are augmented by business generated by LeadingRE’s corporate relocation company, RELO Direct®, and from Web traffic on LeadingRE.com and LuxuryPortfolio.com, the organization’s award-winning, luxury-focused website, which attracts a global audience of visitors from more than 200 countries/territories every month.
Luxury Portfolio International® is one of the network’s flagship programs and is a valued brand enhancement tool for the 200 LeadingRE members who specialize in the luxury arena. In addition to the website, the program offers strategic advertising opportunities and a magazine focused on stunning homes and luxury housing and lifestyle trends. With a worldwide distribution of more than 100,000, the magazine reaches a highly targeted audience of affluent consumers worldwide.
Hilton & Hyland Real Estate, a prominent firm in Beverly Hills, Calif., is just one example of how a local leader draws on the network’s global resources to better serve its clientele originating in many parts of the world. “Our company is known for our work in the uber-luxe market, and our buyers often come from other countries,” says Jeff Hyland. “The global exposure we receive from Luxury Portfolio is second only to its sophisticated tools like Luxe Analytics® and research studies, which give us advanced insights into affluent consumer behavior so we can tailor our marketing accordingly.”
LeadingRE’s brand enhancement tools are not limited to the high-end market. “We often say we are ‘the brand behind the brands,’ so our goal is to strengthen our members’ brands—never to overshadow them,” explains Paul Boomsma, LeadingRE COO, who also serves as president of Luxury Portfolio. “By providing marketing materials that help them tell the story of their global connections, we help our members convey that they offer the best of both worlds: a truly local perspective with expansive resources. And, simply by displaying our logo, they relay that they are part of an elite, invitation-only group of the top firms worldwide.”
In the area of technology, LeadingRE offers affiliates an innovative, Web-based referral tracking system and technology partnerships through its vendor alliance program. The MarTech conference offers an advanced program focusing on the ways technology and marketing impact the success of a real estate company, ensuring that affiliates have exposure to the most current strategies.
LeadingRE also encourages website excellence among its members through the Website Quality Certification program, created by the network in 2009 to recognize member sites that apply high standards for design, technology and service. This year’s winner of Best Overall Website is john greene REALTOR® in Naperville, Ill. (johngreenerealtor.com). The very premise of the site is a focus on “local,” with a prominent theme of “Live & Love Local.”
“When we redesigned our site, it was natural to emphasize the fact that we have been part of our community for more than three decades. As we note on our site, ‘We live, we thrive, we love, locally’,” says President and CEO Tim Greene. “That says, our affiliation with our global network is a key part of who we are, allowing us to expand our reach and tap into collective resources as needed. When I took on the reins of our family business as a relative youngster, I relied heavily on the expertise of my LeadingRE colleagues across the country.”
While technology is critical, ask anyone affiliated with LeadingRE, and they will tell you it’s all about the people. That’s one reason the network’s Conference Week is such a success. The event—just one part of a comprehensive professional development program that also includes 24/7 education via the Institute online learning platform, webinars and company-wide training resources—recently attracted 2,500 attendees from nearly 20 countries. The event offers five distinct conferences with content tailored to principal brokers, sales associates, luxury specialists, sales managers, marketing and technology pros, relocation and business development staff.
At one point during the week, all groups converged for a shared general session—a truly impressive gathering representative of the strength of this international network. “Looking around the room that day and seeing so many industry leaders gathered was a powerful experience,” O’Connor reports. “While most of the year, they are the embodiment of ‘local,’ serving their communities by meeting their real estate needs and through countless civic contributions, on this day, the pride of being affiliated with the best firms from around the world was evident. As a network, we strive to earn our name, ‘Leading Real Estate Companies of the World®,’ every day, and we work to be the very best locally and globally.”
For more information, visit www.LeadingRE.com.
