Many of us work with folks who are relocating to our respective areas. I do, and I particularly enjoy doing so. Part of the reason is personal - I have relocated a bit myself and I take some pride is understanding what it's like and being able to assist others with their relocation more effectively as a result.

I probably don't need to preach to the choir - those of you who are experts at relocation clients already know what to do and how to best assist these buyers. And maybe you will share your secrets to success, too.

Here are some thoughts on how you can show your value to relocating consumers - things you can do to attract these folks, and what you might do for them one the working relationship has been established:

1. Become the expert in your market place - learn as much as you can about your neighborhoods, housing market conditions, services, transportation, growth and so on. Consider what YOU would want to know as a buyer moving to your area with no knowledge whatsoever

2. Get to know the Internet - find out what sources of information you can recommend to relocating buyers to help them become more knowledgeable, and check these out personally (e.g., your town's Chamber of Commerce site; the town's main website; Neighboroo, City Data, etc.). What sites can help them research schools? (e.g., your state education site, the local school district site, Great Schools, School Matters). What about crime statistics since you can't get into THAT discussion?

3. Develop a relocation package - I would do this both for on-line distribution as well as hard copyy 

• Gather the articles and brochures that you think would be useful to incoming buyers (check with your Chamber of Commerce) to put into snail mail kits
• Consider also scanning brochures and articles so they can be emailed, along with articles you may have written or information you have developed to help consumers with relocation. How impressive would that be to a buyer 3000 miles away to get, within minutes of your phone conversation, a complete relocation package via email
• Set up your relocation package to be downloaded from your website.

4. Write about your knowledge - Localism and ActiveRain are great places to expound upon your increasing knowledge of your local area AND your expertise in relocation (for just a few examples among many here in AR, visit Kristal Kraft's Denver Relocation site, Teresa Boardman's site on St. Paul, Tony Marriott's on Phoenix, Lenn Harley's site on the Rockville, MD area, and Laurie Manny's on Long Beach, among others that have great information on the local areas). You can showcase your knowledge on your personal website too, or link to your AR or other blogs. And make sure you use the information YOU have gained in your own relocation and translate this into consumer-friendly information and benefits.

5. Develop Consumer-friendly services - in addition to the relocation package, think about the other things consumers might need and benefit from. For starters, consider:

• Customized neighborhood reports to mail or email, or that folks can download from your site.
• Additional photos of homes of interest and the local community
• Virtual toursof properties that interest them (not just the MLS listing but ones YOU create yourself, say using Real Estate Shows) as well as tours of the area (again, think Localism)
• Preview homesthat buyers are interested in to provide more information than any MLS listing will give them (perhaps views are really important, or not being near the freeway)
• Develop customized house-hunting tours - yep, you probably will do this when they come to town, but advertise what it is you will do, how it benefits them and perhaps share an example. Again this can be promoted in your marketing pieces and on your website.
• Develop your "team" listif you don't have one -the real-estate related team (title, mortgage, escrow, home inspection, etc.) AND the ancillary people you can refer to your out-of-state buyers for help when they need it after moving (carpenters, painters, general repairs, house cleaners, landscapers, etc).
• Offer a guided tour of the area AFTER buyers move to acclimate them to shopping, restaurants, community attractions, parks, tourist stuff, etc.

6. Showcase your use of technology - how will YOUR understanding and use of technology help your buyers in their search for a house, the purchase itself, and the transition to their new home. Make sure THEY know about these services and benefits.

There you have it. Probably not everything you can do but a good place to start showing YOUR value.

So put your thinking caps on.

And please share with us your innovative ideas for this market niche.