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Marie Farrell

Florida Realtor Builds a

Business in Panama

From Jacksonville, Florida, Re/Max agent Marie Farrell has built up a business in Panama, positioning herself as a specialist on the fast-growing Central American country.

Panama was a natural choice for Farrell. She grew up near the Canal, but left when she was 19. Essentially starting from scratch, she launched her international business in 2005 by getting her CIPS (Certified International Property Specialist) designation. Then she started attending international conferences, meeting developers and agents, learning the market.

Eventually she formed a partnership with representatives in Panama and now she hosts tours and seminars, creating a network of agents, investors, developers and potential buyers. In addition to sales in Panama, her connections recently landed her the listings for a Jacksonville sub-division built by a Venezuelan developer.

“I think it’s important to keep in mind when you’re in Panama, there are great opportunities and when you are here, there are great opportunities” she says. “So you work both markets.”

You started by getting your CIPS designation, what did you do next?

Basically what was most important was to get to know the Panama market. To learn the players in the market I attended the NAR convention. In the international pavilion, you have all the people who are really interested and really working that market. To me that really helped when I went to the convention and met some of the developers in Panama and I made very good contacts. And then when I went to Panama I met them one on one.

One of the most important things I’m finding out in international is that sometimes you might hear about a great project coming up and you get excited about it and it doesn’t happen. It’s extremely important that you know your developers and their background and know they have a good reputation and strong financial backing and they’ve been building for awhile and that if you’re going to sell a property that property is going to be built.

How do you determine if developers are legit?

You have to do some research. You have to know the country. You have to know the people.

I really try to concentrate on builders I know have been in business for a long time. And how you learn that is by going to the conferences. And I have several partners in Panama, who takes care of finding a lot of the information important to us; where we should take our clients and where we should not take our clients.

What kind of partnership deals do to you have?

Basically we split everything. I do all the advertising in the U.S., I also advertise in Canada. And that’s how we get clients. I do a lot of e-mailing to all the networks, like FIABCI, CIPS and NAR. We try to do two investment trips a year. And then my partners help out with their time, working with developers, arranging property showings, setting up client meetings with local attorneys and banks; really providing a full service approach - if we sell something we split it.

Where do you advertise?

I advertise in the Canada Post, the New York Times. We also advertise locally in the Times-Union here in Jacksonville. We’re finding out that advertising in warm areas like Jacksonville is not the most productive. I spent a lot of money this year on ads here in town and I didn’t get many responses. We figured out we need to advertise more in winter and in areas where the weather is colder and people are thinking a second home in the tropics sounds great.

Based on experience, we will be concentrating the majority of our marketing efforts in colder areas like Canada, New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania – generally where winter is cold and long.  

But you find certain newspapers work better than other outlets?

So far I have received the most calls from ads in the Canada Post. I think I received one call from a Chicago ad and none from the New York Times. A lot depends on the area and time of year.

What works in terms of the copy?

I think what really works is a nice ad with a nice presence. If you do small ads they usually get lost. We did a nice color ad in the Poconos —I think that’s important, so you can emphasize how beautiful the mountains and ocean are —and it will also show well in a magazine. Picking the area is important. When we put an ad in a small regional magazine in Pennsylvania, we were able to get calls from New Jersey and New York. This year we’re going to try to do less ads, but nicer and more targeted ads. I know they’re going to cost more money, but I think they will capture more interest.

What else do you put in the ads?

I emphasize the locations, the mountains, the ocean and city. It will also tell you about the next investment tour coming up. I do say I am a native of Panama, so people are more comfortable with a person who is a native Spanish speaker and knows the country.

How many people participate in your tours?

I like to keep them small, usually less than 10 people.

How do you like to structure the tours?

Panama’s Tocumen airport has great connections from the US and Canada and I arrange for the airport’s VIP service to greet our guests as soon as they get off the plane to escort them through customs and collect their luggage. Then we arrange for transportation to their hotel. I do charge a very reasonable fee for transportation which usually includes several meals during our tour. Many of the developers are happy to offer refreshments and lunch to our guests - Panama has very reasonable costs and so far this arrangement seems to work the best.

You really have to get a feel for the group you have and sometimes make adjustments to the schedule. For example, on my last tour in August, the group thought they were more interested in city properties, but as the tour progressed, they realized they were more interested in beach and mountain properties – so we adjusted our itinerary to accommodate the group. So you lean these things little by little.

What else works, in terms of recruiting clients?

I do seminars when we are getting close to a trip. We did a seminar in Jacksonville just before our last tour and I was very happy with the attendance. We advertise and send out e-mail invitations encouraging people to come to the seminar and ask questions.

How do you bill the seminar?

I keep it informative and focused on Panama its investment opportunities, local culture, local real estate practices and practical information ex-pats are interested in, like medical services, supermarkets and utilities – that sort of information. Our local Board has a great presentation space which we rent. I limit my power point presentation to 2 hours, which allows plenty of time for people to ask questions.

I think it’s important that you tell people what you’re doing and if you’re excited about what you’re doing that goes a long way. In Jacksonville, it’s so funny, anybody who is going to Panama - I don’t know how, but they always get my name.

You really need to tell people what you’re doing and it is important to belong to circles that deal with the international market. Here we have an active international council where everybody knows each other. And that’s how I know where I can capture referrals and refer people working in other areas.

How many people typically attend the seminars?

We average about 10 to 12 people.

Anything else that helps you grow the business?

I think the most important thing is to attend the conferences that deal with these types of investments. Your seminars, your advertising is very important. And you need to make sure that you advertise in areas that are most effective – you have to know your market.

As you become more experienced, you start to do target marketing that brings the best results. But you don’t really know your target until you do the research and make mistakes. Then you start learning.

Who do you target?

Retirees and investors. For example I’m getting ready to mail postcards to certain markets. That’s another thing I do, mail a lot of post cards.

The postcards highlight, “Living your dream in Panama,” with a picture of a warm ocean and palm tree. And on back we highlight Panama as a great investment destination and up coming seminars and tours.

Marie Farrell is a broker associate with Re/Max Coastal Real Estate. Her web site can be found here.

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