I got the opportunity to leave my J-O-B in 2001, and devote all

my time taking my real estate business to the next level.

At that time I had (2) private lenders. These lenders were

delighted with the monthly checks they received from me and

I loved the quick cash it provided me to buy houses.

I knew this program was golden and I knew I wanted more

private lenders in my life FAST who could virtually provide

unlimited cash to fund my real estate deals.

So, how do I get the word out?

There were a number of ways such as one-on-one meetings,

direct mailing campaigns, TV and radio commercials.

My choice was to leverage my time by holding a luncheon and

invite people to hear my presentation.

Why a luncheon? Well, let’s look at all the benefits.

- Present to a large group to leverage my time

- Attractive meeting location

- Controlled atmosphere

- Answer everyone’s questions at once

- No pressure

- Professional presentation

- Linger & mingle

- Synergy

Let’s look a little closer at each of those points.

- Present to a large group to leverage my time

Of all the items listed above, for me, this was the most

critical.

I had talked one-on-one with my current investors and it had

taken quite a bit of time. I carefully went over the program

in great detail so they would understand it. While that way

worked, it would just take too much time to accomplish my

goal. I could come up with a lot of cash talking to all my

friends and family but that would take months, taking time

away from running my business. I didn’t want to wait that

long and I didn’t want to limit the program to only the

people I knew. I wanted to reach a large audience. I

wanted tons of cash.

Now, don’t get me wrong, you’ll find investors who want to

have a one-on-one meeting and that’s great - don’t turn it

down.

Another thing I’d like to help you avoid is wasting time

presenting your program one-on-one to folks who are not ready

to invest or are not able. At the luncheon, they know coming

in the door that the minimum investment is $5K - that’s part

of our pre-screening. I don’t waste people’s time. I don’t

waste mine.

- Attractive meeting location

There are a lot of different options about choosing where to

hold a luncheon. While I could have made the presentation in

my office for 6 to 8 people, the place is full of paperwork

and filing cabinets and all the tools and equipment of a busy

rental and rehab business. We focus on function and I didn’t

want to redirect our activities.

We used a location that was easy to find, had adequate

parking, was in a lovely neighborhood and was landscaped

beautifully.

An attractive meeting location sets the scene for the

presentation.

- Controlled atmosphere

Picture this: You are in an investor’s home and you start to

make your presentation and the phone rings. The husband gets

up to answer it while you talk to the wife. When he comes

back you have to repeat the information he missed. Now they

are both caught up and you continue with the presentation.

Then the kids run through the room and the wife’s attention is

redirected as she gets up to usher them out. Once again you

have to wait or repeat the information. Just as you get

rolling, the dog wanders in the room and starts whining so

the husband yells at the kids to come and take the dog out.

This is not a great way to make and effective presentation.

It can be frustrating.

The meeting location provides a place where you are in

control of the situation.

- Answer everyone’s questions at once

In a group, people seem to come up with really great

questions - things you haven’t thought to mention. There are

so many things about this business that seasoned real estate

business owners know that may be completely foreign to the

audience. Someone will bring it to your attention.

Also, someone may be shy about speaking up. They don’t want

to show what they don’t know. When someone asks a question,

others are probably wondering about the same thing.

With a group, everyone gets educated at once.

One of the nice surprises for me was that someone would

ask a question and someone else would answer it before I did.

This brought a lot of credibility to what I was doing.

- No pressure

Did you ever have a friend or relative who decided to sell

insurance? Maybe you really liked them but you had all the

insurance you needed or wanted. Still, every time you saw

them, they would drop hints about how you should have even

more coverage. After a while, did you start to avoid them?

Yep, me too. I don’t want that to happen to anyone.

Even when you are as careful as possible, a one-on-one

meeting can come across as high pressure. With our relaxed

luncheon, people can listen then pass or play. No pressure.

We make sure that no individual is ever put on the spot.

- Professional presentation

The pressure was on to come up with a top-notch presentation

because I was going to have a room full of sharp investors. I

went over and over my slides and my script until it was

perfect.

- Linger & mingle

At the luncheon, people were so comfortable they didn’t rush

off afterwards. They took their time. This gave us the

opportunity to tell them even more about the program.

- Synergy

There’s a kind of excitement that builds as they talk to one

another over lunch. This came as a surprise to us. After the

presentation everyone went back to the dining tables. Since

the dining tables could seat 6-8 people and almost everyone

had come alone or with one other person, they were having

lunch with strangers. The one thing they obviously had in

common was the presentation. As they talked about it, their

excitement grew. They sold themselves on the program. Neat!

So, those are just some of the reasons we decided to hold a

luncheon and it worked out great.

Important Tip

For years I attended tons of RE seminars & boot camps. Learned

a lot and implemented what I learned. What I failed to do was

to put each “system” in an easy to use, step-by-step 3 ring

binder. Do this early in your career and it will make your life

a lot easier.

Alan Cowgill is a speaker, author, and real estate entrepreneur. Alan has bought or sold over 200 investment properties. His step-by-step system “Private Lending Made Easy”

teaches others to find private lenders. Contact Alan at 937-390-0816 or 866-831-3540. For a FREE audio go to www.PrivateLendingMadeEasy.com