Most agents use the same tools and chase the same clients, but wonder why they plateau, writes coach Darryl Davis. Here’s how top performers do it.
Tiffany McQuade is building the kind of real estate business that most agents want, and while they may claim it, few are actually building it. In other words, a real estate business where clients become advocates, referrals come unsolicited, and competition becomes largely irrelevant.
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McQuaid, founder of a Naples, Fla.-based brokerage firm and author of The INth Degree: How to Stand Out By Going All In, has spent years developing a repeatable differentiation approach. Rather than flashy technology or big budgets, its approach is based on intentional experience, strategic visibility, and consistent follow-through that turns one deal into a decade-long relationship.
She recently spoke with us on the Unscripted Real Estate Podcast and shared the strategies she uses. They are not theoretical. These have been field tested in one of the most competitive luxury goods markets in the country. And most of them are available to any agent who wants to think differently about how they show up.
A good market hides a skills gap
All agents know the market is changing. Few people know how much this change has revealed the difference between truly skilled agents and those operating in merely permissive environments.
McQuaid is frank about this: “Constantly train and educate yourself to become sharper and more skilled, especially in today’s market.” She points to negotiation training, specifically Chris Voss’ work on building a robust resource packet, which is underutilized by most agents.
The agents who adapt the quickest to tougher situations are not necessarily the most experienced. They are the most ready. Deliberate skill development, treated as non-negotiable as lead generation, is what gives it that edge.
Your competitors will tell you exactly where not to advertise
The most crowded marketing channels in the real estate industry are usually the least crowded because they work best. It’s crowded because the agent defaults to what it’s familiar with. Real estate portal. social media. Placement adjacent to MLS. The result is costly competition for attention where differentiation is nearly impossible.
McQuaid took a different approach from the beginning. “You can’t just place an ad in the real estate section,” she explains. “Go where the masses are.” That means mapping where your target clients actually spend their time – what they’re reading, where they’re congregating, what they’re doing recreationally – and building visibility there instead.
Direct mail isn’t dead. it’s just being done incorrectly
A standard real estate postcard (headshot, market update, call to action) has trained recipients to ignore your contact. That’s not an argument against direct mail. This is a general argument against direct mail.
McQuaid’s approach bears no resemblance to industry standards. She sends out an extra large 11×17 collapsible mailer titled “Important Numbers to Know.” The White House and Department of Defense are listed first. This piece is designed to be stored, not thrown away. Its size means that it physically wraps the remaining mail into a stack and ensures that it is processed.
In a digitally saturated market, tangible touchpoints carry a disproportionate weight. That’s precisely because so few agents are investing in getting their touchpoints right. The hurdles to clear are not high. You just need to really think about whether the recipient wants to keep what you sent.
Referral business is built on experiences, not transactions
All agents say they value relationships. Far fewer people actually design their businesses based on what that actually means. There’s a big difference between an agent who expertly closes deals and an agent who creates the experiences that clients talk about.
McQuaid calls hers a “fanatic fan business,” an intentional framework that changes the entire operating model. Based on the principles of Disney’s approach to sensory environment design, we treat every touchpoint with our clients as intentional choices, whether it’s freshly baked cookies in the office, thoughtful environmental details, or consistent human warmth.
As one observer put it, “Make them feel at home in your space, and they’ll want to invite you into their space and sell to them.”
Agents who play a long game will send gifts when they lose.
This is a practice that most agents never consider. McQuaid will send a gift after a listed appointment that was not earned.
“Work with local businesses like florists and bakeries,” she explains. “Let’s send a reward right after the promise of listing.”
The reason is strategic. Sellers will remember which agents acted gracefully when there was nothing more to gain. The list has an expiration date. Agent performance is poor. Things change. Even if you don’t have any business, an impressed agent is often the first person you call when the time comes.
This is the fairness of the relationship, which silently increases over the years. McQuaid extends the same intentionality to energy and presence. “You need a high level of enthusiasm and energy when approaching the role of the day,” she said.
Agents who maintain high performance are not those who mobilize positivity as performance. They are genuinely invested in the outcomes of the people they work with. Clients notice a difference.
through line
None of these strategies are secrets. Most agents have encountered all of those versions. What McQuaid’s approach makes clear is that knowing is not the differentiator; consistent execution is.
The agents who build businesses that last across market cycles aren’t the ones with the most tools or the largest teams. These are the people who repeatedly do the low-key, relationship-building work in good and difficult markets alike, with no shortcuts.
That consistency, more than any single tactic, makes your business irresistible.
