Considering selling your farm and not sure where to start? Murray Wise Associates is one of the preeminent real estate and auction firms in the country and we specialize in marketing farmland. Our sole focus is to get as much market exposure for your farm as possible, and in turn maximize sale price. Below are some of the ways that we add value to sales:
Experience. The team at Murray Wise Associates has decades of experience in marketing farmland. Our sales professionals have built strong relationships within the farming, and more specifically, the agricultural investment community, including pension funds, hedge funds, family offices and private equity firms. Over the past 4 decades our experts have completed land and agribusiness transactions of more than $5 billion across 45 states.
Targeting Buyer Groups. The key to a successful sale is to identify the likely buyer groups to maximize marketing effectiveness. For unimproved Midwest farmland this would mean groups such as local farm operators, local investors, larger regional farm operators, high net worth individuals, institutional farmland investors and 1031 tax-deferred exchange buyers. For a different type of property, such as a dairy located in New Mexico, the group of target buyers would look much different. We would focus on large national dairy operations, investors who have expressed interest in dairy operations in the past and regional dairies that may be looking to expand.
Industry Leading Marketing Materials. We have in-house professionals that will design the marketing materials that are not only informative, but also eye-catching. While designing a simple newspaper ad may seem straight-forward, doing it in a manner that sets that ad apart from other “farm for sale” ads is where having an experienced team makes the difference. We also recognize the type of information that needs to be included in marketing materials to maximize buyer interest. Buyers that have information on a property at their fingertips are more likely to feel comfortable submitting an offer on a farm (private treaty) or bidding more for a farm (public auction).
Multi-Tiered Marketing Approach. Once the buyer groups are identified, the next challenge is reaching every potential interested party within those groups. This is where MWA sets itself apart from the competition.
• We deploy a number of marketing techniques to ensure that every potential buyer is aware of the sale. In a typical marketing campaign thousands of marketing brochures are sent by direct mail to potential buyers that we have identified.
• We also have an internal email database of over 10,000 subscribers that we send information to. This is a diverse set of individuals, from farmers to international investors. Many of our subscribers have followed our sales for years (and in some case decades).
• We use our strong social media presence to quickly and efficiently spread the word about farm sales. We have built up a large following on platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn and utilize these types of sites in all of our marketing campaigns.
• We create custom promotional videos for each sale that highlights the features of the farm as well as the specifics of the sale. These videos are featured on the MWA website, YouTube and Vimeo. They are also shared on our various social media accounts to spread the word about the sale. We also go a step further, and through the use of Google Ads, target specific regions surrounding the farm to ensure the video is getting widespread coverage.
• We prepare detailed and organized informational packets for potential bidders. Items such as preliminary title work, real estate tax information, farm production history, aerial maps, soil maps and much more are included for bidder review. This information is available for view and download from our website 24/7, allowing buyers to to do their due diligence at their convenience.
• Last, but certainly not least, is our “boots on the ground” commitment during the marketing period. MWA employees spend considerable time in the region surrounding the farm spreading the word about the upcoming sale and addressing any questions or concerns from potential bidders. In our experience, well-prepared bidders that show up on sale day with all of their questions answered are likely to be more comfortable bidding competitively and aggressively.
If you are considering selling your farm and would like to have a more in-depth conversation we would love to visit with you more to find out what your goals are and how we can best help you achieve them. You can call us at any time toll-free at (800) 607-6888 or reach us by email at info@mwallc.com.