The Give-First Philosophy That Led To Five Transactions (And One Real Friendship)

A couple years ago I was driving down a side street in Duvall and I saw a small business sign for "Sage Garden Consulting." There was a QR code on the bottom corner. I'd never heard of the business. I didn't know the owner. I had zero strategic reason to care.

I pulled over and scanned it anyway.

That single scan eventually produced five real estate transactions, one lifelong friendship, two episodes of local content, and a flywheel that is still spinning today.

The Scan

The QR code took me to Emily Christensen's Instagram profile. Emily was a permaculture designer and garden consultant. She was just getting her business off the ground.

I followed her. Then I DMed her.

Here's roughly what I wrote:

*"Hey Emily, I saw your sign and followed the QR code. Love what you're doing. I run a local show called Duvall TV where I feature small businesses in town. Would you be open to me doing a free episode featuring your work? No cost, no catch. I just like highlighting local operators."*

The Episode

Emily wrote back within the hour.

We scheduled Episode 14 of Duvall TV. I came out with a camera, walked her garden, let her talk about her philosophy, filmed some of her design work. No payment changed hands. No contract was signed.

It was a fun episode. That was supposed to be the end of the story.

The Referral Chain

A few months later, Emily called me. She and her husband Wade were thinking about selling. I sold their current house. I helped them buy a new one. Transactions one and two.

Then another move for family reasons. Transaction three.

Then Wade mentioned his best friend Corey Rice was going to need help. Corey called me. I did two transactions for Corey and his family. Transactions four and five.

One give-first DM on Instagram turned into five closings across two families.

The Rule I Live By

You get paid for the good you do in inverse proportion to your expectation of being paid.

The give-first has to be real. If it's strategic, it's not give-first, it's bait. People can tell.

If you're a real estate agent reading this: make content about people in your community because you like them. Not because it's a lead generation strategy.

Because you like them.

The business will find you.