The NYTimes had a piece about the “marketing revolution” in real estate—a fascinating look at how the promotion of Manhattan apartments has changed over the decades. But what really grabbed my attention was this quote from the head of a residential marketing firm: “Back in the mid-’80s, in the residential real estate world, people didn’t know how to spell ‘marketing.’ ” Really? I fell into residential real estate marketing when I joined Boston’s Schneider & Associates as a pretty green PR account exec. It was the mid-‘80s, and Joan Schneider not only knew how to spell real estate marketing, she pretty much invented it. It was Joan who taught me to treat marketing real estate like you would any other luxury consumer product. I learned the art of naming real estate developments, and the craft of creating memorable special events. Mundane real estate milestones such as topping off events were turned into spectacles—an all-tuba concert on the roof of a Cambridge condo, or a lifestyle vignette with mannequins on the final beam of a Malden townhouse complex. There were plenty of challenges, too. Banks were financing construction projects in less than desirable locations; places Joan termed “emerging neighborhoods.” No matter where the developments were, Joan approached each one with the same determination and pluck—we were going to promote the hell out of this condo in the middle of some skeevy section of town, and by god, it would sell.

Beginning with my days at Schneider & Associates, writing for and about real estate has been my forte. From Boston, I headed back home to Miami to work for an advertising and public relations firm that specialized in luxury real estate and resorts. As a freelance copywriter, real estate remains one of my specialties. I’ve been through a couple of real estate cycles now, and the lessons that I learned from Joan have stayed with me. Everyone should have a mentor in their life from who they learn even half as much.