The few numbers most affluence researchers and luxury journalists know are these: the world’s super rich, or the UHNW (Ultra High Net Worth) population make up 0.000029 of the population, yet spend, according to Wealth-X, about $230 billion annually on watches, jewelry, automobiles, private jets, yachts and travel. And their net worth is $30M and up. So that is what we know, which is really not much.
And, what many marketers, sales people, brokers, just about anyone who wants to sell to them often donotknow is how to find them, and once found, how to sell to them. The UHNW group are notoriously elusive, and spend much money keeping it that way. But one book, written by those who know this population, has taken a very different approach to learning more about the habits and behaviors of this elusive, heterogeneous crowd.
The book, now #1 on the Amazon New releases list, is called Secrets of Selling to the Super Rich: Superstars of Luxury and is written by Doug Gollan, Founder/Editor-in-Chief of DG Amazing Experiences, a CEO-style weekly luxury travel e-newsletter for private jet owners; Daniel Wade, co-founder, past President and Publisher of Elite Traveler, and Michael Calman, President and Founder of Calman Consulting, a marketing firm that provides omni-platform marketing and digital programs for legacy brands and innovative start-ups. All of these gentlemen have over 100 years of experience in businesses that rely on selling to the UHNW. They have, not only, entrenched and multi-layered experience in understanding the needs, wants and purchase motivations of the UHNW individuals, but they also know those who successfully sell to this group.
Secrets of Selling to the Super Rich features interviews from luxury sales experts who have done ultra-luxury transactions for many years. They share misperceptions about the super-rich, and relate how their experience, intuition and knowledge have served to create extraordinary marketing opportunities. Many of the luxury experts interviewed here are not household names, but have much to say about the underlying behaviors, needs, sales processes and cycles of the UHNW consumer – all a little different due to age and wealth status.
Those interviewed are top travel advisors Bill Fischer and Stacy Fischer-Rosenthal of Fischer Travel Enterprises ( $100,000 up front for membership,) Stacy Small of Elite Travel International, plus luxury tour operator Deborah Calmeyer of ROAR Africa, all of whom have celebrity and CEO clientele, and Deepak Ohri, CEO of lebua Hotels and Resorts, who personally sold $30,000 tickets to an exclusive dinner he hosted, and Jon Omer, VP of Faberge, among others. They know how to sell to the wealthy.
In those and other interviews, fascinating insights emerge. And, if there is one overarching shared relevancy, it is crucial nature of relationship of seller to buyer, that begins in earnest when the product or service is sold, and then has the possibility of lasting for years to come. In a recent interview, one of the authors, Doug Gollan, said that he wanted to get out of the ivory tower and get in the one-on-one trenches with those who actually sell to the UHNWs. He continued, “We wanted to find out everything, from how they developed leads to building relationships, how they handled gatekeepers and intermediaries, how they nourished their customer relationships, and what worked, and also what didn't.”
He and his colleagues have done this well. This is a true insider’s book, well written, with insider information from insiders, and provides us a seductive invitation to enter the UHNW world, should we so desire.
