Leading Brokers Shift from Passive Marketing to Direct Communication to Maintain Deal Volume

Written by:

Rudi Davis

Date:

20 Oct 2025

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In today’s challenging commercial real estate environment, success increasingly depends on proactive relationship building rather than traditional marketing approaches, according to Matthew Antonis of Friend Commercial Real Estate.

“My broker always says it’s about direct communication, not passive marketing,” Antonis explains. “We’re not grab a listing and sit on it. We believe in constant communication, just talking about it, making calls, being proactive.”

The Power of Information Gathering

This relationship-first approach has helped Antonis source valuable off-market opportunities. “If I show up every day and have the discipline to make the calls, to have a lot of conversations, and just do that consistently, day in and day out, not trying to get the business on the first call but just building relationships, you tend to hear about things,” he says.

These conversations often reveal potential opportunities that aren’t yet ripe for action. “Maybe they’d like to do something but not at the right time,” Antonis notes. “I just collect all this information, and I try to creatively put deals together.”

The result is a steady flow of off-market transactions that often prove advantageous for both buyers and sellers. “Some of the best deals, and actually a couple of the best deals I have under contract right now are off market,” Antonis says. “They’re unique, they’re nuanced, for sure a little more difficult to wrap your arms around, but definitely for sellers and buyers, there’s a lot of advantages.”

Building Long-Term Relationships

Antonis’s client-centric approach has led him to develop expertise across multiple asset classes rather than specializing in just one property type. “I’m a little more client focused,” he explains. “I have a handful of really good quality clients, and they just happen to own different types of assets. I really focus on catering to their needs, their portfolio.”

This approach has paid dividends through repeat business and referrals. Antonis points to one of his first cold calls in the industry, to a contact from his previous career in healthcare, which led to transactions across industrial, medical office, and multifamily properties. “With that one client alone, I was able to do three different asset types, and I still do his leasing for his medical office even today,” he notes.

Creating Value Through Creativity

In today’s market environment, Antonis says deal creativity has become increasingly important. He describes a recent value-add play where alternative pricing strategies helped turn around an underperforming asset: “Instead of putting a price per square foot, per se, maybe wrap it up as a total number. The idea was we would come in for two years, we’d boost those rents, and then we would be able to package it for a higher sale price.”

The Future of Deal-Making

Looking ahead, Antonis believes success will continue to depend more on relationship building and creative problem-solving than passive approaches. His firm’s focus on direct communication and proactive outreach suggests a model for how brokers can continue to create value even in challenging market conditions.