MIAMI—South Florida's commercial real estate industry is recovering—but that doesn't mean the competition has waned. Indeed, savvy commercial real estate owners are brainstorming new and unusual strategies to differentiate their properties in the marketplace.

“Events and open houses get to be run-of-the-mill,” says Kimberly Barbar, Stiles Realty broker associate. “You need to be fresh and different to get the right attention.”

With this in mind, Stiles is taking a whole new approach to marketing commercial real estate properties. The company is not only marketing its client's properties, but also its clients.

“Most of the time people don't pay attention to the company that either owns the property or is sub-leasing the space, but rather just the space itself,” says Paul Marko, who took over as president of Stiles in June 2012. “Sometimes, there is promotional value in a company as an intangible part of the transaction. Many of our clients are world-renowned brands, so we thought let's partner with them to offer unique broker incentives that will draw attention to the property and create excitement.”

Case in point: Stiles' largest and most current client incentive surrounds Birks and Mayors on the lease of its current headquarters space in Sunrise, FL. As part of its marketing efforts, Stiles partnered with Mayor's Jewelers to offer brokers a Rolex watch for the successful close on a lease transaction by Oct. 15, 2013.

And Barbar says that's just the beginning. Stiles is lining up broker incentives much like this one on properties where it makes the most sense: “This is a good start for us. We are creating different types of incentives and marketing plans that are customized to fit our client's needs.” 

In a series of broker incentives that carry name brands like Harley Davidson and BB&T Bank, Barbar is gearing up to start offering a Harley Davidson motorcycle, BB&T Center concert tickets and more, along with bonus commissions, to brokers who sign the lease deals on selected properties. So far, the Rolex is her most expensive incentive, but she says “more is in the works as we launch this new wave of incentive marketing.”

Stiles, the exclusive agent for the property, and Birks and Mayors collaborated to create an overall marketing incentive that would play up the property's unique characteristics and attract attention from an elite class of brokers who represent large users. With the prime selling points being the property's unique features—a state-of-the-art vault, large production areas and high-end camera system—Barbar says she knew she would need to offer brokers an incentive that would not only be exciting, but also remind brokers of these features.

“The Rolex was more than an incentive, it was a branding opportunity,” says Barbar. “The watch sends a message to brokers that this property not only is fit for a top-quality tenant, but also boasts security and warehouse/production elements that are rarely found in a new building. You really can do anything with this kind of property.”