How do you market yourself as a property finder / bird dog?

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I recently got hooked up with a local investor as a property finder, or bird dog as is the less appealing term. I want to start doing a bit of marketing and networking, so I'm thinking about designing a business card for myself (I'm a graphic designer by trade).

My question is, will people even take me seriously if I market myself as a property finder? I think to sellers I should probably just say I am working with a group of investors, but to other investors I want to be straight up. However, due to reading these forums I feel that bird dogs get a bad name because, well, we aren't really putting up any of our own money (other than for this marketing!) and tend to be newbies.

What's a good way to market yourself to both sellers and investors when you're not actually a wholesaler or investor? FWIW, I have every intention of doing my own deals eventually, but for now the property finder / bird dog feels like a good place for me to start.

[Robert Williams]

Hi Kristy,

I think the best way to market yourself to sellers is the exact approach you mentioned in your post; tell them you work with a group of investors and that they're looking for a house just like the seller's.  

The best way to market yourself to other investors is by networking. Attend any local REI meet-ups in your area and start introducing yourself as a property finder/bird dog. Introduce yourself to investors here on BP and reach out to them whenever you find a potential deal.

Personally, I don't care whether someone is a complete newbie or someone with years of experience.  I care about results.  Property finding is all about working the phones and pounding the pavement and just working really hard.  You may talk to fifty people before you find one that's actually interested in selling their home.  I've found that new investors tend to have the most energy to devote to this type of difficult work.

-Rob