There is no "special sauce", this has all been done before.  

Appetizer of mussels in red sauce and main course of Chicken Sicilian.  

Find out:Your target area; ALL costs of a mail campaign (list, letters, postcards, necessary office supplies, postage, etc); budget for 6 months-1year of mailings; develop scripts for prospective sellers (what to say to them); learn to track responses, follow-ups, conversion rates, overall campaign effectiveness, etc.Build your team; title company, RE attorney, cash buyers, closing agents, etc.This list may seem long and overwhelming but if you're looking for a "secret sauce" in this business you wont find it.

And this is my secret sauce to get my offer accepted.

He planted corn, tomatoes, potatoes and onions.

I'm not asking for anyone's secret sauce if you will.

If you do go the paid route, just make sure it's not some guru who's claiming to know everything and have a secret sauce, make sure it's someone who's actually also an active investor and who's values align with your own.Hope this helps! 

Sounds like you've figured out the magic sauce to make it in Cook County (Cook County frightens and confuses me!).

I envisioned kids playing baseball with tomatoes from the garden...

@Filipe Pereira  To some extent that's my secret sauce, but suffice it to say that I set things up in order to generate a bidding war.