Marketing: Connection or not?

I'm curious about how real estate agents in other areas of the country market their higher-end listings. Here in Sheridan, Big Horn and other surrounding communities in northern Wyoming, I think there's almost always a personal connection that draws someone in from elsewhere. It's almost like ambassadors (i.e friends who already live here) invite others to want to live here. Is that how it is where you live? People come here to visit friends or spend their annual summer vacations at dude ranches, go hunting or recreate in our Big Horn Mountains and then fall in love with the area and the lifestyle. I don't think many just "land" on an internet site and then decide to move here.