We recently connected with Aimee Straw and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Aimee thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about how you got your first non-friend, non-family client. Paint the picture for us so we can feel the same excitement you felt on that day.

My super-power has always been talking to people. By nature I genuinely care about others and am curious about their life stories, what makes them who they are. Prior to getting into real estate, I had years of experience in customer service, waiting tables, bartending, working retail, and at a doctor’s office. I got a taste for “sales” after all that while working for Vail resorts selling vacation packages to customers at Keystone and Breckenridge that included flights, lodging, ski school etc. The job title was vacation coordinator, and I say “sales” in quotes because I never came into it thinking that it was such, and was surprised at how successful I was. My recorded calls were often used as training examples and I was quickly promoted to supervisor. I honed my problem solving skills during this phase since most guests I was speaking with at that point were disgruntled. Through all this I decided to explore a career path in real estate and am so glad I did!

My first client walked into an open house I was holding at the new Alders Townhomes development in Keystone. A quick talking guy with a sarcastic sense of humor asking tough questions came in and I actually lit up! While some might have considered his personality challenging to get along with, and his questions a put off (especially for someone new in the business!), I enjoyed that interaction immensely and the elated feeling I had once he had left. Because of my product knowledge and insights about the area, I was able to answer his questions confidently, and because I am able to listen and adapt my communication style to what others need, we were even able to share many moments of laughter throughout. It is hard to explain the feeling of joy I get when helping people achieve their goals. It’s warm, it’s fuzzy, sure. But on some deeper level, I think I connect this place I live now with “my happy place” I had growing up camping on Moosehead Lake in Maine. So many amazing memories from my time spent there as a child exploring nature and spending quality time with family and I think Summit County, Colorado is that place for many people. So when they are trying to find a mountain home or sell one to upsize or downsize or become a beach person instead, I jump at that opportunity so they can have that place, too. With so much technology pushing us in 1,000 directions every day, I think places like this are more important than ever for individual happiness and humanity as a whole. Huh. Who knew real estate could be so important?!

Aimee, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I grew up in a log cabin in Maine, with every school vacation and ounce of free time spent up at my family’s camp on Moosehead Lake. Needless to say, I have always been surrounded by and have found comfort in the natural world. Plus I’m a Taurus! :)

I graduated college in 2009 with a bachelor’s in Communications and minor in Sociology. I like people, and I like learning about them. I chose those fields because of this reasoning, and also liked that it was broad enough to not get pinned into one career path. Turns out, there was a lot I could do. But also not a lot because it wasn’t quite specific enough. A recession was going on at the time, and not a lot of people were hiring. I used my innate skills as a people person to secure a nannying job, a retail position, and a bartending gig all at the same time. This led to a connection with a doctor’s office that was hiring full time. But alas, there were no windows to the outside world and I wasn’t scratching some hidden itch that my soul was desiring.

My boyfriend and I decided to mix things up and move out West to be ski bums for a season while we figured out what we actually wanted to do. That was 11 years ago! My fist job out here was working for Vail Resorts as a “vacation coordinator” part of which included booking lodging for Breckenridge and Keystone. I learned a lot about the various condos and townhomes in Summit County doing this and soon started thinking about a job in real estate. I found a lot of success in that position and was apparently pretty good at “sales”, aka customer service as I like to think of my job now as a Realtor. It just so happened at that time that a friend of mine was moving to AZ to get her masters degree, and was leaving a position as a front desk administrator at a local real estate company. I put in an application and got the position. It was here that I learned a lot about what day to day life looks like for a realtor, the logistics of showings, marketing, and just how people oriented you had to be in order to be good at this job.

The universe was definitely pushing me in this direction, I think, because around the time I was exploring getting licensed myself, I got a call from a local real estate broker who was looking to expand his team of assistants and he had heard good things about me. I interviewed and immediately got that position as well. I continued to learn and grow in the real estate world under the amazing guidance of the two owners of Cornerstone Real Estate Rocky Mountains. Not long after getting my Colorado Real Estate license, I was no longer an assistant, but a full fledged Summit County associate level broker starting and growing my client database and growing my business!

I pride myself on my client centered approach. I’m not here to “sell” anybody anything. My clients are making these big life decisions and I am here to help guide them during what can be a stressful time, by providing accurate information, my skills as a certified negotiator, competence with Colorado real estate contracts, and management of the entire process, start to finish. I often think about when people say it is “easy” or underestimate how complicated the process can get. Have you ever tried to sell anything on Craigs list or Marketplace? The endless questions, timing the pick ups, the cash exchange. Imagine all that with a lot more stress than just the risk of buying a couch. Real estate transactions involve numerous balls in the air that have to simultaneously be kept spinning and I am a pro at time management and multi-tasking. (Must be all those years waiting tables!) I’ve worked with buyers and sellers for years. I know our market trends really well, and what they usually value. But that doesn’t mean I assume anything! And I think my personalized approach to real estate, listening to an individuals needs and what is good for them and/or their family is something that sets me apart as well.

In fact, my job does not end at the closing table. I am the ears, eyes and boots on the ground for any local resource at anytime which can be especially helpful for not only locals, but the many homeowners that live a couple of hours away or out of state. I am a people pleaser to a fault, and feel very validated that my clients appreciate my work ethic and communication. Many say that I made their real estate transaction as smooth as possible. Much of my business today is coming from repeat clients and referrals which makes me so proud. I think that speaks for itself that people I have taken care of trust me enough to take care of their friends and family as well.

Now that my business has grown to a point where I can financially give back to this amazing community that I have chosen to call home, I am happy to support local non-profits like becoming a member and corporate sponsor of the Summit County Rotary Club. My first season in Summit County I could barely afford groceries and often went to the free community dinners that Rotary put on. It fills my cup knowing that I now contribute to the feeding of thousands of people a year that Rotary continues to do. We do countless other things as a club and I love having my finger on the pulse of what is happening in our County and collection of small mountain towns. American Actor and everyone’s favorite, “dude” once said that, “The way to change the world is through individual responsibility and taking local action in your own community.” And I take that to heart by being an active member of Rotary and supporting local business whenever I can. And I want my clients to know that. That when they use me a broker, you are not only getting excellent customer service and local guide to our ever changing real estate market, you are also giving back to our amazing slice of the world, helping it to continue to be the place that so many people cherish and return to year after year or choose to make their full time home.

Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?

There is a crazy stat out there that something like 80% of people do not remember their Realtor’s name after they have done a transaction with them. (I picked that one up from my local Cutco guy, and yes, I do buy those shears as closing gifts because they are awesome.) I would never want to be forgettable! My goals is to always do such a good job that my clients enthusiastically recommend me. So step 1 has always been, “do a good job.” Step 2 is regularly staying in touch with information that matters to them. I (and everyone on this planet) HATES getting blasted with too many emails or with things that aren’t relevant to them. So I personalize my communication as much as possible. I do a monthly email newsletter with local real estate stats, analysis and also fun local happenings. I set up personalized home searches for clients so they get alerted as soon as something new hits the market that matches their particular criteria. While also keeping an eye on things for them because sometimes what fits into pre-determined criteria doesn’t always fit their goals on paper, but might in real life. This can also be helpful for sellers to get notifications about active, pending and sold properties in their specific neighborhood so they can keep an eye on what is going on with their investment.

And because I don’t want to inundate people with branded items that they won’t use, I try to be thoughtful about my gifts. One of my favorite annual projects is a good old fashioned paper calendar. What is fun about it, is that I take all of the photos myself. Usually on the way to put out a listing sign or am off to the post office. I am constantly reminded of the beauty of where we live and delight in taking a moment to stop and snap that moment in time. It gives me such joy that I can then share the year-round beauty of where I live with my clients that also appreciate this place in their own ways. Many people express how much the love them, even if they are just hanging them up for the photos!

I’ve also partnered with a candle maker, who was a long time local of Frisco and a first responder up here to support her growing business while also freshening up the spaces of those that I wish to congratulate or thank for whatever reason. In line with my community support mission I also purchase local winemaker Carboy’s creations and specifically like to stock up on the “Soul of the Summit” series where a portion of their proceeds go back to the Summit Foundation, a local non-profit who provides scholarships and many other wonderful contributions to the well being of this community.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

I highly recommend the Ninja training for realtors or anyone in the financial world. For me it was a very validating “ah-ha” experience that confirmed what I knew all along, that I didn’t have to fit into the sleazy car salesman or pushy realtor image that comes to mind when thinking about being in sales. I’m honest, upfront, believe in vibrations, manifestations and truly just want to make long lasting human connections with my clients, all of which Ninja gives you systems to put in place to accomplish.

The “Go-Giver” was a book the Ninja program had us read, and I immediately resonated with it’s message of learning “to effectively communicate your value and discover how much more fun, less stressful, and more profitable your business can be!” It’s a quick read, and I highly recommend.

I love what Jen Sincero has to say in “You Are A Badass”. It was probably the first book that really woke me up to my potential and aligned with who I am as a person and little energy ball running around just trying to fit in like everyone else on this planet!

“The Happiness Advantage” by Shawn Achor was another one I read early on in my real estate career, as it was recommended by the owners of Cornerstone Real Estate Rocky Mountains. I love that scholars and academics are delving into the science behind what makes people happy and it really changed my mind about how I view the world in a lot of ways and made me aware that I do have a choice in how I perceive my surroundings. I can also train my brain to make it work for instead of against me. I for sure believe in what some may call “woo-woo” principles of yoga and meditation. There is a lot of magic out there that I just can’t explain, but I know to be true and when really smart people put in the work to back it up with science, I appreciate that because I can be a skeptic myself!

Contact Info:

• Website: AimeeStraw.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aimeestraw_realestate/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AimeeStrawRealEstate/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aimee-straw-63199124/