As most of you know, my business philosophy is all about using services or products for repeatable tasks and allow you to focus on the creative parts of your business, parts that only you can do. So when I find something that follows that mantra I want everyone to know about it, and this is one of the biggest timesavers I have seen in quite a while.
Get ready to throw away your measuring tape.
How much of your time is spent measuring spaces for your clients? Do you ever drive to a client's home, take the necessary measurements for a quote or project, and then get back to your office and find that you have mislabeled or forgotten to measure something?
On a personal note, wouldn't it be great to have a photo of your room along with dimensions when shopping for furniture, rugs and window treatments? Or of the exterior of your home when shopping for outdoor lighting fixtures, shutters, or even shrubs and flowers? Raise your hand if you have ever miscalculated when buying paint and either had a full can of custom, non-returnable paint left over or had to run out to the store at the last minute on a Saturday evening (saying "please, please, please still be open!") to get enough to finish the project.
My friend Ken alerted me to a great new software called iPhotoMEASURE (he always knows about the cool stuff - sorta like the Seattle version of Jeff Turner). The concept is just amazing. By placing an small square object called a DigiTarget within the frame of a photo, you can measure virtually anything...virtually! The DigiTarget is the "known" measurement that enables iPhotoMEASURE to perform measurements of everything else in the photo. You simply place the DigiTarget somewhere in the room, take the picture, upload it to your iPhotoMEASURE software, and you instantly have measurements of everything in the room.
There are several articles online, mostly in contractor magazines, discussing the benefit of this tool for quoting projects. But on a smaller scale, it can be just as useful for
Designers
Stagers
Remodelers
Realtors
Homeowners
Landscapers
Painters
And at a price just under $100, it will pay for itself with just one job for most of you. I am in the process of designing and installing a closet organization system as well as moving my home office to a new room, and I can already "picture" how this is going to work for me. There is a great tour on the website and several articles and links to give you more information on how this can work for you. Check it out and let me know what you think.
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