Indeed! SO, if a picture is worth 1000 words, you should be taking pictures of all your projects – before, during, and after. That’s can help you show your best work, “make the fewest mistakes and cover your butt,” according to a GAF PROBlog post by Luke Hansen of CompanyCam, a start-up that manages contractors’ photos.
While Hansen advocates getting everyone on your team to snap photos as a recordkeeping/promotional undertaking, he notes the three following, not-to-be-missed occasions where photos can make a difference:
Sales and estimating
“The moment your [salespeople] get out of their trucks…they should probably start taking photos,” writes Hansen. Not only is it important for estimating, it’s valuable for documenting pre-existing conditions should an issue arise at the end of a job. Hansen even recommends taking photos of the client’s driveway, noting: “Your distributor will LOVE you if you save them a few thousand dollars by producing a photo that shows the driveway was already cracked before their truck was on it.”
Pre-documenting a job site, he says, can also help with job continuity. Should a sales rep leave a job, someone else on your team could still put together a bid without traveling back to the site. It also facilitates information sharing — rather than launch into a lengthy explanation of what they need, your reps can just show the photos.
Operations
Hanson also recommends using your sales rep photos to prep crews on the job before they go out. And then, when the team hits the job site, he suggests each immediately take pictures on arrival and when they finish work for the day. This helps you track progress, and also time management. Because photos are time and date stamped, he says, it can help with time tracking (although Knowify does this automatically!).
Crew leaders can also take snapshots to document the unexpected, like mold or rot, which can be emailed to a client who can quickly approve any additional work/cost.
Marketing
Pretty pictures sell. Hansen says his crew leaders photograph the completed project and his inspector follows with a QC check takes more photos. It is these photos, he says, that are used in marketing, shared on Facebook, and even highlighted in the company’s blog series titled “Roofs of the Week.”
Bottom line, concludes Hansen, “If you’re disciplined in taking photos throughout the entire process, you’re going to save yourself money, headaches, and most importantly time. Selling more jobs is just a bonus.”
Integrating photography into your operating arsenal makes a lot of sense. But running a smart business profitably makes even more sense. How do you get there? Let’s talk. Knowify is already helping contractors run their businesses better — integrating business management and accounting systems like QuickBooks from an easy-to-use interface accessible from any device — in the field and in the office.
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