Presentation Idea Using Google Maps Street View

In my post the other day talking about giving people what they want to buy, there was a decent conversation started in the comments about what platforms or tools contractors could use during their onsite presentations.

Tablets and iPads seem to be the main focus, but I came up with this quick idea while talking to a client yesterday and thought I would share it with you.

What you will need:

• Google Maps & street view
• Photoshop – If you are cheap like me, you could use GetPaint.net instead or
• Any current job-specific software you use to alter photos

Now, here’s how it works:

Mrs. Jones wants the exterior of her house painted. So you schedule an onsite estimate to give her your best possible pricing.

During the presentation/estimate, you go over your process, how you will protect her plants and shrubs, and give her your best possible pricing.

Just at the moment when you talk about price, you do/say something like this:

“Mrs. Jones, I really want to win your business, and I have given you a fair quote with my best pricing, what I would like you to do now is take a look at what your house could look like when we are done.”

You hand her a high-gloss image of her home painted in the colors she gave you on the phone during your qualifying conversation THEN YOU SHUT UP! You don’t say anything at all…you let it all sink in for a moment, and then you say:

“The calendar has next Tuesday or next Friday open, which one works better for you?”

What you have done is present Mrs. Jones with a before and after solution of HER OWN HOME, during the first meeting! Now, what do you think your chances are of closing that business right then and there? PRETTY GOOD!

So, how do you do it?

Here is a quick and easy tutorial for Google Maps, and then just go to a site like Fiverr to get the quick and painless editing done to the image.

Step one:

Go to Google Maps and plug in Mrs. Smith’s address

Step two:

A little image should appear in the left-hand sidebar

Step three:

Click on street view on the map and a full-size image of the property appears

Step four:

Cut and paste the image into Photoshop or your favorite flavor of photo editing software and go to town. If you are oblivious to photo editing, a site like Fiverr can get you someone for…$5 to do the job quick and easy.

Step five:

Present, close new business, send kids to college, retire wealthy…just kidding.

Now, this may now work for all of you, but it is a quick and painless way to present yourself just a little bit better in a competitive world! So good luck and let me know if you try this tip!