SNAPPING IT UP

Zaio accelerates pace of massive photography project

Zaio’s quest to photograph every commercial and residential property in America’s top 250 urban centers has jumped onto the fast track. “We’re out to build a database of 75 million photos over the next three years,” says Frank O’Neill Jr., Zaio’s Vice President, Appraiser Training and Operations, “and we’ve really cranked up the pace in recent months. In June alone we shot 1,367,000 photographs, surpassing the previous month’s record of 1 million.”

This escalating trend will be further enhanced with the recently announced purchase of Virtual Imaging Corporation (VIC). Based in Chicago, Illinois, VIC manages a network of nearly 300 photographers in 40 major U.S. markets. “This acquisition will allow Zaio to substantially increase our rate of photography and to accelerate our original five-year plan to photograph and appraise virtually every home in the country’s 250 largest metro areas,” says Thomas Inserra, Zaio’s CEO.

According to O’Neill, the photography process will continue to be refined and streamlined. In addition to hiring more photographers and integrating the VIC acquisition, Zaio has started recruiting local photography coordinators to get things started in new cities. “We determined that hiring a local photography coordinator in advance of appraisal zone sales would allow us to accelerate the process and eliminate delays,” says O’Neill. ”This has the ancillary benefit of generating advance interest among the local appraisal community. In the past we’ve waited for zone sales to be completed and an Area Development Officer (ADO) selected before beginning photography.”

A solid training program is helping Zaio maintain its high standards of quality while managing exponential growth. Training for Zaio photographers begins with an online meeting, followed by a full day classroom session addressing the technicalities of shooting and the intricacies of the database. This is followed by on-site support during the first week of shooting. Quality control is ongoing, with experts in both Calgary and Tempe monitoring all photos. At both locations, staff members have been added to handle the increased volume.

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