InvelopNow likes the view of yet another strong year

By DENNIS GRUBAUGH
    InvelopNow, LLC, which works to provide a unique view of each of its customers, is itself looking good after a strong past year.
    The Belleville-based company offers self-guided, 3D Virtual Tours in a variety of settings, from small homes to large entertainment venues.
    Clients use the scanned video and photographic images to market their operations. Customers can view the results around the clock, online.
    Many industries are highlighted, said Director of Sales Kirk Schilling, including residential and commercial real estate, hotel and hospitality, event and wedding venues, music and theater, bed and breakfast, restaurant and tourism to name a few.
    “Historical also fits in there, with art galleries and things of that nature. There’s definitely a focus on the tourism side, and that’s one of pushes going forward, not only in St. Louis and the Metro East side but expanding further than that,” Schilling said.
    One particular big project this summer was Art on the Square, the massive annual event in downtown Belleville.
    A Virtual Tour tied together about 20 of the artists’ booths, creating a network that allowed visitors to find their way into the site from a variety of entry points.
    “You could see where that booth was in relation to the streetscape. Was it by the courthouse? Was it by the fountains?” he said. Potential visitors could look on line during the event for a view.
    “One of us was doing the scanning and one of us was uploading the data. Another of us was doing the editing and we were delivering them as quickly as possible,” Schilling said.
    The results were available on the vendors’ own social media as well as InvelopNow’s pages.
    “We created almost a time capsule,” he said.
    The company followed suit in Belleville by doing almost the same thing with the Christkindlmarkt, the popular German-style festive held throughout the holidays.
    InvelopNow uses immersive media technology of Matterport, a company founded in 2011 and headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif. Viewers can use a mobile device or desktop. They can view the space, layout, furniture arrangement and floor plans. The Virtual Tour scans can be studied at one’s own pace, with the ability to zoom in on details.
    “The technology is getting ready to take hold with a growing audience,” he said.
    Illustrating the diversity of clients is a project recently done at the newly remodeled Belleville City Hall.
    “We captured the City Hall, we captured the Mayor’s Office, the Council Chambers, showcased the City Clerk’s Office, plus the main lobby,” said Schilling.
    In the coming year, he said, there will be quite a few “amazing uses of this technology,” from organizational to fund-raising.
    “Whatever the entity is, it’s about what we can do to make their endeavor more successful,” he said.
    For more information email kirk@invelopnow.com