BUILD Q4 2019

40 BUILD Q4 2019 GDImpact : True Innovation in Property Marketing Solutions eaded jointly by directors Ross Gumbrell and James Davis, GDImpact are now one of the fastest growing marketing companies in the South of England. This is due to their forward thinking and innovative hands on approach in relation to end to end marketing solutions and future generation technologies. The team was amongst the first to introduce virtual tour tech- nology to the residential property market in the UK, around the time that Google began its worldwide coverage of its Street View project. GDImpact’s first major client was Brighton & Hove Albi- on Football Club and was tasked with creating a fully interactive 3D tour of the newly expanded AMEX Stadium. The five-week project was launched for the 2015/2016 season and went on to be the Clubs most successful product in their online history. “We have always strived to be a market leader when it comes to pushing innovative products” says Ross, “with the advent of faster internet and the consumers demand for digital content at the tips of their fingers, the industry has seen immense change with how their portfolios are showcased in the crowded, online world. When businesses stop utilising the products that are at the forefront of this change, they fall behind.” GDImpact’s product portfolio evolved from high end profession- al photography and 3D tours, into videography, drones, and virtual staging. “Virtual staging is a hybrid technology that effec- tively blends the use of 3D CGI modelling onto the 2D plane of digital photography” Ross explains. “we researched and piloted the product over a 2-year period before formally launching it to the industry in 2017”. Virtual staging is now GDImpact’s most popular product, having digitally inserted thousands of items of furniture into developments over the whole of the South GDImpact was formed in 2015 as a start-up company after a long working relationship between two of Brighton’s leading property marketing companies. In under four short years, the company has expanded its operations and product range to cater for the diverse range the construction and property industry demands in this dynamic and challenging environment. Following their recognition in BUILD’s 2019 Design and Build Awards, where they were named as ‘Leading Innovators in Property Marketing Solutions’, we spoke with Directors, Ross Gumbrell and James Davis to find out more about the company’s work, history and ethos. H East of England. At a cost saving of around 90% compared to physically dressing developments, they only expect the product to continue its growth into the future. With the broad selection of products offered by the team, GDImpact now work with a vast variety of clients including estate agents, developers, builders, architects, solicitors and entertain- ment venues. The products work hand in hand in allowing the content to flow seamlessly and branding to be uniform across the range of media their clients operate within. By keeping all aspects of the marketing process under one roof, the company’s USP is that they offer a stress-free process to their clients by managing the projects from start to finish without the need for the client to act as a middleman between the various media teams. “We’ve always operated the company as a flat hierarchy” says James, “every team member is encouraged to put ideas forward and generally contribute to the creative and energet- ic environment we put in place for them. When undertaking projects, we brainstorm with the GD team and collectively determine what our focus will be on any given assignment. It’s a really great asset to have and a fantastic way for the team to feel motivated. A top-down leadership approach simply doesn’t work in creative marketing, you need open discussion without the fear of feeling undermined.” GDImpact highlights that their next goal is to tackle the social media marketing industry with a radical plan to reshape how the content is structured, targeted and delivered. The team feels that once these latest products and technologies have been adopted across a wide enough threshold, the equilibrium of the industry will shift, and these technologies will need to be utilised for clients to maintain a competitive edge with their competitors