Ascribe Blog

Ascribe is partnering with the ASA West Michigan in efforts to provide its members with a way to find “new customers and help new customers find them” through the displaying of projects and associating with other team members.   In conjunction with this month’s program topic “Identifying New Customers”, our team presented the Ascribe system to the ASA members in order to demonstrate how Ascribe can be used to get more exposure through a company’s project experience.  

C.J. Shroll, Executive Director of ASA West Michigan, spoke intently on the evolving mindset of marketing in the construction industry.  Due to the competitiveness of this industry no longer can a company rely on getting more business solely by word of mouth.  Instead, today’s industry needs to look for ways to get their business name out there in front of more  potential customers.  C.J.’s comments gave great credence to the Ascribe system and it’s marketing benefits.

There were over 30 members in attendance for this month’s meeting.  If you are interested in learning more about ASA West Michigan, please visit their website at www.asawm.org or visit their showcase to see examples of their members work. Contact www.ascribehq.com to learn how you can create your own project network.  If you are an ASA member, get in and join Ascribe, and start adding projects or joining the 1000’s already in there!

We’re happy to announce that Ascribe is starting to gain more exposure in the AEC industry on the web.  This past week, we were added to the Construction Marketing Ideas blog by Mark Buckshorn.  In return, we’ve added his blog to our links section on the right.  His blog is always fresh with new ideas for marketing in the AEC  industry.  

Also, our Ascribe informational video is now available on www.YouTube.com.  Make sure to click the “Watch in High Quality”  for best viewing.

A helpful tidbit: We heard through the grapevine that as of June 1, 2008, the yearly subscription price for Ascribe will be increasing.  If you’re thinking about becoming an Ascriber, get off the fence and upgrade your account now to lock in at the lower price.  If you are already a subscriber but have friends that may be on the fence, spread the word and send them our way.  They’ll be glad you did.

Some great tips on writing project descriptions for Ascribe:

 Keep it simple:  Develop a standard format that you can use to talk about what you did on the project.  It is likely that your company will typically perform similar tasks on job sites, so having a standard format will allow you to just fill in the information that is related to that specific job, without having to recreate a new summary each time.  By following a standard format, you take the guesswork out of the write-up.  A typical outline may be as follows:

1. Information about the project

2. What your company was hired to do on the project

3.  What your company did on the project

- Project Highlights

- Obstacles you overcame

An example of a project description:

The Icon on Bond project is a new building in Grand Rapids with open concept suites featuring 9 foot ceilings, deluxe kitchens, and an on-site gym and movie theatre.  The building is located in the Renaissance Zone with spectacular views of the Grand River and Downtown. Driesenga & Associates was hired to provide site design and roadway reconstruction plans for improvements to the streets surrounding the project, including Bond Avenue and Trowbridge Street. As part of the project, Driesenga also constructed plans for the streetscape amenities consisting of decorative street lighting, parking meters, masonry seatwall planters, accent pavers, and landscaping. Major design and construction challenges included working around an extensive network of aged utilities which needed to remain in service.

Some info is better than no info:

 When visitors browse your project profiles, there may not be any other indicator on your page telling what it is that your company does.  If they happen upon one of your project profiles, it is helpful if you even have a few sentences about what you did on the project.   A simple sentence such as “For this project, our company provided the exterior landscaping design” will let your reader know that you were responsible for the trees rather than the parking garage - thus, they can focus their attention to those beautiful trees in the picture rather than the design of the parking garage. 

Ascribe Out On The Road Again!

NBS Group Presentation in Troy, Michigan

It has been quite busy over here at the Ascribe HQ.  Our team has been out on the road    the last few weeks presenting Ascribe to different regions across the country.  This week we have been in Chicago, Detroit and Indianapolis and will complete our month by attending the SMPS Heartland event in Cincinnati, Ohio - April 30th thru May 2nd.  If you know of anyone located in these areas that you think could benefit from using Ascribe give us a shout.  We would be glad to stop by and say hello.

Project of the Week:  

The Grand Rapids Art Museum

Type: Municipal

Project Definition: New Building

Location: Grand Rapids, Michigan

Date Completed: 12/3/2007

Project Description:

Construction began in September 2004 for the new 125,000 SF new museum facility located on Monroe Center in downtown Grand Rapids, adjacent to Rosa Parks Circle.  The new museum includes a 4,500 SF lobby/reception area, a 285-seat auditorium, several galleries, totaling 18,000 SF, for both changing exhibitions and permanent collections, a 2,400 SF retail shop, a 1,500 SF café, and 5,000 SF of educational area (studios and orientation areas), as well as one level of underground parking with space for 40 cars. The project was completed in October 2007.

Ascribe members currently linked to this featured project are Design Plus, Acoustics by Design, WPF Engineering, Fence Consultants of West Michigan, and Kerkstra Precast. 

If you are a current subscriber and are associated with this project or any of the others already posted on Ascribe, you may join them by logging into your Ascribe account.

If you are interested in becoming a subscriber, click here to see how easy it is to become an Ascribe user.  Our team is always available to answer any questions or assist you with setting up your Ascribe account. 

Tips & Tricks - Creating a Better Portfolio 

Don’t have the budget for a professional architectural photographer, but want decent images for your website?  Jeff Hill - our own photo wizard here at Ascribe - had these tips to offer:

1. Try to use a camera that is at least 6.0 Megapixels or better to get the best quality.  Canon and several other camera makers have models for under $200, and take nearly professional grade images.  Also make sure that it’s taking pictures of at least 1200 x 1600 size (but not much larger).

2. Only take photos of buildings on sunny days.  Even if there is snow on the ground, a sunny background makes any building look like a million bucks.  If that means waiting for a day for the sun to come out, do it.  You won’t regret your decision, even if timing it right is inconvenient.  Sunny days with white wispy or pillow-ey clouds are the best.

3. Wait until the sun is directly (or close to directly) facing the best facade of the building.  Shoot with the sun at your back, never directly or close to directly into the sun.  Even the best cameras have difficulty adjusting to shooting into the sunlight.

4. Shoot the picture at a slight angle, and not directly at the building front.  This will give the building volume and scale.  Try not to shoot straight at the building facade, giving the building a plain 2 dimensional look.

5.  To make the building look level in the picture, choose a vertical line near the CENTER of your picture.  Most buildings have many vertical lines (doors, windows,    cornice work, etc.) so pick one of them near the center of your picture and make sure that it runs straight up and down.  Do not use vertical lines toward the outer edges of your camera’s field of view, as they are deceiving and are bent inward by the lens.

Example of a poor shot:

The lighting is poor due to a hazy overcast day.  The building is leaning slightly to the right.  The crane is cut off at the top.

Example of a decent shot:

Good lighting.  Two sides showing the mass and scale of the building.  Blue sky.  City context.  Level and plumb.

As always, we value your input, so let us know how we are doing by sharing with us your comments or suggestions.  Keep sending those referrals and project invites!  All of our Ascribe users thank you.