Design

Selling the Smart Home … Virtually

URC Creates Virtual Showroom for Experiencing Residential Tech of Today and Tomorrow

By Anthony Leo

URC launched its Virtual Home tool as an alternative to physical showrooms.

Smart home industry experts generally agree that the best method to understand their technology is through “experience.” For instance, living in the space gives a current or future homeowner the feeling of streaming their favorite video content, listening to highdefinition audio, automating shades and light according to circadian rhythms, or creating scenes that inspire parties or facilitate relaxation.

URC Automation, the manufacturer of smart home automation and control technology, has launched a virtual showroom that enables users to interact within an ultrarealistic virtual home, learn (and even simulate) a variety of control options, and explore the benefits of a URC Total Control system.

URC launched its inspirational Virtual Home, with the technical expertise of Dave Chace and his team at Cogent360, as an alternative to the high costs of a physical showroom and reluctance of future clients to visit in-person experiences.

While photography-based virtual tours have become a popular choice, URC pursued a more dynamic and diverse experience. This led to the design of a highly detailed, expansive 360-degree virtual residence as the foundation for the smart home tour. This approach provided a significantly greater wealth of options to simulate URC system capabilities like changing light settings, adjusting shades and drapes, accessing high-definition audio, streaming video content, adjusting climate control, and illustrating different scenes.

URC’s Virtual Inspiration Home offers a guided tour complete with virtual host or the ability to create a self-guided tour by selecting the preferred room or scene. Creation of Scenes is a primary benefit of URC’s Total Control system, and this virtual home includes the opportunity to experience a variety of scenes: Welcome Home, Home Office, Movie Time, Dinner Party, Outdoor Entertainment, and Good Night.

Available at URC’s website, visitors are invited to engage in the virtual smart home. URC certified dealers have been encouraged to join and share the virtual experience via customized landing page and hotlink.

URC previewed its Virtual Inspiration Home with dealers throughout the United States. The new, virtual experience received rave reviews from the tech-savvy community.

“Using a virtual smart home environment is a great idea to inform end-users on the benefits of URC’s Total Control automation and control system,” stated Ryan Rumer, sales and design at World Wide Stereo Sales. “We plan to stream on our showroom iPads and share with our clients.”

“From geofencing and notifications as you approach the virtual home to the party on the patio, URC created a winning digital tool to help our clients dream big. It’s control and automation on a new level,” added Lowell Kaps, owner, Lowell/Edwards Home Integration Inc. x