Visual Intelligence: Looking to the Future of Facilities Maintenance

There are multiple reasons opting for a visual form of maintenance reporting, especially through video, was an important step for us and our customers. If you’ve noticed changes in the way content is presented on social media lately, you might have noticed a major shift towards video content.

That’s because it’s not only intuitive that video content is more engaging than the written word alone (which is why we anticipate other maintenance companies to follow suit), but there’s science behind why humans react to video the way they do. So much of what happens even in facility maintenance can’t be captured in words alone.

We explain some of the reasons video is inherently engaging and why we think facility managers can start to really take advantage of the medium.

If A Picture is Worth 1000 Words…

“A picture is worth 1000 words” is a commonly uttered endorsement for images, but according to a report by Forrester Research, a minute of video is worth 1.8 million words.

Though not all the information processed in a one-minute video would be directly related to maintenance (for instance, listening to technician’s speech can give you a clue about where they might be from), you can bet a 1-2 minute video is likely jam-packed with more information than would be gained perusing a written report for the equivalent time.

This shortened time to process information is invaluable to facility managers that need to quickly absorb information to make decisions, schedule tasks, and plan budgets.    

Images are Easier to Etch into Memory

One of the primary reasons video content is so effective is not just the speed at which information is processed, but also how easily it is retained. Studies reveal that 95 percent of a message is retained when watching video compared to 5 percent when reading text alone.

This is huge news for facility managers that need to keep up with years of maintenance history, particularly the major work orders within the last year or quarter. Understanding how and why equipment needed repair, and how the repair was executed, is invaluable for setting up better processes the next time.

Video has also proven as an effective tool in training programs for the same reason, giving facility managers a way to help current and future technicians improve their maintenance performance.

Mirror Neurons Illicit Stronger Emotional Connection

Video isn’t just an excellent medium for communicating technical information, but also offering an emotional connection. After all, technicians aren’t simply robots, but people who can both analyze and empathize with facility managers seeking a repair.

Videos are especially powerful at evoking emotion due to a response triggered by mirror neurons in the brain, which fire whenever someone else is seen performing an action similar to one we would perform ourselves. These mirror neurons fire when we interact with people in the real world, but also when we see actions performed in video.

One of the fundamental reasons video maintenance reporting is important stems from the need to establish transparency and trust from real people. By hearing and seeing technicians in the field, facility managers can both confirm and feel their maintenance needs are being met.

Why We Believe in Staying on the Cutting Edge

Video content is everywhere today and there’s a reason for it - it’s incredibly engaging and easy to consume. It only makes sense to incorporate the video medium into maintenance reporting, which is exactly why we launched the Visual Intelligence platform for our customers.

We know we won’t be the last company to incorporate video into our maintenance reporting, but we are among the first. That’s because we believe staying on the cutting edge helps our customers get the most of their maintenance experience.

For more information on the Visual Intelligence program, visit the page below.