6 Encircle features to speed up your jobs in 2024

Tackle your busy day with these Encircle features

Another day, another job site. We know how it goes. That's why Encircle's features are designed to help you get the info you need as quickly as possible.

Here’s a quick guide to see how these features can get you ahead of the clock in 2024.

1. Floor Plan: Your on-site sketching solution

When to use it:

Use Encircle Floor Plan to scan the property as soon as you arrive on site. This works great when you have multiple hands on deck – one crew member can map the area while another captures photos such as overview photos, cause of loss, pre-existing conditions, etc.

Why you’ll love it:

Save your field teams hours of measuring and sketching by hand. Floor Plan makes it easy for anyone on your team to create a professional sketch using only their phone. Get the floor plan back fast (usually in 90 minutes), so you can always start your estimates on Day 1.

How it works:

Open the job file in Encircle, click ‘Add a Floor Plan,’ and start your scan. Walk the perimeter of each room, capturing the whole property (even multiple levels) in one video. Submit your scan video to have it transformed into an accurate, 2D floor plan, in 90 mins on average (guaranteed in less than 6 hours). No fuss, no extra tools – just your phone and some cool technology doing all the work.

Pro tip from the field:

Bring the homeowner along for the Floor Plan scan. It's a great chance to walk them through the job and chat about the plan. Plus, it builds trust from the start and creates a ‘wow’ moment when they see the returned floor plan of their property.

Straight from our users:

“This is a tool that every technician can have in their hands. It’s very easy to train them on…it only takes 7–8 minutes to do an entire 2,500 square ft house.”

- John Woods, Owner, Crossroads Property Rescue

2. Xactimate integration: Instant sketches from a floor plan

When to use it:

Got your floor plan back? Perfect. Get your estimator or PM to pop it into Xactimate. It's the fast track to getting estimates out on Day 1.

Why you’ll love it:

Say goodbye to those long sketching sessions in Xactimate. This integration turns your floor plans into instant sketches for your estimate file. It frees up your estimator(s) to zero in on line items, making sure they’ve nailed every billable detail.

How it works:

After setting up your Encircle account with our Xactimate integration, you can import your floor plans with a few clicks. The integration does the heavy lifting, converting your floor plan into a detailed sketch for your estimate.

Straight from the user:

“Encircle has cut sketching time in half so we can hit twice as many jobs in a day than what we would have in the past.”

- Garrett Norvelle, Operations Manager, Rainbow Restoration

3. Video capture: Expert commentary from Day 1

When to use it:

Right after your initial assessment on Day 1 of your job. Have your technician or PM capture a video, narrating any important details you'd want to highlight for the homeowner or adjuster.

Why you’ll love it:

Think of video as your job site's visual story. It gets everyone — your crew, the homeowner, even the insurance folks who never visit the site — on the same wavelength. With your expert commentary, there's no room for guesswork or misinterpretation. This upfront clarity means less pushback later, especially when it's time for payments.

How it works:

From Encircle’s camera screen, select “Video” and hit record. As you walk the site, narrate what you see, especially key details like cause of loss, resulting damages, your plan of action, and any other useful observations related to scope. This footage is gold — it'll be a go-to reference and a professional way to quickly communicate the job's specifics to clients and adjusters.

Straight from the user:

“Video cuts down on the need for interpretation. When you have a video from the restorer’s point of view, walking through and explaining the whole job, it eliminates confusion and gets everybody on the same page right away.”

- Johnny Mackey, CEO of Shamrock Restoration

 

4. Note Templates: Less typing, more doing

When to use it:

Field teams can use Note Templates while doing initial checks or daily wrap-ups. No need to wait until you're back at the office. Knock out those detailed notes on the go!

Why you’ll love it:

Note Templates are your shortcut to consistent, detailed job notes — like a handy cheat sheet that makes sure field teams don't miss a beat. Faster notes, zero guesswork, spot-on records every time.

How it works:

Open a new note in your job file, and use the Note Templates icon to pick a template.

These templates show what details to capture, so notes aren’t started from scratch each time. Daily summaries, initial inspections, whatever note templates you create — all accessible in the field for quick, consistent notes.

5. Hydro: Your water mitigation wingman

When to use it:

Fire up Hydro for your initial water job set up, and every site visit that follows. It's your go-to mobile checklist for water mitigation, making sure every job stays on track, smoothly and efficiently.

Why you’ll love it:

Say goodbye to missing paper dry logs! Hydro is your ultimate resource for drying properties effectively while justifying every item in your estimate. It helps your technicians place the right amount of equipment and record all necessary readings, so you can get paid without the pushback.

How it works:

Hydro's checklist guides your crew in setting up equipment and taking moisture readings, all logged in one place. It's your digital water documentation sidekick, streamlining the drying process. And once the property is dry, you can create an iron-clad report of all your moisture readings and drying progress with the push of a button.

Straight from the user:

"I know that every project a Hydro report shows up on, there's no question about equipment calculation."

- Evan MacFawn, Sr. VP, MacFawn Fire & Flood

6. Link: Your early insight & remote signature tool

When to use it:

Before your team arrives on site, get a better idea of what they're walking into with photos and videos of the property damage. You can also use Link to ask for digital signatures at any time in a project (like getting your work authorization signed before your team is even en route!)

Why you’ll love it:

Get a real-time view of the job site, directly from your customers. It's like having an extra set of eyes onsite ahead of time, to help you plan and allocate resources, without any surprises.

Plus, request and collect signatures from anywhere. So you can have your work authorization signed before work begins, and you’ll always be able to get customer documents signed, even if they’re out of town.

How it works:

Your team can ask for photos, videos, and digital signatures from the customer with a couple of clicks. No app download needed for them; they capture and upload directly through a browser. 

You’ll be notified as your customer shares images and videos, and signs documents. Their media is automatically organized in your job file within a  'Policyholder Photos & Videos,' room.

Straight from our users:

“We definitely have the upper hand being able to send docs electronically. It saves us time and money with travel costs, allowing us to get in front of customers and sign off on projects a lot quicker.”

- Nick Hudson, VP of Operations, Hudson Restoration

Document faster with Encircle

Let Encircle help you work smarter — so you can start the new year focusing on what truly matters: restoring homes (and lives) back to normal. These 6 Encircle features are a sure-fire way to document your 2024 jobs faster and more efficiently. If you haven't started using them already, you're missing out on some serious time savings for your team.

See how others are using Encircle. Get ideas and insights from their success stories.

See Encircle in Action

Not an Encircle customer yet? Book a demo to see these features in action and discover how we can simplify your workflow.