New Jackson firm offers virtual home tours

Virtual tours may be the marketing tool of the future, and that's something Matt Dameron has already realized -- and capitalized on.

Recently, the Jackson resident started Heartland Home Tours, a Web site that allows prospective home buyers to take a virtual tour of houses in Southeast Missouri.

He also works with a Cape Girardeau day care to create a live-cam site that allows protective parents to check in on their youngsters throughout the day.

"The Internet is the future," said Dameron, 23. "It's a great tool for real estate agents to get the homes on the Web, and it's better than having just a picture."

For the home tours, images are developed using the latest technology in the industry by giving home buyers a 360-degree comprehensive tour of the interior and exterior of homes, which includes the surrounding neighborhood.

This technology allows you to easily navigate a room by panning around the room from floor to ceiling and zooming in on particular points of interest.

"It's a neat deal," he said. "Whenever I get on the Internet to look at a home and all you see are still pictures, I wonder what I'm not seeing. With this, you can get a good idea of if you even want to go to the house and see it."

Looking at homes online is becoming more popular. A 2002 report issued by Borrell Associates Inc., a Virginia-based research firm, showed that the percentage of people who use the Internet to search for a home soared to 50 percent in 2001, compared with 2 percent in 1995.

"People are using the idea in bigger cities," Dameron said. "The real estate people love it."

Parents whose children are at Just Kids Daycare can look at a live cam by logging on to another Web site and using a special password. Dameron helped with this site along with Element 74, a Cape Girardeau Web design company.

Dameron hopes other day cares in the area will begin using this service, too.

But his main focus is still on the home tours site, which charges real-estate agents to put homes on the site. But he thinks it's well worth it.

"There are 300 and something real estate agents in this area," he said. "If every one of them would have a site, the public wouldn't know about 300 Web addresses. One Web site with all the agents and all the homes, that's something they'd look at."

Nearly perfect

I told you a few weeks back that Jackson developer Jim Maevers had inked a deal to put a Fred's discount store in a little more than half of the old Wal-Mart building.

Now the other half has been leased, and it's going to be occupied by Nearly Perfect Shoes. Rob Petch, the vice president of retail and operations of the Earth City, Mo.-based company, tells me that the new Jackson location will consist of over 6,000 square feet of retail space, which is several times larger than their old spot.

Alan and Jeannine Kaufman founded Nearly Perfect Shoes in 1989 and they also own stores in Cape Girardeau, Dexter, Poplar Bluff and Earth City.

Nearly Perfect Shoes offers name-brand shoes for men, women and children and the company's products include sandals, boots, athletic, dress and casual footwear.

Maevers said the building was supposed to open with both businesses on May 1, but some renovation work, such as putting on a new roof, has put them two to three weeks behind schedule. Now the stores will likely open in mid- to late May, he said.

Nearly Perfect Shoes has been in the Jackson community for about 11 years.

Computer 21

Ross Perot is moving to Cape Girardeau.

OK, not really. But Andrew Bard with Computer 21 in Cape Girardeau wants you to know that his company has just signed a long-term contract with Perot Systems, an information technology outsourcing firm owned by former presidential candidate Ross "Sucking Sound" Perot.

Basically, Perot's IT firm has hired Computer 21 to provide computer support for Global Motor Sports Group, which owns Motor Cycle Stuff on Nash Road. That means Computer 21 will repair the PCs, keep the network running and the servers maintained.

Motor Cycle Stuff, by the way, supplies motorcycle dealers such as Yamaha and Honda.

Bard says it's a good deal and speaks well of the company.

"It's a validation by a multimillion-dollar company that shows we know what we're doing," he said.

My only question: Will you be sending any workers to Mexico?

Briefly

Cape Glass and Tinting is set to open one day this week at 1420 Independence and is owned by Chris Eakin and Richard Hendrix. The business will install glass in automobiles and do commercial and residential window tinting.

There have been some vicious rumors going around that Dexter Bar-B-Que in Cape Girardeau is closing. Not so, says manager Jack Hunt. "I assure you, this place isn't going anywhere," he said.

Wes Kinsey, the owner of My Daddy's Cheesecake, has let me know that the ribbon cutting for his second location at La Croix Village on Route W will be at 10 a.m. Thursday.

Scott Moyers is the business editor for the Southeast Missourian. Send your comments, business news, information or questions to Biz Buzz, 301 Broadway, Cape Girardeau, Mo., 63702-0699, e-mail smoyers@semissourian.com or call 335-6611, extension 137.