Black-Owned Tech Firm Partners With Real Estate Developer to Give Tenants Virtual Tours of Commercial Spaces

Zak Kidd, founder of OfficeTour

JBG Smith (NYSE: JBGS), a leading owner and developer of high-quality, mixed-use properties in the Washington, DC market, is working with Zak Kidd, founder of OfficeTour, a DC-based Black-owned tech company, to launch a new web application that allows JBG Smith leasing professionals to virtually and interactively guide prospective tenants and their brokers through commercial spaces.
"Innovation, creativity, market leadership, and customer experience are essential to office leasing in all market conditions," said David Ritchey, Executive Vice President of JBG Smith. "The COVID-19 crisis made it clear that our virtual experience needed to reflect the same best-in-class approach. Through our collaboration with OfficeTour, we can couple a dynamic visual experience with the enhanced ability to communicate with our clients by responding to questions and pointing out key features that might go unnoticed during a self-guided virtual tour. Open communication and relationship building are important aspects of leasing, and we want to ensure that remains feasible, even virtually."

OfficeTour is a broker-guided web application that provides a fully integrated virtual tour of available spaces led by a leasing agent. Potential tenants do not need to sign in or download additional software and are able to speak with the agent through video chat while they are guided through the Matterport visual experience. Though the platform was designed to give commercial developers and leasing agents the ability to continue marketing and leasing office space during the COVID-19 pandemic, the software will be a convenient tool long after the current crisis subsides. OfficeTour gives landlords and developers the ability to conduct first-time viewings and follow up tours with prospective tenants – no matter their location.

“We wanted to complement what happens in real life, where personal interaction between parties looking for offices allows for discovery and deal alignment. Additionally, we wanted to prioritize the ability for the landlord’s broker to establish a real connection with the tenant driven by this integrated, collaborative experience,” said OfficeTour founder Zak Kidd.

JBG Smith is the first real estate company to use the application. The firm will use OfficeTour to initially showcase approximately about 30 properties, including 1900 N Street NW in the District and a significant portion of its National Landing portfolio in Virginia.



About JBG Smith
JBG Smith is an S&P 400 company that owns, operates, invests in and develops a dynamic portfolio of high-growth mixed-use properties in and around, Washington, D.C. Through an intense focus on placemaking, JBG SMITH cultivates vibrant, amenity-rich, walkable neighborhoods throughout the Capital region, including National Landing where it now serves as the exclusive developer for Amazon’s new headquarters. JBG Smith’s portfolio currently comprises of 20.8 million square feet of high-growth office, multifamily and retail assets, 98% at our share of which are Metro-served. It also maintains a robust future development pipeline encompassing 16.7 million square feet of mixed-use development opportunities. For more information on JBG Smith, please visit www.jbgsmith.com.



About OfficeTour
OfficeTour is the first fully integrated web-based platform that allows landlord brokers to give immersive and seamless tours of their properties without any downloading requirements from prospective tenants. With OfficeTour, brokers can conduct multiple tours with any number of parties through an easy to use interface that allows for the showcasing of real estate space.



For press inquiries contact, Maurisa Turner Potts, Spotted MP (Marketing + Public Relations), 703-501-6289 or maurisa@spottedmp.com

Or contact Bud Perrone, Rubenstein, Executive Vice President, 212-843-8068 or bperrone@rubenstein.com
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