Turn the freelancer experience into a competitive advantage

James: “Before Scheduling, we were using Excel, making a lot of phone calls and text messaging. It was a broken process that needed to be fixed.”

Tyler: “It was a disparate process, to be honest. There were six different places where things were being managed, and everyone had their own workflows that they are comfortable with which is fine. But with LASSO, we’re able to consolidate and streamline our operations into a more efficient workflow. This provided better visibility for everyone involved, allowing us to have a clearer picture of what each person was doing.”

James: “LASSO Scheduling has allowed this process to be a lot more seamless, and not to mention how much time it’s saved. It would sometimes take around 5 days of trying to get something scheduled and just back and forth texting and calling. And now, I just hit a couple buttons and send it out and wait for responses, and then follow up if I need to, so it saves a lot of time.”

James: “One of the biggest features that I love is the communication tools within LASSO. Because it’s all in one place, I can send out a mass email, text, or push notification, and my crew can confirm that they received it. I can attach PDFs of drawings or gear lists or a message reminding them to wear your show blacks or shorts for an outdoor event.

Before, I was going through all my contacts, starting a group text. And now I can click a button on the LASSO app and it’s done. I think that’s probably my favorite tool, because it’s just so easy and I love when I see “you have 10 un-communicated changes” and I click a button and boom, it’s done.

I was texting one of our freelancers the other day, and it was funny because, pre-LASSO you could see a difference in the texting. I was like, “Hey, you available?” And now it’s much more personal, “Hey, how’s it going?” and not the feeling the urgency to get their availability.”

James: “We’re changing our operational structure with LASSO. Rather than treating the tools as just another tool, we’re integrating it into our process. This shift has brought us more trust and peace of mind as managers and on the operational side.

As crew members on-site, there’s a sense of trust that they are being directed to the correct place and time, having access to all of the info they need on the app.

Having all the information about my crew on a single page is so convenient for me. It allows me to give them ratings and ensures that I assign the right people to the right jobs. It’s something we often overlook, but it’s a significant help. That’s the secret sauce within LASSO that makes a difference.”

James: “Our crew roster was in our phone before we implemented LASSO. We also had a spreadsheet that did not get updated enough. We would spend time trying to track down the latest version and whether or not in was Teams or our server so we needed a central location to store so we didn’t risk losing any information.

Tyler: “By using LASSO, we are showing our freelancers that we care about their experience with us. It means a lot to them that we take steps to make their job easier. We heavily rely on these individuals, and want their time working with MVP to be exceptional.”

James: “In the past, we had to deal with Excel files, Word documents, and confusion. There were times our crew didn’t know where to go in advance, and sometimes we won’t have the venue information until a week before. There was a lot of ever-changing information, LASSO really helps centralize that.

It gives our crew the confidence that they will show up where they need to be, and it’s all in one app on their phone instead of digging through emails to find the right information.”

Tyler: “There are times that we find ourselves sticking to familiar faces — the ones we consider our go-to crew. And having dependable go-tos is fantastic, but there are moments when they’re unavailable or booked.

With LASSO, we’ve been able to expand our roster and bring in new people and it’s been an amazing experience working with them. Now we have a wider pool of talent that we feel incredibly confident in.

It’s like we used to have a list of 5 people we wanted to work with, and now it has grown to 10, even 12 individuals. This has been a positive outcome for us, for sure.”

Tyler: “Before LASSO, we could see events planned out 3–4 weeks in advance, but it involved checking multiple places.

Having one report and dashboard gives us peace of mind as we can easily monitor events scheduled 4–6 weeks ahead. It allows us to check that everything is signed off and there are no gaps to fill. Knowing that we have full visibility brings a sense of assurance that everything is well-managed.

When we review our dashboard and everything is confirmed and turns green we know that we’re good.

Our new motto: Let’s make everything green.”

James: “When it comes to staffing events, I now have more confidence when I’m assigning crew to the specific job. If some freelancers can’t work certain events, venues, or positions I can add that tag to indicate that restriction so I can easily identify going forward.

I now have the confidence that I am effectively matching the right person to the right job. This not only improves the crew’s overall experience but also enhances our internal operations.”