How often have you decided against delegating a task because it would take longer to explain it and supervise it than to actually do it yourself? Well, a new online portal called SecretSauce Hub aims to bring together freelance event planners, project managers, programmers, social media managers, and marketers with associations, corporations, and independents in need of specific skills for an event.
The brainchild of tech evangelist and experience creator, and on this venture, CEO of Getting S#ift Done, Dahlia El Gazzar, and Director of Getting S#ift Done, Stefania Conti-Vecchi, SecretSauce Hub debuted in beta form in October and had a bigger launch at November's IBTM World Barcelona. El Gazzar says, “It is still a baby, not yet a toddler, but it is a labor of love.” It is also attracting a community of talented professionals and projects that require a skilled professional, not someone to stuff envelopes or sit at the registration desk. One current example from the site reads, “I need an event planner who has previously produced a Guinness World Record attempt—knows all the ins and outs of dealing with the Guinness World Records organization, and can produce/manage the attempt on site.”
The idea for the SecretSauce Hub came to El Gazzar when she noticed a trend of event professionals who don't want to work nine to five, or who want to shift into one particular aspect of their job and develop that passion. She says, “We wanted to create a portal that was event and hospitality industry-centric to overcome the obstacle in other gig listings of how to 'speak events.' We want to connect vetted event professionals with the right skill set who can manage a project without going through a steep learning curve.” Although large event management companies have expressed interest and will eventually be part of the portal, the founders are currently focused on projects from associations and independents, entities that El Gazzar has noticed often need help with tech implementation and branding.
How It Works
Project owners can register the event on the SecretSauce Hub and post a project at different levels, starting at $15 “Mild Sauce” for a 30-day post not featured on the home page, with higher exposure and longer postings at the “Hot Sauce” and “Muy Caliente Sauce” levels. Freelancers register details on the site and buy credit to bid on projects they are interested in. Each project costs two credits and a pack of 10 credits costs $10. Project owners interview freelance professionals and choose someone for the job.
On the back end, the founders have a Slack channel for freelancers and clients so that they are able to make sure each project is on track, and can step in if help is required.
Dahlia El Gazzar
