We sat down with Marcus to chat about how Shift helped him achieve an organized workflow and set him up for success with his clients. Check out the recap of our conversation, below!

** Marcus is using the old version of Shift (v7). Check out the new version of Shift (v8), here. **

Specializing in transforming meeting rooms into modern collaborative spaces, Lumibuild provides the design and integration of custom Audio/Visual (AV) solutions. As a PMO (Project Management Office) Marcus is juggling and coordinating with multiple different clients at any given time. 

A dedicated Las Vegas Raiders fan and occasional podcaster, Marcus is also the guitarist of the band "Set Sail" and has been crafting tasty guitar licks for over two decades. Their first album, also called "Set Sail" is available on streaming services everywhere.

Discovering Shift

Marcus' typical day-to-day workflow involves email correspondence, chairing client meetings, scheduling crew locations, coordinating hardware deliveries, as well as leading design work for upcoming builds. With so many things happening all at once, his workflow was spread out across many tabs and browser windows. Since Chrome and Safari do not allow more than one email account to be signed in, the only workaround to accessing different email accounts at one time was to have multiple incognito windows open which brought about its inefficiencies. 

"I had so many tabs open, it got to a point where I didn't even know what was what anymore; my brain was going nuts just looking at my screen."

In November 2019, Marcus began looking into workflow productivity tools and came across Shift via an Instagram ad. The streamlined interface caught his attention and, after jumping in, purchased an Advanced subscription and has been using Shift every day since. 

Getting the Most Out Of Shift

Marcus and his team are integrated with the majority of GSuite's tools and being able to toggle between multiple different email accounts and calendars, all in one place, helps him stay on top of all their scheduling and client consultations. With four separate email accounts, Marcus likes that Shift keeps him signed in to each one unlike in Chrome where more mess is required (separate incognito windows) for less functionality (still spread out). 

Visually, Shift is the perfect solution for Marcus because it consolidates all his applications in one place, creating a workspace that is much more efficient, neater, and prettier. He also mentioned loving how easy it is to add new applications to the sidebar. As Marcus puts it, "when things look nice, you can take a deep breath and relax". He also loves that there's a built-in browser which means that he never has to leave the Shift environment and risk the distractions that come along with a native browser.

"Work is already so stressful, not having to worry about the methods behind my workflow is huge; it's so integrated into my life."

Our biggest takeaway from this part of our conversation with Marcus is not only that he uses Shift as his built-in checklist, but that Shift is the only thing he needs to open at the start of his workday. Rather than comb through his bookmark bar and individually sign in to each email and tool, they're all nicely laid out and already signed in. 

Shift vs. A Regular Browser

When we asked Marcus about what he would tell someone on the fence about using Shift, he began shaking his read reminiscing walking by colleagues' desks, and seeing them navigating 70+ web tabs by memorizing their order. A native browser like Chrome acts like a giant open basket that holds most of your workflow tools, but you have to stick your hand in the basket to try and feel around for the right tool. Shift, in contrast, is a basket with dividers. You stick your hand in, but you know exactly where to put your hand to get what you need without wasting any time. 

“It's been absolutely worth it for me."

Connect with Marcus on LinkedIn, here.

What's next?

Ready to try Shift for yourself? Download now!

Find quick tips and best practices in our Getting Started section here.

Read about other Shift Case Studies here.