AV Junction Reports Strong Post ISE Registrations from Systems Integration Firms and Freelance Professionals

Following on the heels of its European market debut at ISE 2018, AV Junction, the audiovisual industry's first online platform that connects employers with independent contractors, announces that 500 freelance professionals have now registered at the site along with 150 systems integrators, lighting firms, and staging companies. According to Founder & CEO Paul Weatherhead, registrants now represent the United States, Canada, the UK, and Europe.

"The global audiovisual community really responded to our offering at ISE 2018," Weatherhead says. "In fact, AV Junction is now a worldwide phenomenon and, based on the reaction received at ISE, we are moving forward with plans to exhibit at the InfoComm, CEDIA, and Integrate shows, which will mark our first public appearances in the United States and Australia."

Weatherhead reporteds that 58% of its freelance professionals come from the United States, 19% from Europe, 9% from the UK, 2% each from Australia/New Zealand and Singapore, and 1% from Hong Kong. "Wherever Stripe is an accepted standard of payment our value proposition resonates immediately," he says. In terms of employers, 58% come from the United States, 23% from Europe, 11% from the UK, and 7% from Canada.

According to Weatherhead, freelancers at ISE made a number of comments that resonate with the three-month-old start-up, including:

"AV Junction is the first credible attempt to move away from the employment agency/support company model we have going on here right now that I don't think fits our industry or these times. I think a transparent, open marketplace such as yours is what we need here."
"This is a great service that's long overdue."
"AV Junction is the 'upwork' of AV. It was just a matter of time before someone did this for our industry and you've done it well!"
"This is exactly what our industry needs. A centralized place to find work that protects the interests of everyone involved."

"Many integration firms that we have met with report that they have been exploring many different ways to employ and manage freelancers and that AV Junction has done its homework in creating a platform that covers all of the critically important issues in a way that is fair for all participants," Weatherhead says.

AV Junction will be exhibiting at InfoComm 2018 in Booth #C4024 and at CEDIA in Booth #2838 in the Innovation Alley. Integrate 2018 Show plans are pending. "We plan to announce several strategic upgrades to the platform at InfoComm and we are really excited to demonstrate our portal to residential custom installation industry at CEDIA 2018," he says.

Launched in December 2017, AV Junction is a fully integrated, multi-featured web platform that enables AV companies to search for, hire, and manage qualified freelancers on a project-to-project basis, as needed, from anywhere in the world. AV companies can post an unlimited number of jobs, search a vast worldwide database of independents, create work order contracts for hiring, message freelancers directly, and make secure payments. Industry freelancers can join the database free-of-charge to easily search for and apply to relevant jobs based on skill, sector and job type.

AV Junction encompasses the entire spectrum of the AV company and freelancer relationship -- from the application process to the payment of the final invoice. Specific platform features include:

Qualified Applicant Searching: AV companies can quickly find qualified and competent AV technicians in local or remote areas if their go-to talent is unavailable.
Simple Invoicing: Freelancers can enjoy simple invoicing with easy work order creation for every hire, and the ability to set payment terms ahead of time. All they have to do is click "invoice."
Milestone Payouts: AV companies and freelancers can set customized project "milestones" on fixed priced work orders to provide insurance of work completion, thereby improving customer satisfaction.
Secure Payment Processing: A payment processor by STRIPE Connect handles payouts in multiple currencies and leverages a sophisticated milestone completion process. The milestone process ensures that freelancers get paid securely and on time, and allows employers to approve payouts when work is completed properly.
Ratings System: AV companies can rate freelancers after each project, boosting attractiveness to other potential employers after a job well done. Freelancers can also rate employers on factors like communication, use of tools, and timeliness of payment.

AV Junction is available to commercial and residential systems integrators, rental, live event and staging professionals, exhibit and production houses, and audiovisual manufacturers globally, wherever Stripe is accepted. Interested customers can sign up for a free three-month trial to begin. After 90 days, users can choose between an "Economy" package, with a pay-as-you-go model offering access to the site with full features and a flat fee per hire, or a "Professional" package which includes a $150 monthly subscription with full site access, full features, and a discounted flat fee per hire.