[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":191},["ShallowReactive",2],{"guide-\u002Fguides\u002Fbookings-and-scheduling\u002Fhow-to-stop-double-booking-equipment-and-crew":3,"guide-siblings-\u002Fguides\u002Fbookings-and-scheduling\u002Fhow-to-stop-double-booking-equipment-and-crew":181},{"id":4,"title":5,"author":6,"body":7,"description":159,"disclaimer":160,"draft":161,"extension":162,"faq":163,"lastReviewed":173,"meta":174,"navigation":175,"path":176,"publishedAt":173,"seo":177,"sitemap":178,"stem":179,"__hash__":180},"guides\u002Fguides\u002Fbookings-and-scheduling\u002Fhow-to-stop-double-booking-equipment-and-crew.md","How to stop double-booking equipment and crew","Rally",{"type":8,"value":9,"toc":151},"minimark",[10,14,19,22,25,29,32,48,51,55,133,136,144,148],[11,12,13],"p",{},"Double bookings happen when a yes lives in two places. Give every piece of\ngear and every crew member one calendar, and check it before you confirm\nany date. Here's how to run that check by hand, and how to tell when the\nvolume has outgrown it.",[15,16,18],"h2",{"id":17},"why-double-bookings-happen","Why double bookings happen",[11,20,21],{},"Nobody double-books at the moment of booking. It happens earlier, when the\ntruth got split: one brand's dates in a spreadsheet, the other's in a\nnotebook, crew in a group text, and the trailer in your head. Each yes\nchecks the list closest to hand, and both lists say yes.",[11,23,24],{},"The crew version is worse, because it fails on the day. Your crew guy\npulled up the wrong day in the group text and drove to Saturday's party on\nFriday.",[15,26,28],{"id":27},"the-one-calendar-rule","The one-calendar rule",[11,30,31],{},"Every thing that can only be in one place at a time gets one calendar.\nThat covers cannons, trucks, trailers, generators, and every crew member.",[33,34,35,39,42,45],"ol",{},[36,37,38],"li",{},"List your gear. Anything you'd have to physically move counts.",[36,40,41],{},"Give each item and each crew member a line on one shared calendar.",[36,43,44],{},"Before you confirm a date, check every line the booking touches.",[36,46,47],{},"When a booking changes, move the gear and crew lines with it, in the\nsame sitting.",[11,49,50],{},"Step 4 is where manual systems die. A reschedule agreed by text at 9pm\nrarely makes it back to the calendar.",[15,52,54],{"id":53},"what-each-method-actually-catches","What each method actually catches",[56,57,58,74],"table",{},[59,60,61],"thead",{},[62,63,64,68,71],"tr",{},[65,66,67],"th",{},"How you track it",[65,69,70],{},"Catches",[65,72,73],{},"Where it breaks",[75,76,77,89,100,111,122],"tbody",{},[62,78,79,83,86],{},[80,81,82],"td",{},"Memory",[80,84,85],{},"Nothing reliably",[80,87,88],{},"The first busy month",[62,90,91,94,97],{},[80,92,93],{},"Group text",[80,95,96],{},"Crew who scroll back",[80,98,99],{},"Saturday mornings",[62,101,102,105,108],{},[80,103,104],{},"Spreadsheet",[80,106,107],{},"Date clashes you look for",[80,109,110],{},"Reschedules and second brands",[62,112,113,116,119],{},[80,114,115],{},"One shared calendar",[80,117,118],{},"Most clashes",[80,120,121],{},"Updates made in a hurry",[62,123,124,127,130],{},[80,125,126],{},"Software with conflict warnings",[80,128,129],{},"The clash itself, at booking time",[80,131,132],{},"Gear you never entered",[11,134,135],{},"Whatever the tool, the pattern holds: the check has to happen at the\nmoment of the yes, by something that never forgets to look.",[137,138,141],"rally-aside",{"label":139,"to":140},"See dispatch and gear in Rally","\u002Ffeatures",[11,142,143],{},"Rally reserves gear per booking and warns you the moment the same cannon\nis promised twice. Crew get their own assignments with the date, the\naddress, and directions attached, so the group text goes back to being a\ngroup text.",[15,145,147],{"id":146},"the-habit-that-makes-any-system-work","The habit that makes any system work",[11,149,150],{},"Confirm nothing on the spot. Say \"let me check the calendar and text you\nin ten minutes,\" then actually check every line the date touches. Clients\nread that as professionalism, because it is.",{"title":152,"searchDepth":153,"depth":153,"links":154},"",2,[155,156,157,158],{"id":17,"depth":153,"text":18},{"id":27,"depth":153,"text":28},{"id":53,"depth":153,"text":54},{"id":146,"depth":153,"text":147},"Double bookings happen when a yes lives in two places. Give every cannon, truck, and crew member one calendar, and check it before you confirm a date.","none",false,"md",[164,167,170],{"q":165,"a":166},"How do I stop double-booking equipment across two brands?","Shared gear needs one calendar, even if the brands book separately. The moment each brand keeps its own gear list, the same cannon exists twice. Check the shared calendar before either brand confirms.",{"q":168,"a":169},"What should I do when I catch a double booking?","Call the newer booking first, while you still have options. Offer a time shift, a gear swap, or an upgrade before you offer a refund. Most clients flex if you call early and own it.",{"q":171,"a":172},"Is a group text enough to schedule crew?","A group text announces the schedule, but it does not hold it. Nobody scrolls back on a Saturday. Each crew member needs their own assignment with the date, the time, and the address attached.","2026-07-12",{},true,"\u002Fguides\u002Fbookings-and-scheduling\u002Fhow-to-stop-double-booking-equipment-and-crew",{"title":5,"description":159},{"loc":176},"guides\u002Fbookings-and-scheduling\u002Fhow-to-stop-double-booking-equipment-and-crew","9opqg1teBaxUbk-P-3HBqgNr-7GTIHDpN3xzF8QdZp8",[182,185,188],{"path":183,"title":184},"\u002Fguides\u002Fbookings-and-scheduling\u002Fhow-far-in-advance-do-people-book-parties","How far in advance do people book parties?",{"path":186,"title":187},"\u002Fguides\u002Fbookings-and-scheduling\u002Fhow-to-take-bookings-from-your-website","How to take bookings from your website (without playing phone tag)",{"path":189,"title":190},"\u002Fguides\u002Fbookings-and-scheduling\u002Fwhat-to-do-when-two-clients-want-the-same-date","What to do when two clients want the same date",1783921368161]