How to Test Shelf for Your Use Case: A 7-Day Trial Plan

You signed up, the Team trial is running, and the workspace is empty. The trial lasts 7 days and needs no card, so the only thing that costs you anything is spending the week on the wrong features. This guide gives you a short test plan per use case: what to set up, in which order, and what you should see when it works. Pick the list that matches your team and skip the rest.

If you have not started the trial yet, the Team trial article covers how to activate it.

Before you start: get into a Team workspace

Every account has a Personal workspace. The trial unlocks the Team plan for your account, but the features you are evaluating live in a Team workspace, so create one first:

When the trial starts, Shelf sends you straight to the New workspace page. Give it a name and save.
If you skipped that page, click the workspace name at the top left, choose Manage workspaces, then New workspace.
Check the workspace name at the top left before you add anything. If it says Personal, you are in the Personal workspace.

Two things only work in a Team workspace: bookings and inviting other users. The trial also unlocks CSV import, CSV export, more custom fields (a free Personal workspace has 3) and importing non-registered members. If you are unsure which workspace you are in, see Why You Can't Invite Anyone to a Personal Workspace.

Audits and alternative barcodes are add-ons with their own 7-day trial per workspace. The owner starts each one from inside the app, for example from the unlock page under Audits, with no sales contact required.

Shelf also shows a short checklist on the dashboard of a new workspace with links to the first things to set up. It is a fine place to start; the lists below go further.

Media and production crews

For camera, sound and lighting gear that goes out on shoots and comes back as a set.

Create your Team workspace and add two or three locations such as Camera cage, Studio A and Van 1. Outcome: a location dropdown you can use on every asset. See Locations vs Categories vs Tags.
Import your gear list. Go to Assets, click Import, download the CSV template and fill it from your spreadsheet. Categories and locations are created on the fly from the file. Outcome: your real inventory in Shelf in one go. See the CSV import guide; the Copy prompt box there lets your own AI assistant reshape your spreadsheet into Shelf's format.
Print a few QR labels. Select five or six assets in the Assets list, open Actions and choose Download QR Codes. Print the zip on square labels and stick them on. Outcome: a label that opens the right asset when you scan it with your phone camera. See Using Shelf QR Codes with Avery Label Sheets.
Build a kit. Go to Kits, click New kit, name it after a real package such as Interview kit and use Add assets to add the camera body, lens, lav mics and tripod. Outcome: one QR code and one custody record for the whole package. See Kits.
Book the kit for a shoot. Go to Bookings, create a booking with a name, start and end date and a custodian, add the kit, then Reserve it. On the shoot day use Check Out; afterwards Check-in. Outcome: the kit shows as unavailable for the dates, and the booking moves from Reserved to Ongoing to Complete. See How to Create a Booking and Progressive Checkout for handing items out one at a time.
Check the Availability view on the Assets page with two overlapping bookings. Outcome: a calendar bar per asset so you can see what is free for the next job. See Availability View: Complete Guide.
Install Shelf Companion on an iPhone or Android phone. It is free on the App Store and Google Play, and signs in with your Shelf account. Scan a label and check out a booking from the phone. See Getting Started with Shelf Companion.
Invite two colleagues. Under Settings, open Team and invite one as Self service and one as Administrator. Outcome: the self-service user can only book and hold gear, the admin can do what you can. See User Roles and Their Permissions.

Universities and equipment rooms

For a checkout desk that lends equipment to students and staff for a class, a project or a semester.

Create your Team workspace and add categories such as Cameras, Audio and Laptops. Outcome: filters that match how your desk already sorts gear. See Using Categories.
Import your inventory from the CSV template under Assets, then Import. Add a cf:Serial number column so serials land in a custom field. Outcome: every item searchable by name or serial. See the CSV import guide.
Add your borrowers as non-registered members. Under Settings, open Team and add a few students by name. They cannot log in, but you can assign gear to them. Outcome: a borrower list without giving out accounts. See Onboarding Your Team Members.
Hand something out with custody. Open an asset, choose Assign custody and pick a student. Outcome: the asset shows who has it with no return date, which suits semester-long loans. Release it when it comes back. See Custody for Long-Term Lend-Outs.
Book a class set. Create a booking for next week's class, add ten assets, Reserve it, then try to book one of the same assets for the same day in a second booking. Outcome: Shelf blocks the second booking. See Troubleshooting Booking Conflicts.
Print QR labels for a shelf of items via Actions, then Download QR Codes, and scan one with the in-app scanner. Outcome: the scanner opens the asset, and the Assign custody action in the scanner lets you hand out several items by scanning them in a row. See Batch Scanning Actions.
Install Shelf Companion on the phone that lives at the desk. It is free on the App Store and Google Play. Use it to check a booking in from the return counter. See Getting Started with Shelf Companion.
Invite two colleagues. Invite a second desk worker as Administrator and a lecturer as Self service, then sign in as the lecturer and confirm they can book but not edit assets. See User Roles and Their Permissions.

Field and construction teams

For tools, instruments and safety gear that move between sites and people.

Create your Team workspace and add your sites as locations, with sub-locations such as Site B, Container 2 where it helps. Outcome: a location tree that mirrors where things physically are. See Sub-locations.
Import your tool register from the CSV template under Assets, then Import, with a location column filled in. Outcome: every tool already sitting in the right site. See the CSV import guide.
Print QR labels and attach them to a handful of tools. Use the Actions menu in the Assets list, then Download QR Codes. Outcome: scanning the label on site opens the tool's record with its current holder and location. See Scanning an Asset.
Hand tools to a crew member with custody. Open a tool, choose Assign custody and pick the person. Outcome: the asset shows its holder, and the hand-over is written to the asset's activity log with a timestamp. See Custody for Long-Term Lend-Outs.
Move gear between sites by scanning. Open the scanner, switch its action to Update location, scan several tools and pick the new site. Outcome: all of them show the new location in one step. See Batch Scanning Actions.
Track consumables by count. Add a quantity-tracked asset such as Safety gloves, set its quantity and a Min quantity, then assign some to a person. Outcome: the available count drops, and a low-stock alert fires when it reaches the minimum. See Quantity-Tracked Assets and Consumables.
Set a reminder on an instrument for its next calibration date. Outcome: an email when the date comes round. See Asset Reminders.
Install Shelf Companion on the site lead's phone, free on the App Store and Google Play, and invite two colleagues: a site lead as Manager and a crew member as Base. Outcome: the Manager can run custody and bookings for everyone, and the crew member can browse and request gear but not change it. See User Roles and Their Permissions.

IT and office equipment

For laptops, monitors, phones and peripherals assigned to employees.

Create your Team workspace and add custom fields such as Serial number (text), Warranty end (date) and Condition (dropdown). Outcome: the fields appear on every asset form. See Custom Field Types.
Import your device list from the CSV template under Assets, then Import. Put the custom field values in columns with the cf: prefix as the template shows. Outcome: every device with its serial and warranty date. See the CSV import guide.
Keep your existing asset tags. If devices already carry barcode stickers, start the Alternative Barcodes trial and put the sticker values in the import file. Outcome: scanning an old sticker opens the device in Shelf. See Alternative Barcodes.
Assign devices to employees with custody. Add colleagues as non-registered members under Settings, then Team, and give each a laptop via Assign custody. Outcome: each employee's page lists their equipment. See Custody for Long-Term Lend-Outs.
Retire a device. Archive an old laptop and check that it drops out of the Assets list but keeps its history, then reinstate it. Outcome: a clean list without deleting anything. See Archive and Reinstate Assets.
Run a quick audit. Start the Audits trial from the Audits page, create a session for one room, scan what is there, then click Complete Audit. Outcome: anything you did not scan turns from Not scanned into Missing, and Actions, then Download Receipt on the completed audit gives you a PDF with the found, missing and unexpected counts. See Run Your First Audit.
Install Shelf Companion, free on the App Store and Google Play, and run the audit scan from the phone instead of a laptop. See Getting Started with Shelf Companion.
Invite two colleagues from Settings, then Team: a helpdesk colleague as Administrator and an employee as Base. Outcome: the Base user can browse all devices and request bookings, but cannot edit assets. Then export the asset list to CSV to check the data comes back out. See Exporting Workspace Data.

At the end of the week

Open the Dashboard and the Reports page to see what a week of real use looks like. See Getting Started with Reports.
Decide what you still need to see. If it is not covered above, write to support with your use case and we will point you to it or tell you plainly if Shelf does not do it.
When the trial ends with no payment method on file, the Team workspace pauses and your data stays. You can add a payment method from Subscriptions to continue, as described in How to Upgrade to Team. If you had a payment method saved when you started the trial and ticked the consent box, Shelf charges it when the trial ends; cancel from Subscriptions before then if you do not want that.

Team Plan Trial — how the trial works and how to activate it
Getting Started with Shelf — the general first-steps guide
Switching From Another Asset Tool — if you are moving data out of another system
Use Case Scenarios for Bookings — more booking examples