{Handmade Business in 31 Days — Day 12, Shipping madness.}

Day 11// Running a handmade business takes an insane amount of energy, organization + daily/weekly upkeep that if you don’t feel confident in your workflow processes you will probably feel like a crazy lady. Snort.

Today let’s talk about shipping product. When we had an apartment in Minneapolis I would ship product every day of the week. My concentration jumped around the various projects we were working on and I was not efficient with our shipping process. I also had to pull out all materials needed to ship, then put them away — only to need them again the next day! Then we moved to a house {still in Minneapolis} and I was able to have a more-defined shipping workspace. Zack built a table that had cubbies below for bubble mailers, business cards, tape, ribbon, scissors. Made me fall in love with him all over again, watching him build that so effortless for me ;) Suddenly all the the necessary tools/materials we needed were within reach! It was glorious and was a sure end to the shipping madness we had been experiencing.

Shortly before we moved to said house I realized the Post Office does package pick up. I know. LIGHT BULB. Wanna know what I did on move-in day? Stalked our postman and ask him if he would mind picking up “a few packages” a couple of times a week… pretty please? Since he parked his mail truck near our house it was super easy for him to do this for us. Now I probably should have scheduled a formal pick-up {link above}, but… this worked just as well. Our postman was awesome and I do miss him… Brian, how’s California sound?

But anyhoooo, we’re back in an apartment and this time in Los Angeles, just a couple of miles from the ocean — yeow!, but this means we are working on a new process. No need to backtrack and have shipping become a madness, right? Shipping is a huge part of running a handmade business so I’m happy to take the time and figure out the perfect solution. Right now all products are shipping from Minneapolis so I have some time.

A FEW THINGS I’VE LEARNED:

• buy in bulk. Ordering larger quantities of materials {example: ribbon from your local craft store vs. here} not only gets you the best price but you’ll always be prepared for that flux in orders
  
• build a shipping process that is easy to maintain. There came a time when we were forced to ask ourselves if shipping every day was REALLY necessary? And it’s not. Even if you condense shipping to 2x/week customers will remain happy + so will your schedule/list of to-dos
• incorporate your brand into your packaging. Think stamps, thank-you cards, stickers, ribbon, envelopes/bags, confetti, tissue paper, business cards, a small trinket with every order, washi tape — anything that allows your customers experience your brand up to the end :)
• work efficiently. When you package orders twice a week you’re able to keep your focus on other, equally important tasks for longer. Your attention span is cut off. You accomplish more. Your dreams turn into plans into crossed off items from your to-dos. Working efficiently could also mean stuffing business cards into all product >> placing said product into cute brown bags >> sealing the bags with a sticker >> placing inside a bubble mailer + applying the shipping labels >> stamping the outside of all mailers with a quirky stamp. You work through one step until all orders are finished with that step, then you move on to the next. See how efficient that was? Now go put your feet up, I’ll bring you some hot cider to sip on and we’ll watch the leaves change color outside :)

Homework// How would you rate your shipping process? Would you give yourself an A+? If not, take some time to think about your trouble areas. Map out a quick plan of action, do some research, and quit when it’s perfected.

Need some advice in this area? Leave a comment below with your questions {so we can help}, and please reply to other comments if you have a tip to offer as well.

want even more tips for your handmade business? you know what to do ;)