Happy sunny June day!
It still amazes me that anyone reads this little blog, but I know that new and "old" customers alike do, so here is a little update for you, fresh from my head!
As many of you know, I run the store on my own, with help for the packing side of things from my lovely Mum.
My daily tasks do vary, but generally I spend the morning doing urgent emails, then packaging up and dispatching orders, and dealing with urgent stock tasks. I then get to go back to emails later in the afternoon on a Monday, mid/late morning on other days. The emails I receive and like to send are detailed, so these usually take me a few hours.
The rest of the day is then left for other tasks, and it is keeping struggle with. My to-do list/wish list grows and never shrinks! When you run a little shop, there is so much that goes on behind the scenes.
These really vary and are tasks such as:
- Accounting
- Tax
- VAT
- Stock Planning
- Stock designing
- Stock manufacture and shipping
- Postage tasks
- Social Media
- Website and other stores updating
- Product pages updating
- Photography
- Dealing with things going wrong (yes PC, I am talking to you),
- etc etc.
- Ordering supplies such as packaging
These are just broad categories, but there are often many of each task needing doing at one time.
On the one hand I know my customer facing tasks are the most important, but it is also true that doing these other longer tasks do help you and are super important.
As an example, the new breast form graphics that I am currently designing. It's taken me quite a while to learn the software, but I am at last getting there. It's just taking a lot longer than I thought and they are not even finished yet. I get sad that it means I am not replying to emails straight away when doing tasks like that, but the key point I just realised is:
these tasks help you, my customers.
They may not all be quite as direct with helping you, but they all do. Keeping the tax man happy keeps my shop open and able to help you, ordering good value postage supplies means I can send your items well protected and keep my prices down, keeping the website updated with stocks makes sure you can buy what you'd like to buy etc.
It's this I need to remind myself
So how to find more time?!
With all this in mind I've decided to have a day every few weeks where I don't dispatch/post out products to you. By doing this is won't take me the full double time the next day, but it will give me a valuable few hours where I can work on some of the other tasks.
I will pop a note in the store to give plenty of notice, so you know to get your orders in if urgent.
Hopefully this will mean I am able to improve my customer experience, as well as oiling the cogs better behind the scenes :)
