I am having trouble establishing an efficient order book,and I was really hoping some of you folks could provide some help. What are some of the ways you maintain your order book? How do you have it laid out and structured? My orders have increased a great deal over the last couple months, and I am struggling to keep everything straight.
Any tips or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
First off, congrats! It sounds like you are staying busy.
I no longer take orders but have taken quite a few... this is mostly obvious stuff but I hope it helps.
Take down any info you get, print out emails, photos, etc. I like to put together a page for the order and usually bring a copy to the shop too. I use a notebook and just staple in any pages I need.
Make sure to get contact info in several forms, email, screen name, phone number, etc...
I like to make a drawing, even if rough it will give me the details I need. Make a materials list too...
Keep in contact with the people on your order list.
Consolidate materials with the list... if you have a lot of orders it may be good to group them by materials or style.
It is key to keep good records, add notes as the knife changes, etc... just stay on it like you will not remember! Details are key...
