Whilst we may be coming to the end of January, it’s a good time to reflect and take stock of the peak selling season of Christmas 2016. Not least because peak will be coming around with alarming speed and predictability in 2017 and very soon you’ll be planning and working towards that.
It can be difficult to find time to reflect about your business because keeping the wheels on takes enough time and just getting the stock in and out of the door is more than a handful at even the best of times.
But, as you well know, there’s always room for innovation and improvement. And don’t forget that Tamebay can help here. We produce the Tamebay Guide every years and that’s jam packed with ideas and services that can help you drive efficiency and profitability by streamlining your business of helping you build capacity. You can find the Tamebay Guide here.
I’ve spoken to quite a few sellers in this new year, and without going into the specifics of their businesses, here are some vox pop snippets of things sellers learn about their businesses during the peak selling season of 2016. What are your insights?
– Amazon is quickly becoming the dominant channel in my business and FBA was a lifesaver in allowing me to sell more without necessarily building my own operation.
– Christmas sales picked up earlier this year and I wasn’t ready. It looks like people are starting their Christmas shopping sooner.
– I completely shut down my sales from 21st until January and that really meant I could take a holiday. I’m glad I did.
– Communication around Black Friday/Cyber Monday is especially important because even with the best will in the world all the shipping firms are clogged up and delays are inevitable.
– Returns represent a small number of my sales but they are a time consuming as pact of my business that needs attention. This Christmas returns were coming in well into January.
