Moving Or In Need Of Custom Packaging?
June 5, 2008
Problem: Anyone who has looked through ANY stock box catalogue knows that as the sizes get larger, the choices dwindle. Many times shippers are stuck buying a size box that costs more to ship because the length plus girth of the box goes above the lower limit of an OVERSIZE CATEGORY. If the box is too large for the product being shipped, so that the length, width or height could be reduced, there is a real possibility to reduce or even eliminate the oversize charges.
Solution: At Custom Packaging Options, they make the box to fit the product! And they make just the quantity you need. You won’t have to buy hundreds to get a custom size. They have done this for a furniture manufacturer who saves $18.00 in freight charges per box! Another customer, a local tannery, is saving $8.50 per bear rug that is shipped. And they use stronger material (44 ect rather than 32 ect) which eliminated the shipping damage she was experiencing with the weaker stock box, giving her additional savings and consumer confidence in her company.
Should Micro-Businesses Outsource?
May 28, 2008
I had a conversation recently with a small business owner who realizes that her work is piling up and she needs to hire additional help for office management, filing and marketing tasks. She is currently not outsourcing or hiring employees as she knows she would have hard time losing control over certain aspects of her business.
After further discussion I realized that the main issue for her was TRUST. How can she find someone she can trust? Can she rely on recommendations and/or probationary periods to figure out that a certain person /company is a right fit? Would it be a good idea to hire friends or relatives, especially when someone has had bad experiences in the past?
Then we talked some more about pros and cons of outsourcing.
PROS:
>Reduction of stress.
>Decreased workload.
>Delegating unpleasant tasks.
>Efficient use of business owner’s resources and time.
CONS:
>Added expense.
>Finding the right person/company may take time.
>Delegation can be difficult.
>Idea of signing a long-term contract not appealing.
>Training issues.
We agreed that she should thoroughly assess her needs and make a list of most frustrating tasks causing her stress. In addition, she needs a SPA day as she has not taken any time off for a long time.
Maybe a massage chair in her office would be a good idea?