Order book for cake makers

Is an order book for cake makers necessary?

When selling cakes it super important to look and act professionally. Have you thought about using an order book for cake makers at all?

But let’s think about what do you currently when taking a customer order, writing it down and noting all the details?

Writing it down

You could use a spiral shorthand notebook to jot down details. But you will have to recall the questions you need to ask.

The notebook page is blank with no prompts. So you could have a list of questions to ask the customer to ensure no essential question is missed.

But what if your customers give you their order without any discussion – by message or email?

Do you print it out?

Or do you copy down the details into another place? Are you certain you copied it correctly in this instance?

Or do you currently print that request out and put it in a file. How do you organise these requests? Aren’t there further questions you need to ask for clarification?

Do you email back and forth – or pick up the phone? Which way is quickest?

What if you get a WhatsApp enquiry? What if its a potential order on Facebook Messenger? Or even on your web form? Not so easy to print a social media message out in an orderly manner.

Orders for cakes and baked goods can flood in from many places.

How do you keep track and not miss an order?

Our biggest fear is someone turning up to pick up an order which has been completely forgotten.

So how can we make this process easier?

Why not use a pre printed order form? Why not have an order book for cake makers?

This way you gather and track every detail necessary relating to the customer order.

Importantly – you can track the deposit and balance due in one place.

The beauty of any pre-printed form is it looks professional.

An order sheet keeps you organised!

Imagine if you could just have your outstanding orders all in one file, all in the same format. In a ring binder in an sequence to suit you.

Either filed by order number, alphabetical or by due date. But in any order that makes it totally clear exactly what you need to prepare for the orders of the week.

It is then super easy to get a handle on the items to purchase, what to bake and when and what to compete and by when.

Even if you have a wall chart to remind you or even a diary – the unique number you allocate to this order – can be used and time blocked out.

There are so many ways to get organised – once your information is in one place.

Repeat orders are more likely because of professional stationery

If you can add in a business card with your contact details that would be even better. Why not use professional ways to remind your delighted customers of your details?

That way you can encourage repeat custom for the future. There is nothing worse than a happy customer losing your details. If they forget your name, they cannot look you up. Give them professional paperwork which includes your contact details. This leaves you with a chance of future orders. Just by using an order book for cake makers.

If you deliver a cake(s) to a venue without the customer present – what then?

It is best to get a signature from the manager of a venue – to prove safe delivery of your product. If you don’t have a professional piece of paper to present to that person – how do you prove that your cake(s) were fine when you delivered them? Avoid any customer disputes by having a sheet already filled in and then signed for by the venue. This also saves time typing out a delivery sheet for signature too. I am all about saving time.

And for all the reasons above is why I designed the

Customer Order Pad.

The physical version of the CakeCoachOnline Customer Order Pad can be posted out to buyers in UK. The pad gives either 25 sheets or 50 sheets with a choice of small or large.

We sell them in singles or in packs of 3. (We do post worldwide – but spoiler alert….the postage charges are high and seem to be constantly increasing.)

Make two copies of the order details at the same time

And the best bit…the sheets are NCR (no carbon required) So you peel off the card cover and pop it under the first order set. The set comprises one white sheet and a duplicate pink sheet underneath. Use a biro rather than a gel pen to take the order. Using a biro makes a legible second copy because of the pressure used to write with biro. You now have a second copy you can give the customer. You can give the white copy and you keep the pink. Or you keep the white and give away the pink. Your choice.

Get all the order details confirmed as correct

Give the customer an order copy and ask for them to check and confirm all the details. This is the most professional way to run a business.

There is nothing worse than finishing a cake whilst realising there was an error in the message, colour, flavour or anything else that might have been noted incorrectly.

It is easiest to get a signature if you meet with the customer. But there are other options too.

You can write up the details onto your Order and scan this into a computer and email them to your customer too. You can ask them to confirm the details.

Have a professional way to present the deposit and balance required

Rather than using a professional order book for cake makers – I saw the following grumble. A decorator – was sending out an INVOICE to her customer. No discussion. No communication.

Just a – “Here is your invoice”.

She had 9 orders cancel on her and wondered why!) That’s another story….

You could post the Order to your customer and ask for it to be returned signed, along with either payment or evidence of payment. This is a way to secure the booking slot.

Personalise your Order Form

Additionally there is space to personalise the Order Form. You can add your own business card on in the top right corner. I left this space blank specifically for a business card or stamp.

Never forget an essential detail

No detail is left unmentioned on the order pad. The flavour, the size, the shape, the message. How many cupcakes? Delivery address, the customers details. There is space for a signature to confirm safe delivery as well as confirming the original order details too.

All the details are noted down and collated in a professional manner.

Order archiving

There is nothing worse than doing a task again – that is unnecessary. And pricing a similar design over – when you did the same a little while ago, just wastes time. Why not use your prior design inspiration and costings to your advantage. File your orders methodically and make them easy to locate once more.

I have designed space to add an order number for your records, for this very reason. That way retrieving old orders is easy peasy. Just keep a master list of all orders. And file old orders numerically. This makes them easily retrievable.

Or you can file your Order copy by date or customer name. Your choice.

But the point of keeping old orders is for accounting purposes. And also to be able to track back and check on old designs and costings – cutting estimating time down. Why reinvent the wheel if the costs were priced out before?

Just ensure you pass the cost of the stationery onto your customers. Its pence per order sheet – but ensures you are covering your costs.

Here is the link to find out more

Customer order pad CLICK HERE