How To Use Custom Cookie Order Management Forms for Efficiency

Hey Besties! The New Year is upon us, and I’ve heard your requests for help in getting organized! Let’s keep it real…the business management side of a bakery business is not typically the strong suit for bakers! In my years of working with bakers, the business, planning, strategy and organization are commonly the biggest pain points. You are not alone in this, but that doesn’t mean it has to stay that way. Strategy and organization are my JAM, so I’m happy to help get you ready for a huge year ahead! I’m sharing my tips for custom cookie order management and tools I have created for you that should help! Let’s do this, together!

Wait…running a bakery isn’t always fun?!

If you’ve been operating a bakery biz for more than a day, heck, even if you haven’t opened it yet, you know it’s not all frosting and sprinkles! A bakery business, even a home bakery business, is still a business and to be sustainable and successful, has to be operated as such. Hobby bakers who simply want to enjoy baking keep it that way for a reason! But turning your passion or hobby into a business requires a lot more than a love for baking.

Fortunately, when you plan appropriately, manage your time and expenses like a boss and stay organized, you can avoid a lot of the common pitfalls other bakeries encounter. Just winging it is not a sustainable strategy. And you will be stressed, trying to turn a profit. But Bestie, it doesn’t have to be that way. It’s actually super simple to get organized and put the planning in place to make this your best year yet! The goal is for YOU to have a wildly successful bakery business, while you enjoy all the fun aspects, keeping stress low and prioritizing what’s most important to you.

If you haven’t already seen it, THIS will help you plan out your entire year so you know exactly what you should be doing each day and week to hit all your goals. And know exactly when you can take time off too! I highly recommend you taking the time to plan your year ahead and you’ll immediately feel excited and ready!

Let’s talk Custom Cookie Orders

Now that you are armed with planning what your year ahead looks like, let’s talk about custom cookie order management! And honestly, this can apply to pre-sale orders as well. Have orders for cookies? Let’s get organized.

Every baker accepts orders in different ways…texts, emails, messenger, online forms, websites and more. Taking orders is one thing, but then managing those orders is a whole different animal. That is where cookiers commonly struggle. And no one wants to get the dreaded text asking when they can pick up their order when you have not baked a thing! Every cookier’s worst nightmare, right?

How we manage orders

Here’s now we manage custom cookie orders, and it works beautifully for us. Regardless of how we accept orders, once we have a confirmed order, we use this form to start tracking the progress of that order, in a binder. We capture all the order details on this one sheet and keep them in order of due date in our binder. This way, we always know what our next orders are and can have all upcoming orders, with details, in one place. No going back to emails or messages, it’s all right here.

And my favorite feature of this form is the checklist. I’m a list gal and the sheer joy I get from checking things off my list can’t be understated. And since I commonly bake and freeze orders ahead, this checklist gives me an at-a-glance view of exactly which stage each order is in.

It’s really that simple, Bestie! Every time you get an order, start a new sheet for that order, track your progress, and never let an order fall through the cracks again! This works beautifully for us, and you can simply implement this method with your own form or snag this one that I’ve made for you in my Printables Shop HERE!

What about cookie design?

Again, every cookier uses different methods for sketching, creating or planning their custom cookie designs. We actually use this form, printed on the backside of our above form, to have all of our design details, cutter info and more, in one place. This gives me more space to actually sketch, make notes about cutters, colors, text, fonts, and other design ideas. Between both of these forms, I have ALL my details in one place, so even if I design well in advance, I have all my notes and details waiting for me when it’s time to execute.

Custom Cookie Order Management Tools

Simple, effective and efficient for anyone to implement! And once you have a system like this set up, it takes a huge weight off of your shoulders! I created these forms for you, in your choice or pink or gray, that you can find HERE and immediately download to start using. My hope is that you can start the New Year strong, organized and excited for your business!

I receive A LOT of messages from fellow home bakers pleading for help with the business side of their bakeries, so more strategies and tools are coming to help! You can also find a lot of this help already in THIS section of my website!

Let’s make this your best year yet!

Bestie, I’m here to help you every step of the way, regardless of your goals. Life is short and if I can help you achieve your goals then I’ll sleep with a smile on my face. If you’re not already a part of our Besties group, you are missing out on the happiest, most helpful corner of the internet! You can join HERE where thousands of us hand out to help each other.

And if you’re not already receiving my weekly newsletter, now is your chance to start! Many say it’s their favorite email they receive every Friday! Never miss out on a new recipe, technique, tutorial, strategy and tons of free printables! Happy Baking, Besties!