Kudos, pal. You have had a successful run, campaigning your business idea on Kickstarter. It is no mean feat.
Killer idea, check.
Marketing the idea, check.
Market acceptance, check.
Raising capital, check.
So, what is the next step?
You are the chosen one. With great power comes great responsibility. Yes, Ben Parker’s golden words are apt here. You do know that Kickstarter backers do not get financial profits for their backing. They get samples of your goods which interested them in the first place and of course, the satisfaction that they funded a project that materialized. Here comes the difficult part. You need to put that capital to use, manufacture the produce and send them out. Projects that take off on Kickstarter funding almost always require a lot of logistical planning and execution. Running a new business is tough even for an experienced entrepreneur. You run pillar to post, getting approvals, getting raw materials and building the product from the prototype. There are legal issues to be faced with every step. Make sure backers get your products.
Shipping products to backers needs a well laid plan. Sounds simple, eh? Packing your stuff would require several materials. It needs a packing plan. You cannot really pack edible stuff like you pack books. Diligent planning about packing can save you a lot of money. Look at how efficiently you can pack, using minimal products but with maximum protection. Hunt for packing material at cheaper prices. International shipments need to be shipped after legal procedures are followed. There are several rules and regulations regarding international shipments. Make sure you follow every one of them, in order to stay clear of trouble. Several countries do NOT permit edible foodstuff into their borders.
Batch process your shipments. Send products to neighboring areas together. Talk to shipping partners and see if you can work a deal with them. You are going to involve them in bulk orders. They would be willing to give you good deals on shipping. Make sure your shipments are tracked from destination to delivery. Late shipments dues should be claimed. That would help keep shipping costs down. You will see that you tend to optimize time, cost and effort with every consequent shipment. If you are unable to handle the logistics yourself, you can rope in packaging and shipping experts who will do it for you. Look at the cost they quote and compare it with what you can do it for. If it makes sense, you hire the third party vendor for packaging and shipping.
So, good luck in keeping your backers and your future customers happy.
