Not surprisingly, the process of collecting orders and payments is all dependent on organization and detailed tracking. Utilizing Pictavo BuyTheYearbook simplifies the entire process by allowing parents, students, and staff to go online to order and purchase their yearbooks.
But you still need to promote and advertise that the yearbooks are on sale and many schools still need or want to allow people to purchase yearbooks with cash or checks during school events such as Open House, Science Fairs, etc. If that is the case, then you should take time to think through how you can organize a collection table for that event.
Be sure to have a poster or banner announcing “Yearbooks on Sale.” Create a sign-up list of people to collect orders and have order forms ready the collect the student’s name, grade, teacher, etc. Please visit YearbookLife’s Marketing Tools page to request money collection envelopes, receipt pads, sales flyers, and other materials to greatly simplify this process.
Collection Table Checklist
For instance, potential items to have at a yearbook sales table include:
Table and chair(s)—for order takers to sit and work efficiently.
Posters or banners—so it’s obvious that yearbooks are being sold.
Student and staff list—to quickly locate and record who has submitted an order for a yearbook and how much has been paid. This information can be tracked manually or electronically depending on the sophistication of your money collection system.
Money collection envelopes and/or cash box—to keep orders organized, together and secure.
Sales receipt pads—to act as proof that a sales transaction has been enacted. If possible, use a sales receipt pad that enables duplicate carbon copies. That way, each party has a record of the purchase—this is especially important for cash purchases should there be a record-keeping discrepancy later on.
Lots of pens—to record order information quickly and enable purchasers to borrow them if writing a check without a pen at their fingertips.
Other office supplies—such as a stapler, extra staples, note pads, scissors, etc. since you never know what items will need to be followed-up on and you’d rather be over-prepared than under-prepared when you’re working with a crowd of purchasers.
Copies of previous yearbooks—for people to peruse along with anything else that will engage curiosity and excitement about the upcoming yearbook!
Enlisting others to help you think through the entire order and payment collection process will really help you build a game plan with confidence. Perhaps you can start by talking with seasoned staffers about what methods worked well (or not-so-well) during last year’s process.