Operations
Black Friday Prep Starts in the Slow Season
BFCM Black Friday E-Commerce Marketing Operations The Team You Build
At Smoke Cartel, Black Friday was one of two days a year when the whole team was on deck. What we did before, during, and after the rush, plus a BFCM prep timeline you can start this week.
Your Tool Stack Is Probably Too Fancy
E-Commerce KPIs Operations Technology The Team You Build
An $8M company ran its entire customer service operation on a stack you could set up this afternoon. What we used, when to buy vs. build, the numbers worth watching, and a 30-minute tool audit.
Build the Boring Stuff So the Big Stuff Doesn't Happen
E-Commerce Operations SOPs The Team You Build Warehouse
Your team isn't careless. You just don't know what you don't know until the gap finds you. The boring operations playbooks I ran at Smoke Cartel, and where to start writing yours.
Should We Privatize USPS?
3PL E-Commerce Shipping Service USPS
“Privatizing USPS” could be a novel of its own, but here’s the spoiler alert: we already have two privatized shipping systems, and neither of them are practical for use for the average American sending packages or mail.
Why not? Because UPS & FedEx are privatized, they are optimizing for profitability. They have the luxury of capitalism dictating their decisions. One of those decisions for our privatized shipping options was to cut accessibility to every single address — it’s too expensive for everyone to receive mail.