SiteAutomation Rules
This afternoon I had to mail a package of clips via USPS. Yes, I know we prattle on and on in the Renegade Writer about how cool and electronic we are, but there are still times when we need to hoof it to the ye old post office lest we piss off an editor. Today was one of those days for me.
It took me about two hours to pull a simple package together. Not a continuous hour, mind you. First, I had to run to the copy shop to get color copies of clips of articles running this month. Next I had to dig through my files to find some other clips I wanted to send. Luckily, I’d reorganized this file over the summer, so this only took me a minute or two. Then I had to write a cover note — but oops! I also upgraded my word processing software in July and couldn’t find my letterhead template. It took me awhile to create a new one, and should I use Lucidia Bright or Century Schoolbook font for my address… ? You get the picture: what should be a straightforward process gobbles up a lot of precious time.
I thought today about how to trim time from jobs like this, since it’s something I do often enough to make me grumble, “Why don’t I have a system in place?” Here are my ideas:
- Photocopy clips as soon as I receive them and file them. I’m pretty good at this; today was a fluke.
- File clips by specialty instead of by magazine. This means I can do one-stop shopping in my files if I need to get my hands on food writing or parenting clips. It took time to remember, “Hmm, what magazine published my healthy school lunches piece?”
- Create a file on my computer called “clips” and as soon as I get my scanner up and running, save PDFs of my clips into specialty files.
- Upload PDFs onto my website, so electronically minded editors can download if they wish. Look into password protecting said files.
- Store mailing envelopes, labels, folders, stamps, business cards, paperclips, and working pen together. Nothing more aggravating to go to one bin for envelopes, another for a label.
- Write up a standard intro letter that can be customized for each editor. I wasted lots of time searching my computer for old letters to use as a template.
- Create return address labels on my printer. One sheet of Avery labels will last me months.
- Handwrite the editor’s name and address on the envelope. My printing is very neat, and it takes me too long to fuss with my printer. I could also print my return address.
- Figure out how much it costs to send packages of different weights, then apply stamps at home versus running to the post office. I have a super-sensitive kitchen scale, so there’s no excuse for me to avoid the math. The USPS’s web site can calculate how much postage I’ll need for the envelope size and weight.
- Look into a service like stamps.com, although in my case I do so few snail mail packages, I doubt this would be cost-effective.
Any others you can think of? [db]
12 Responses to “Automation Rules”
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Kris
Said this on September 18th, 2006 at 9:51pm:- maintain a list of often used addresses in the same box as the envelopes or in a convenient file on the computer (so much easier than searching for that one email that has the current address…)
- if you send stuff using a magazine’s shipping #, keep that handy, too
- keep some flat rate boxes on hand for shipping bigger items (which I often have to do) and know the phone number to schedule a pickup
LindaFormichelli
Said this on September 19th, 2006 at 10:32am:These are great ideas! I love learning new ways to make my job easier.
Here are a few more:
* Get a self-inking return address stamp at Staples or Office Max. These are generally under $10, and the last one I got lasted the entire time I lived at my last address (can I say “last” one more time? Last. Last.).
* Use TextExpander (http://www.smileonmymac.com/textexpander/index.html - for Mac; I’m sure there are similar programs for PC), then add all your templates such as intro letters to editors, thank you notes, and other text that you find yourself typing often. Just type in your code word and all the text will appear. It’s magic!
* I use MemoToMe (http://www.memotome.com) to remind me of birthdays, anniversaries, etc. I get three reminders for each event — one two weeks in advance, one one week in advance, and one the day of the event.
* Once or twice a year, Eric and I head to the gift shop and buy up enough greeting cards to last months and months — birthday cards, anniversary cards, congratulations cards, get-well cards. (We don’t buy sympathy cards — I think that’s tempting fate, don’t you?
So when MemoToMe lets me know someone’s birthday is in a week, or when one of my editors gets a promotion, I don’t have to run out to the store to get a card. Also, you can sometimes get discounts if you buy enough cards at once — and it’s fun to read through all the selections for the best ones!
* Get a FedEx (www.fedex.com) or UPS (www.ups.com) account. if I remember correctly, it doesn’t cost anything to get an account, and you’ll get plenty of envelopes plus shipping labels preprinted with your name, address, and account number. No more hunting around for an envelope, driving to the FedEx/UPS place, etc.
Linda
MDiskin
Said this on September 19th, 2006 at 10:57am:Love this post. Here’s a small tip — put all your stamps, paper clips, pens, etc — all the small stuff that can get mislaid or easily “stolen” by someone looking for a pen — in a ziploc bag in your box. Keeps you from rooting around or losing the stuff in the box. Keep a couple of different pens (sharpie, ballpoint) to write on different surfaces.
DianaBurrell
Said this on September 19th, 2006 at 11:34am:Oh god, I forgot Text Expander — I use typeit4me. It’s similar to TE, but it works with earlier versions of OS 10, unlike TE.
Renee
Said this on September 19th, 2006 at 12:22pm:Great post! I love collecting practical tips. Here’s another: Staples is a great place to make (relatively) inexpensive copies–only 39 cents each, as compared to lots of places that still charge a dollar. It started out as a special promotion, but it was so popular they made it their everyday price.
I know it’s not as efficient as e-mail, but I really enjoy my post office trips. On deadline days when I’m chained to my desk all day, they provide some welcome fresh air and real live human contact.
Plus, my favorite coffee shop is right next store and our p.o. is in a funky, fun part of town.
Julie
Said this on September 19th, 2006 at 12:34pm:What a great post! I’ve got everything organized oh-so-fabulously in my online databases….but my three-dimentional clippings, mailing material, etc. tend to start that way and devolove into an “organized mess.” I’m going to print this and keep it handy!!!
DianaBurrell
Said this on September 19th, 2006 at 1:34pm:Renee, I actually like visiting my post office for similar reasons. I actually go to one the next town over where I have a p.o. box; the post office in my town is run by fascists. My post office guy is Eric (hi Eric!) and he knows everyone by name, lets you borrow his tape, gets your mail from you box for you if you forgot your key. When I first moved to town, I had to mail a bunch of stuff, but when it was time to pay, I’d discovered I forgot my wallet. He spotted me the money, told me not to worry, etc. (Yes, I did pay him back, but the point is, he didn’t know me from Adam.) In short, he breaks government rules, and I love it! Oh, and if I don’t feeling driving over, I can call and say, “Is there anything good in my box?” and if he’s not busy, he’ll let me know what’s waiting. What a guy!
LindaFormichelli
Said this on September 19th, 2006 at 1:42pm:Oh, and about making copies: I used to make so many copies that I bought my own color inkjet copier. It was just $90 at Staples, and it’s great! No more running out to the copy place or paying $1 for a color copy (which is what they cost before I got this copier). The ink is fairly expensive, but the convenience is worth it. I don’t copy clips as much anymore, but I do often copy contracts for my files.
I also hired a virtual assistant to turn many of my clips into PDF format (a tip Diana mentioned in the main post). I have no idea yet how many I sent her…maybe 50-75 hardcopy articles. She charged me $300, and I’ll soon be getting a CD with PDFs my most important clips that I can zap to editors who request them. Before, I would send editors Word files pasted into the body of the e-mail, which was fine but ugly, or copy and mail clips, which was also fine but time consuming. True, I could have created the PDFs myself, but it took the virtual assistant 15 hours. That’s 15 hours I spent doing other things (like paying work, and sleeping).
That leads to another automation tip: delegate if you can.
Linda
Jen A. Miller
Said this on September 22nd, 2006 at 9:40pm:I bought plain white labels from http://www.currentlabels.com. Very cheap, very easy, and the look fabulous. I also bought a typewriter off of Craigslist that I used to address envelopes. Hand printing or computer printing labels might be easier — especially if I make a mistake — but there’s a certain satisfaction from that clackity clack clak.
FWIW, intro packages have netted me a few grand worth of work this year, from big pubs to custom trades. For sure worth it.
DianaBurrell
Said this on September 23rd, 2006 at 11:03pm:Jen, that’s great to hear about the intro letters — and I’m glad it has worked for you. Do you have to do a lot of follow-up with the editors? Or do they tend to file your work, then give you a call down the road? Just curious …
And you know? Sometimes a typewriter is the only tool that’ll do. Off to eBay.
Jen A. Miller
Said this on September 25th, 2006 at 10:47pm:Diana -
Both. I get a lot of silence, but sometimes I hear right back (thank you Wired and Watch), sometimes I’ll hear a few weeks or months down the road (ahem, Playboy), and sometimes I followed up the intro package with an email idea a few weeks later (that would be you, Paste). I also did some writing for Comcast’s custom pub via LOI — they got back to me right away — and I was offered a job interview at another custom publisher (er…no). It took me four years and two intro packages, plus a few follow up emails, to even get a response from the book editor at the Philadelphia Inquirer, but it paid off, and I write book reviews for them now on a regular basis, though this is more of a career mark thing for me since I’ve been reading the Inky book reviews there since I was in high school. The pay for book reviews, well, it’ll buy dog food but won’t pay for the vet!
Jen A. Miller
Said this on September 25th, 2006 at 11:17pm:I should add that, in typical freelance fashion, the Wired article, which I turned in back in April, is stuck in “my editor left and no one’s moved on the article yet and can’t tell me it if it will ever run” ; the Playboy editor asked for ideas, and I haven’t heard anything back after sending in my fabu pitches; but things have worked out fine with Paste, Watch and the Comcast custom pub. Stories will be running in December.