Having good time management skills in your home baking business is so valuable. I know this is not a revolutionary concept, we have all heard it before! But honestly, it is true and when you start viewing your time as money you will make sure you are using it wisely. Here are some tips on how to master your time in your home baking business.
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When starting a baking business you are most likely one person. The amount of orders you can take in and the amount of money you can make are directly correlated to how much time you have.
We all want more orders, large orders aka more money. To be able to do that we need to make sure we have the time.
This means working in bulk, working in advance and knowing just how long you actually take to do steps of an order.
Time Management Tip #1 for your home baking business
Work in advance:
Know your shelf life so you can spread out the steps of the order.
Being able to spread out your baking allows you to be able to take on more orders.
For example, most people order cakes for the weekend. If you bake the cakes just 2 days in advance you can only complete so many orders in time for the weekend.
But if you start the cakes a week in advance then you can make at least double the amount of orders.
ex to spread out making cupcakes
Day 1: make fondant decor
Day 2: separate dry ingredients
Day 3: Make the frosting
Day 4: Bake cupcakes
Day 5: Frost
It is 100% ok to freeze items. Weird science but it actually makes my chocolate cake more moist!
Knowing the shelf life of everything you make will help you know how much in advance you can make everything.
FOR EXAMPLE:
Swiss meringue buttercream lasts in the freezer for 3 months
Cake and cupcakes for 3 months in freezer
HOW TO IMPLEMENT THIS:
If I am making a chocolate cake and I know I have another chocolate cake order next week I will make both at the same time.
If I have a slow week or no baking to do that day then I will make some buttercream
Make sure to label everything with what it is and the date it was put in the freezer/fridge
Time Management Tip #2 for your home baking business
Work in bulk:
It’s a lot more time-efficient to do 2 of the same thing one time than to do it two separate times.
One way to do this is by separating dry ingredients. You could do this each time you are going to make a cake.
Or you could see how many chocolate cakes you have coming up and separate the dry ingredients into plastic tubs all at once. When it is time for you to bake you can just grab the dry ingredients and throw them in.
I use these tubs to keep my dry ingredients as well as much left-over buttercream.
Time Management Tip #3
Know how long it takes you:
A big part of time management is not just wasting time but knowing how long things will actually take you. Most of the times that I am stressed and feel rushed it is because I underestimate how long something will take.
Having good time management means we have to plan well in advance. When you have a realistic expectation of how long things take you, you will be able to schedule out your day more accurately, causing you to have less of that rushing stress.
HOW TO IMPLEMENT THIS:
Time yourself, know how long tasks actually take you
Plan backward and then add on an hour.
If you have a deadline plan your schedule backward and add more time as a buffer. Things always come up or don’t go exactly as planned having that buffer time in there takes off the stress of being late. Make sure you account for each and every step. You would be surprised how much time things like loading up the car takes.
FOR EXAMPLE:
Time that cake needs to be ready at the Venue: 2PM
Clean up: 10 min 1:50
Set up time: 30 min 1:20
Drive time: 15min 1:05
Load up car: 10 min 12:55
Get everything together: 10 min 12:45
Stack cake: 30 min 12:15
30 min buffer Start at: 11:45
Time Management Tip #4 for your home baking business
Be effective when you don't have orders:
When you are not busy it is the perfect chance to get ahead. Take the opportunity to do some of the things on this list to make sure you are using your time effectively even when you don’t have a lot of orders.
Separate dry ingredients
Bake your orders ahead of time
Make buttercream
Make royal icing
Make a practice order
Organize orders
Keep track of your profit and loss
Mastering time management skills is essential for the success of your home baking business. While it may seem like a familiar concept, the true value of effective time management becomes apparent when you realize that every moment you spend wisely directly impacts your ability to take on more orders and increase your income.
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