Making Your First Sale

You’ve set up your store, added products, and configured delivery. Now for the fun part — getting your first order. This guide covers how to share your store, what happens when an order comes in, and how to fulfill it.

Sharing Your Store

Your store is live at yourfarmname.mypicket.app. Find your exact URL on the main Dashboard page.

Where to share it:

• Instagram bio — The most powerful single link for local farms. Add it to your bio and reference it in posts.
• Facebook page — Add your store URL to your business page’s “website” field and pin a post about it.
• Email newsletter — If you have an existing list, send an announcement. Your existing fans are your easiest first customers.
• Text message — Seriously. Text your 10 most loyal customers and tell them the store is open. Personal invites convert.
• Farmers market table sign — A simple card: “Order online at [yourstore].mypicket.app”

Your first few orders will almost certainly be people you already know. That’s perfect. Get comfortable with the workflow, collect some feedback, and ask for a photo or testimonial.

The Customer Experience

When a customer visits your store, they can:

1. Browse your products by category or scroll the full catalog
2. Add items to their cart
3. Choose delivery (if their zip code is in one of your zones) or pickup
4. Enter their address and payment information
5. Place the order — they receive an email confirmation automatically

The checkout is handled by Stripe, so payment is secure and you never touch card numbers.

When an Order Comes In

New orders appear in your admin under Orders — you’ll see a notification badge in the sidebar. Picket also sends you an email notification for every new order (configurable in Settings > Notifications).

Each order shows:

• Customer name and contact info
• Items ordered with quantities and prices
• Delivery method (delivery or pickup) and address/location
• Any special instructions the customer left
• Payment status (paid, pending, or refunded)
• Order total

Fulfilling an Order

As you work through an order, update its status to keep the customer informed. Status changes trigger automatic email notifications to the customer.

Order statuses:

Status	When to use
New	Just placed, not yet acknowledged
Processing	You’ve started preparing it
Ready	Prepared and waiting for pickup or pickup by driver
Out for Delivery	You’re on your way
Completed	Delivered or picked up successfully
Cancelled	Won’t be fulfilled

To update status: open the order, click the current status, and select the new one from the dropdown.

Adding Notes

You can add two types of notes to an order:

• Internal notes — Visible only to you. Great for prep notes, parking instructions, or anything the customer doesn’t need to see.
• Customer notes — Sent to the customer via email when you add them. Good for communicating a substitution or a delay.

Completing the Order

When the order has been delivered or picked up, mark it Completed. The customer receives a final confirmation email. The order moves to your completed order history.

At this point, you might:

• Send a personal thank-you text if it’s someone you know
• Ask if they’d like to leave a review or share a photo
• Invite them to sign up for your email list or follow you on Instagram

Tips for Your First Sale

Personal touches matter. A handwritten note, a flower or two extra, remembering a customer’s preferences — these are the things small farm businesses do that no big retailer can match. Lean into it.

Ask for feedback. After your first few orders, text or email customers and ask: “Was everything perfect? Anything I should know?” This feedback is gold and makes customers feel valued.

Don’t wait for perfection. Your first order doesn’t need to be flawless. It needs to happen. You’ll learn more from one real order than from all the preparation in the world.

What’s Next

Congratulations — you’re a Picket merchant! As your business grows, explore the rest of the admin:

• Managing Products — Variants, seasonal availability, inventory
• Subscriptions & CSA — Recurring orders and CSA shares
• Delivery Zones & Route Planning — Route optimization for busy delivery days
• Analytics Dashboard — Track sales and traffic trends