How To: Make the most of a sample

It would be lovely if all product samples came in easy to use pots or tubes but sadly they don't and I'm sure I'm not the only beauty addict out there who has been harboring a stash of sachets. It's frustrating because the sachets often contain enough product for two or three uses (even more if it's an eye cream) but they're so fiddly that most of them end up in the bin after one use. No one wants an open sachet of foundation lying around, do they?

I was at an Estee Lauder counter one day when the assistant asked me if I wanted to try their new BB cream. I said that I'd love to and was presented with twenty sachets of the stuff and an apologetic "sorry, we're out of sample pots." Whilst I did want to try the product, the faff of using all those little sachets was putting me off. One day I finished up a face cream (a sample, actually!) and had a tiny brainwave. So, I sat down with my twenty sachets of BB cream and squeezed them into the pot. It was so much more convenient to use from a pot and since still have plenty of the BB cream left (it's a bit too light for me in summer), I look forward to using up the rest at my leisure. 

The moral of the story is that if you want to make the most of your sample sachets you should decant them into a pot. It works best if you have a couple of sachets of the same product or if you have an eye cream sample. Bear in mind that there's no point using this method if the sachets you have only contain one use.

What you'll need:

Sachet(s) of product

A clean pot - big enough to hold the amount of product in the sachets

Scissors

What you won't need: 

A nosy cat who tries to pinch everything...

Here I'm putting a 1ml sample of L'Oreal True Match foundation into a 7ml Clinique eye cream sample pot. I actually already have this foundation (and quite like it) so I reckon I'll get about three uses from this sample. This is probably not the best example for me to use but it was just what I had to hand.

I really recommend using this technique with eye creams; I had a 2ml sample of one from Comfort Zone and when it was in a pot I got about three weeks' use out of it. Always remember to keep the little pots for new samples, too!

I hope this was useful for some of you. If you have any tips on how to make the most of samples, leave them in the comments.

Stace xx

Blog Sale Hosting Tips

I did a post last week about how to shop in blog sales so I thought it would be useful to write another about hosting blog sales. Holding a blog sale is a great way to get rid of unloved make up in exchange for some extra cash. 

The Instructions

Most blog sales will begin with a list of instructions so you need to decide what your terms are for the sale. Some of the information you should have there includes: where you're willing to ship to and how much postage will cost, when you plan to ship the products, how and when you'd like to be paid and how the buyers should go about making a purchase. Postage and packing costs should be as reasonable as possible. Royal Mail recently put their prices up so make sure you're charging enough to cover your costs but it's probably best to avoid setting really high postage costs. I charge £2.50 with no extra charge for additional items because it costs £2.20 to ship a parcel that weighs less than 750g (most blog sale parcels will) and the extra 30p covers the costs of the new mailing bags I use. A flat rate price is good because it should encourage buyers to pick up a few items to take advantage of the fact they won't need to pay extra in shipping. I'd recommend only taking payments via Paypal. Some sellers will state that returns are not possible and others will say that they'll accept offers on multi-item purchases. It's up to you to set your terms but just make sure you do so clearly.

Photos, Descriptions & Prices

Clear photographs of the products and the degree of usage are important. There are lots of blog posts and articles out there about taking good photos of beauty products if you're unsure about this. The descriptions of the products should be clear and should detail how used the product is, any damage to the packaging or product and anything else you think is necessary. Be honest in your descriptions so that your buyers are not disappointed; if you're unsure always overstate the usage to cover your own back. The prices you choose to set are probably the most important determining factor in the success of your blog sale. I usually charge around half of the RRP price but will charge a little more if the product is brand new or hard to find and less if it's been used more than a handful of times. Make sure your price including postage costs is not more expensive than the RRP. Try to be realistic; there's nothing more frustrating than a blog sale where everything is overpriced because no on will buy anything!

Advertise

When I post a blog sale I advertise it via a blog post, on Twitter and sometimes on muablogsales. Use the #blogsale and #bbloggers hashtags on Twitter to increase the chances of your sale being spotted. If you're selling some items which you know may be desirable you can also tweet those individually but try not to spam anyone with individual tweets for each and every product. If you have YouTube channel, Facebook page or any other relevant social network profile highlight your sale on those too. 

Manage Your Sales

It's important once you've posted your sale that you keep track of what's sold and to whom. I operate on a first come, first served basis and usually ask that items are paid for within 24 hours so I will invoice the first buyer and if they've not paid within 24 hours I will cancel the invoice and release the items for sale or offer them to the second buyer in line. When an item has been requested but not paid for, I mark it as 'pending' on the sale. That means other buyers will probably not request the item and it reminds you not to invoice several people for the same item. Once an item has sold I'll mark it as 'sold' or put a strike through it. If I've taken individual photos I'll just delete the photo and description.  Once your buyer has paid be sure to ship their parcel when you said you would. If you're unable to ship on time, let the buyer know as soon as possible. Once you've shipped your parcel you can let buyers know if it's possible to do so - I usually tweet that I've sent everything out. All being well, your buyer will receive their parcel and be delighted with the products.

I've held several in the past but I'm by no means an expert so feel free to leave your tips in the comments! Happy blog sale-ing and keep an eye out for another sale from me very soon :)

Stace xx

Blog Sale Shopping Tips

I love a good blog sale; it's great to find a product that's no longer available or something I've wanted to try for ages at a bargain price. I try to control myself a bit more these days but I still think blog sales are worth checking out, especially when you're on a budget. This post is just some advice based on my experience of making purchases from blog sales.

Find A Sale

At any one time there are plenty of blog sales going on and there are a few ways to find them. I get daily emails from muablogsales which is a list of blogs being held by members of Makeupalley. Another great way of finding blog sales is via Twitter. Check out the #blogsale or #bbloggers hashtags and keep an eye on your timeline if you follow a lot of bloggers. Obviously most blog sales will come up as blog posts so if you read a lot of blogs regularly you're sure to come across a few that way. If you're looking for particular brands or products, try doing an advanced search on Google, looking particularly for sales posted within the last few weeks.

Check International Sales

There are a lot more blog sales going on in the US than there are here in the UK so definitely don't rule those out. Shipping from the US to the UK isn't all that expensive and it doesn't take too long for your parcel to get here. Make sure the seller uses Air Mail, though as Surface Mail can take up to three months! I usually find Air Mail parcels get here within ten days. US sales often have better prices as most make up there is cheaper than it is here. In addition, you can pick up products from brands that aren't available here in the UK. I highly recommend keeping an eye out for US blog sales with a UK shipping option. 

Be Aware of Pricing

Sometimes an item in a sale might seem like a good deal but remember to take into account the shipping costs and the original price of the item. Some sellers charge crazy prices for limited edition products but I refuse to pay more than what the product originally cost, especially if it's been used. Remember if you're looking at an international sale to convert the prices before requesting them and read the information the seller has posted to make sure you know about any additional charges. It's easy to get carried away if you spot a blog sale with lots of nice products are good prices!

Don't Get Duped

I hate to put this in here as in my experience I've never had anyone take my money and not send the products but I've heard some horror stories in the past so I feel it's necessary to mention. I would advise always using Paypal as a payment method and preferably pay via an invoice sent by the seller. A lot of sellers out there ask to be sent payment as a gift to avoid fees, which is fine, but just be careful of who you're buying from in that case because if the parcel doesn't show up, you'll not get your money back. If the seller has a reasonably established blog I'd like to think they wouldn't do anything untoward and if you find a sale via muablogsales you can check out a seller's Makeupalley feedback before making a purchase.

I hope that was useful; if you have any blog sale tips, please post them below!

Stace xx