The show is over. You've got 50 sales, a mountain of items, and buyers expecting fast shipping. Your post-show workflow determines whether those buyers come back or leave negative reviews. Here's everything you need to know.
Carrier Comparison for Live Sellers
USPS — Best for Small, Light Items
- First Class Mail (under 1 lb): $3.50-$5.50. Best for cards, jewelry, small items
- Priority Mail (1-5 lbs): $8-$15. Includes tracking and insurance up to $100
- Priority Mail Flat Rate: Small box $10.40, medium $16.10. Great for heavier small items
- Pro tip: Free Priority Mail boxes from USPS.com — order them in bulk
UPS Ground — Best for Heavy Items
- Often cheaper than USPS for packages over 2 lbs
- Better tracking and fewer lost packages for high-value items
- Use eBay or Pirate Ship for discounted UPS rates
FedEx Ground — Best for Large Items
- Competitive with UPS on larger packages
- FedEx SmartPost can save money on lower-priority shipments
Save Money: Pirate Ship
Pirate Ship offers USPS Commercial Plus and UPS rates — often 20-40% cheaper than retail. It's free to use and integrates with most selling platforms. If you're shipping more than 10 orders a week, Pirate Ship pays for itself immediately.
The Batch-Packing Workflow
- Print labels during the stream. With WhatLabels' auto-print, every sale generates a label instantly. By the time your show ends, all labels are printed
- Sort by buyer number. WhatLabels numbers each unique buyer. Group items by buyer number to combine orders
- Stage by carrier. USPS pile, UPS pile. One trip to each drop-off
- Pack in order. Work through labels sequentially — match item to label, pack, seal, next
- Use Print Notes for specials. "FRAGILE - double box" or "combine with order #3" — print a note label that goes right in the package
Shipping Deadlines by Platform
- Whatnot: Ship within 3 business days (24 hours recommended for better metrics)
- eBay: Per your listing's handling time (1 business day standard)
- Poshmark: Ship within 7 days (3 days recommended)
Late shipments on any platform hurt your visibility and ratings. Whatnot in particular can reduce your algorithmic placement for repeated late shipments.
Go Wholesale on Supplies
Set up a business account and buy in bulk. Your per-unit costs drop dramatically:
- Poly mailers: $0.08-0.15 each in bulk (vs $0.50+ retail)
- Bubble mailers: $0.15-0.25 each in bulk
- Tape, labels, tissue paper — all cheaper wholesale
Print your labels automatically during every show. Try WhatLabels free →