š± We've Moved!
our website to a new system
SPROUTPEOPLE HAS A NEW WEB HOME
Before I (Gil) start rambling - please bookmark, flag, or in some way Save this Newsletter. There is critical information about checkout that may impact your ability to complete orders, and you wonderful account holders will need to reset your password. Iāll get to that stuff after this short introductory bitā¦
Our web guru, Mark has finally completed our move to a new system which is supposed to simplify our life - as well as yourās (at least when working with us that is). There will likely be some things that didnāt transition perfectly - so if you see anything that just doesnāt seem right - please let us know.
Thereās plenty of work for us to do to further update our site - which has been online for over 28 years and has seen several major changes in that time, but this update is supposed to make information easier to find, ordering more streamlined, and possibly best of all - lower shipping costs and increase our sales - which are now so low now that our survival feels, at times questionable.
Only time will tell how this works. Weāve been using the same system for the last 14.67 years - so weāre both excited and apprehensive. We hope itās as good as promised - for all of us =:-)
NEW PASSWORDS FOR ACCOUNT HOLDERS
One thing that cannot be moved in this transition is/are you passwords. When you come to the new site and want to login - you will need to click the Forgot Password link in order to set up your password again. Keep it the same or change it as you like. Again - this is all about security - - though we are sorry for the inconvenience.
AN ESSENTIAL NOTE FOR CREDIT CARD SHOPPERS
Our new site is much more demanding about your addresses. Specifically - for those who pay by credit card - and especially as regards your Billing Address.
You may choose to ship to whoever you wish (in the US and its territories), but your Billing Address MUST match the records at your credit cardās bank. Online shopping requires Address Verification. Thatās how the processor of the transaction KNOWS the credit card belongs to the person using it. They check the Street Number or PO Box number AND the Zip Code.
If what you enter doesn't match the address that the bank has for your credit card - the purchase will be DECLINED. If you encounter this - the only remedy is for you to call the phone number on the back of your credit card and confirm with that bank that you have the exact address they have on record.
Given that nowadays so many of us have automatic payments and paperless billing - itās no wonder that people forget what address their bills would be mailed to - BUT - That is the address you Must enter into the Billing Address fields, if you want to checkout successfully. Of course you also need to enter your security code correctly too.
That's 3 fields - Street Address, Zip Code, and Security Code.
Our old system allowed us more control - and I personally have been going through charges that get stuck part way (where 2 of the 3 fields match the bank's record) - everyday - for years. Iāve been able to approve them and allow the order to be completed. I will no longer have that ability! It's now all on you. We're very sorry for any inconvenience this causes you.
This is going to impact some very regular customers. Being such a tiny business, we know most of your names, so it was easy for me to approve those āpart wayā charged orders. BUT - itās now a job I cannot do. I am not allowed. I have no way to override this system. YOU MUST ENTER THE CORRECT BILLING INFORMATION. Weāre very sorry for this limitation - but it is about security - and if you keep your sense of humor - you may even enjoy the call to your credit card bank. Imagine finding out that your billing address is one you left years ago =;^)
LOWER SHIPPING RATES
This is a big part of the promise this new system offers. Weāll now be able to ship via USPS Ground Advantage - which is basically what used to be 1st class parcel post. This service is generally only a day or two slower than Priority Mail, so time in transit wonāt be much different. Weāre hopeful that the lower cost will lessen the burden of shipping for all of us.
Many people donāt have a full grasp of how shipping works. Iām not going to try and teach here - but I will share a little. Retail shipping in the past was solely based on weight. Volume became part of the equation several years ago - and it continues to drive costs higher.
If a box is bigger than a certain size - the cost of shipping can double, or worse. This happens to us when you order multiple non-seed items. This is why weāve long been phasing out our standard size nursery trays (10x20 inches) - and also why we discontinued half-gallon mason jars. Some things are just too expensive to ship.
MY HANDWRITTEN NOTES
Another victim of progress seems to be our shipping labels. Lower shipping rates for services that actually deliver in a proper and predictable way are most important - so this is no big deal - but - our shipping labels now have text printed in the place under the barcode - which is where I like to write notes, when time allows. The new system is taking that space to advertise its service. I Loathe advertising in general - and more and more as it makes its way into empty spaces in our world.
I have written pages (for myself) about advertising diminishing the quality of life as it oozes into any void it can find. Sports are riddled with adds - on jerseys, on the field of play, during any tiny break in the action, etc. The Only advertising we have given into is the monetization of our You Tube Videos - and I did that after years of refusing - - and then only because business got too slow to refuse the income.
I will not rant further on this topic now, but know this - I am so sorry I wonāt have a place to write notes for you on your boxes when we ship your orders. Please, also know - we love that you found and appreciate what we do - and our love is part of every box we ship.
OUR SCHLEPPING DEPARTMENT
Or labels wonāt allow us this joy either. The older I get - the less I like āprogressā. I will spend space in a future Newsletter to further rant about progress. In this case it just means that our return address will no longer tell you that it was sent by our Schlepping Department @:-(
OUR FURRY FAMILY
No newsletter is complete without a visit from Ira, Django, and Gus. This time weāre sharing a couple older pictures - in honor of nostalgia - as we move into the future.
Essentials for those new to the world of Indoor Farming...
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SPROUTS AND MICROGREENS
To us the difference is that with Sprouts we grow with nothing but water and we eat the entire crop (with the possible exception of hulls and roots that grow out the bottom of our Stainless Steel Sprouters) - and they are alive when we eat them. Microgreens are grown on a medium and we harvest them by cutting them just above that medium - at which point they move from alive to not. Raw, great, delicious - just not alive.
While I'm on this subject I need to explain why we have two different names for the same seed - like Broccoli Sprouts and Broccoli Microgreens. This is the same seed. The difference is that each crop has its own page - you go to the Broccoli Sprouts page to learn how to grow the seed into Sprouts and you go to the Broccoli Microgreens page to learn how to grow it into Micros.
This seed will also grow a full sized - which is like 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide - Broccoli plant in a garden - given the proper climate and encouragement.
SEED STORAGE
If you don't yet know how to get the longest life for your seeds - and prevent pests - Ā visit our Seed Storage page. The best way to store seeds is in the freezer, but do not use the refrigerator as its humidity fluctuations can harm seeds. There's a bit more to it - so perhaps just visit the page =;-)
Grow to Live - Live to Grow.
Be well and happy.
Gil + Lori
Ā
Sproutpeople.org is an encyclopedic resource of our creation - for indoor farmers of Sprouts, Microgreens, and Grass. It is so enormous that it gives some Ā the impression that we are a big business. The reality is that we are basically 2 people who eat and breath Sproutpeople - and 2 part-time helpers (one being our son). Our site has been online since 1996. It's the employee that allows us to serve all of you.
In addition to a section that teaches the Basics of Sprouting and Growing, a goodly section of Recipes, a bunch of Videos, and a whole lot more -
Every Seed and Mix we offer has a profoundly detailed page devoted to it. Those pages feature two sets of Growing Instructions (Brief for the experienced and Detailed for the not yet experienced), a Video, Photos of the crop growing day-by-day, Recipes, Crop Specific Notes, Nutrition Info, and quite a bit more. Each of our Supplies also has a detailed page.
Our vast content is organized with Tabs (on computer) and Pull-Down Menus (on mobile devices). Ā Click/Choose, for exampleĀ Detailed InstructionsĀ on the page you go to when you click any of the pictures surrounding this text - and you will be presentedĀ Seriously Detailed Instructions. Click around. Growing Photos. Notes. Recipes. Please let us share what we know.
We survive by selling on the internet, but we live to educate anyone who wants to learn about growing sprouts and microgreens. Learning is what the internet was actually built for, so we're really just doing our part.
Please enjoy sproutpeople.org
