Inventory Tips Archives

As an eCommerce retailer, you may not have a brick-and-mortar store, or even your own warehouse and fulfillment facility. But that doesn’t mean inventory control has to be more difficult. With the right mix of tools and strategies, you can manage your merchandise supplies and turnover efficiently and cost-effectively.

Decide how much stock to keep on hand.

Your goal is to strike a balance between too little and too much. In most cases, a one-month supply will be enough to meet any unexpected increases in customer demand, without tying up unnecessary working capital or warehouse space.

To calculate your one-month supply, analyze sales and fulfillment information from previous years. If you’re a new startup, research the performance of your product category as a whole.

Allow for variables in your stock-on-hand plan.

Depending on your business, you may need to adjust inventory levels for:

Seasonal fluctuations, such as the Q4 holiday shopping season
Shipping time from the manufacturer to your warehouse, import delays, etc.
Store promotions such as an annual sale

Apply the same variables to fulfillment planning.

During periods of higher sales volumes, you will also need more packaging materials as well as additional employees to do the order processing, packing, and shipping.

Keep a close eye on your inventory — digitally.

Real-time inventory software can save a ton of time and effort. By using bar code identification, it automatically updates your stock levels whenever an item is sold, alerts you, and website visitors when an item is out of stock and tracks delivery to customers.

Keep a close eye on your inventory — manually.

It may seem old-fashioned, but a physical stock count is the only sure way to know what’s in your warehouse. Do it weekly, monthly, quarterly, or annually, whatever makes sense for your business.

Have a plan for out-of-stock incidents.

Your software should notify you in time to replenish stock before it runs out. But in case there are snafus at the manufacturer or in transit, be prepared to respond and keep customers happy:

Remove the product page from your website, or add an “out of stock” message letting customers know when it will be available again
Take backorders
Pay extra attention to stock levels of fast-moving products and reorder them farther in advance

Choose the right business management system.

A system that’s specifically designed for eCommerce is an invaluable asset. For example, it can show order processing and shipping costs in relation to revenues. Even better, it can link inventory management to other operating systems within your business, such as accounting and payroll, greatly reducing administration time and duplication of effort.

Organize your warehouse for a fast response.

Keep your best-selling items on the shelves that are easiest to reach. Slower moving merchandise can go in less accessible areas.

Consider off-site warehousing options.

The advantages of storing some or all of your inventory in other locations include reduced shipping time to your customers and saving on overhead. Check out:

Adding regional warehouse locations
Renting warehouse space from a national retail chain or postal service
Using Amazon FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) — you advertise your product on Amazon and they handle merchandise storage, order processing, shipping, and customer service

Stay on top of record keeping.

For both current decision-making and long-term planning, “knowing your numbers” is essential. So checking them at the same time every day or week is a great habit to get into. (It only takes a couple of seconds with the right software, just press a button to see inventory status, turnover, and associated costs.) You’ll always have a clear picture of your inventory … and your business.

For successful inventory management, every eCommerce business must find the right balance between too much or too little stock, online and hands-on tools, and on-site or off-site locations. Most important of all, accurate records will reveal what’s working and what isn’t, so that the future will be even more rewarding than the past.

Inevitably, somewhere between the manufacturer and the cash register, some of your merchandise disappears. Every retailer has this problem; in fact, it adds up to more than $42 billion in annual losses nationwide. The three biggest causes of shrinkage are administrative errors, employee theft, and customer theft. Here’s how to counteract them.

1. Use a good inventory management system.

Wherever human beings are doing the counting, organizing, and recording, errors are sure to happen. Choose software that:

Organizes product and vendor information
Integrates with your POS system so that inventory data is automatically updated after every transaction
Generates accurate purchase orders

2. Tighten up your inventory receiving process.

To minimize mistakes:

Cross-check against the PO at the time of delivery
Call the vendor within 24 hours to resolve inconsistencies
Tag and label merchandise immediately

3. Record sales consistently.

Any currently available POS system will do this automatically.

4. Take physical inventory.

It’s the only way to reveal discrepancies between what your inventory software says you have and what you have. Cross-reference the manual counts against software records to see where shortages are occurring, for example with a particular cash register or employee, or during the same shift and day every week.

5. Train employees in loss prevention.

Letting everyone know that you have a strong plan to stop theft can deter both employees and customers.

6. Improve pre-employment screening.

The reality of retail is that employee turnover is high and company loyalty usually low. Besides, employees have less supervision and easy access to your valuables. Do your due diligence in hiring people with no history of dishonesty, including nationwide criminal background checks and verification that resumes are complete and truthful.

7. Install a security system.

Large, visible cameras act as warnings to thieves to pick an easier target. They also help catch and convict criminals after thefts occur.

Inventory shrinkage is a challenge that will never go away. And that means your efforts towards loss prevention can never stop either. Success lies in ongoing processes and continuous attention to keep your merchandise right where it belongs.

Tag Archive for: Inventory Tips

Inventory Control for eCommerce: Getting the Balance Right