Nibletz Staff
It doesn’t matter what size your ecommerce enterprise is, the simple fact is that controlling your stock levels and the way you order and manage your inventory will be critical to your success. There is a lot that can go wrong when you order products, store them, and then sell them to customers – and the only way to control the problems is by investing into practical inventory management systems. Here are some general guidelines for newcomers to the ecommerce world – no matter which industry you are serving.
The ins and outs
The first step is to take a firm grip on what comes in and out of your stores or warehouse. Suppliers will deliver your goods, and you will need to count it in to ensure there are no discrepancies. Bear in mind that somewhere between 1-2% of all packages have missing items – and that can add up to a significant amount of money over a year. It’s also worth thinking that those percentages apply to online retailers, too – in an ideal world, your actual figure for packaging mistakes will be a fraction of this average.
Storage
Storage might not seem like a problem if you are just starting out in ecommerce and working from home. But by the time you start selling in any volume, it will be problematic without the right levels of organisation. First of all, you need to arrange your stock in a way that is sensible – are your best sellers readily available? Are you keeping products that look similar to each other apart to avoid picking and packing mistakes? And are you ensuring that you are rotating stock that has Best Before Dates – such as foods or perishables?
Automate it
With the right system in place, your inventory control processes will become much easier than they are when you have to do everything manually. There are plenty of ERP retail solutions out there, so take a look around and find one that works well for your industry. For example, there are barcode systems and RFID solutions to consider, and they can help you minimise picking areas and get a tighter grip on your stock. It’s also advisable to choose a system that allows you to order automatically. As soon as your stock levels hit a minimum level, the system creates an order, meaning you can ensure your most popular products are never out of stock.
Check it!
Manual stock checks will become something of a bane for you – just as it is in every retail store. But the simple truth is that without them, you will end up in all kinds of trouble. Even with the sharpest, best and brightest piece of software, you should be making regular manual checks. Picking mistakes, employee theft, supplier issues – all of them can lead to discrepancies in your system which will frustrate you in the long-term.
Inventory management isn’t the most glamorous part of the ecommerce trade – but it is one of the most important. It is essential that you have a robust system in place right from the start, so you can analyse all your processes and ensure your business is as accurate as possible.
