4 Ways to Simplify Your Inventory Management

May 18, 2016
Simplify your inventory management processes with these tips, Fishbowl BlogA simple and more efficient inventory management system will help turn an already-successful business into a profit machine regardless of the amount or type of goods being sold. A better-managed inventory system will also assist in giving customers a more than satisfactory level of service, which will help ensure repeat business. Here are four solid ways to go about doing it.

Take Stock of What Is and Is Not Working

There are a lot of different inventory management applications available, but it is vital to assess the metric of the business first. Assessing the metrics also includes inventory already in stock, processing and fulfillment stats, and sales. This gives an idea of where both the problem and quality spots are in the inventory. Once the information is gathered, it will be easy to define solutions to improve the current system.

Make Your Primary Focus Saving Time

Inventory management takes time. However, you can take advantage of new tools to speed things up. Cheap ways to do away with redundancy are the first and biggest steps to reducing time. Making a custom label for returns to send with orders is a great way to save time in dealing with a customer’s questions on how to make a return. Being creative and customizing a return form is a great way to save on time in ways beyond dealing with inquiries, too.

Distinguish the Inventory Visually

Having too much of a product, which is not selling, is a major problem and takes up warehouse space, hinders efficiency and hurts cash flow. Make sure to separate core products, which are the money makers, from the non-core products like sporadic sellers, trendy or seasonal items. Set up a system of product life cycles for the less-profitable items, and use style and color labeling to keep everything separate in a warehouse. These visual designations for seasonal, poor sellers and must-have products aid greatly in inventory management.

Choose Efficient Mobile Technology Systems

Keeping workers efficient by applying all of the tips above can be magnified by giving them an advanced mobile system, such as Wavelink. Systems like this can emulate and integrate with software already in place. They also allow for customization, which is ideal depending on the location, type of inventory being managed and other system mechanisms set in place. Well-organized and managed inventory is also a huge stress reliever for employees. It will make a work environment a more productive place. There are many ways to assist in the simplification of inventory management, and these four simple tips will help.