An Ecommerce Brand’s Inventory Management Software Guide
Picture this: you’ve had your eye on a new pair of jeans from your favorite shop for weeks. You finally decided to bite the bullet and purchase them. You head to the checkout, only to get an email a few hours later – they’re completely out of stock.
It’s a double whammy – no new jeans AND a poor customer experience. Luckily, this doesn’t have to be the norm. If your favorite ecommerce brands always have your top picks in stock, they’ve got something in common: good inventory management.
And what makes the best inventory management? Hint: it’s not Excel. It’s technology. The most seamless inventory management only occurs with an inventory management system that’s up to the challenge.
Let’s dive in!
What is inventory management?
In the ecommerce order fulfillment process, inventory plays a HUGE role. Let’s face it – if there’s no inventory, there are no sales. But having a plethora of products on hand is only a part of the battle.
Inventory must be properly managed to optimize fulfillment and create a more seamless customer experience. But, what exactly is inventory management?
Inventory management is the process of tracking and controlling inventory movement within an organization. This includes:
- Tracking where inventory is at any given moment
- Controlling stock levels and replenishing when needed
- Monitoring turnover and hot products
Seems pretty straightforward, right? Not exactly.
There are an incredible number of moving pieces from the moment an order is placed to the moment it’s shipped out. Without the right management processes, brands could fall victim to stockouts, deadstock, overselling, and more.
But, how can a brand best manage its inventory? Spoiler alert: It’s not via Excel sheets.
Efficient inventory management is only achievable with the right inventory management platform.
The Inventory Management System: Why it matters in ecommerce
If you’re wondering whether having an inventory management system is worth the investment, we can assure you it is! The right platform will not only help you automate your inventory processes, but it also has the potential to increase your profit margins (more on that below!)
Benefits of inventory management software
Always have your customer favorites in stock
In ecommerce, the customer experience is everything. Ensuring that your customers have a positive buying journey means having your ducks in a row when it comes to inventory management. There’s nothing worse than pesky stockouts that leave customers and brands alike frustrated and missing out on valuable sales opportunities.
The right inventory management system will help you maintain the correct stock quantity. This means if fast-moving products are running low, you’ll be notified so you can replenish before a stockout occurs.
Avoid dead stock
On the flip side, if some of your inventory is getting stuck on the shelf, an inventory management system will identify these SKUs and enable you to take action – for example, implementing a discount/sale to get products moving.
Improve inventory accuracy
Do you know where your inventory is?
Being able to see exactly where your products are throughout your supply chain is a game-changer for brands. With manual inventory updates, there’s far too much room for human error – like picking a product and not marking it as such.
Inventory management software automates this tracking through barcodes and RFIDs, meaning the system constantly follows your inventory and updates via the interface. The results? Less missing inventory and more products available for purchase.
Save time and money
Because inventory management systems allow businesses to make data-driven decisions, brands with this software can typically reduce costs by avoiding errors, minimizing deadstock and stockouts, and cutting storage space by optimizing inventory on hand. Plus, the automated aspect means speedier receiving, put-away, and fulfillment.
With a good inventory management system, brands can effectively focus on the most important aspect of their business – scaling.
7 Questions to find the right inventory management software for your business
Inventory management will be unique to every business; however, there are a few must-haves that you’ll want to be on the lookout for when selecting the best inventory management system for your business.
- Can your inventory management software integrate with my online shop?
- What types of inventory reporting capabilities does the software have?
- Can I track my inventory in real time?
- What automation rules can I set when products are running low?
- Can you track my inventory across multiple warehouses?
- Are there any forecasting and demand prediction capabilities?
- What type of security and user access does the software include?
When should you implement an inventory management system?
There’s no better time than now to begin optimizing your inventory management, ensuring a better experience for your customer and a more cost-effective ecommerce order fulfillment operation for your business.
Whether you’re fulfilling solely e-commerce orders, or working with boutique and larger retailers, tech-forward inventory management is the key to speed and efficiency. For your customers, it means more hassle-free, quicker order deliveries. For you? It means less time spent worrying about your inventory, and more time growing your business.
ShippingTree: Your one-stop-shop for seamless ecommerce order fulfillment
We designed ShippingTree to make your life easier. With our proprietary, cloud-based warehouse management system, you’ll have full control and visibility into everything happening in the warehouse. This includes:
Inventory management
ShippingTree enables instant visibility into stock levels, ensuring accurate inventory tracking and management.
Discover an easily digestible summary of any SKU with our Inventory Snapshot, identifying when products are:
- On Hand: Inventory currently on hand in the warehouse
- On Order: Inventory allocated to orders that are still in the warehouse
- Defective: Inventory that is deemed unfit for fulfillment
- Production: Any inventory allocated to Value Added Services, such as a kitting project
- Inbound: The total amount of inventory that is currently in transit or processing within an ASN
Need to reconcile all inventory? Simply select your date range and pull an inventory report to see all SKUs.
Lot tracking & expiry date management
Manage inventory by FIFO (first in, first out), LIFO (last in, first out), sequential lot number, or expiration date. Adjust settings on the SKU level for maximum flexibility.
Shipping method mapping and rate shopping
Have specific shipping parameters? After a quick setup by you, ShippingTree’s software will automatically select the shipping method to match your customers’ chosen parameters on each order.
- Want to shop for best rate? ShippingTree’s software will search through all the rates provided by our carrier partners and automatically select the least expensive method.
- Want to avoid a certain shipping method? Simply blacklist certain methods within the ShippingTree app and our software will remove them from consideration.
Don’t just take our word for it. See ShippingTree in action today. Contact us to schedule a demo.
