As a retailer, you normally experience increased seasonal demand every holiday season.
You may need to store some specific products that you don’t sell year-round. You may also experience seasonal spikes according to environment changes such as weather, local events, sports season.
If you are not managing the inventory during this volatile period, then it can have an impact in many ways, predominately shortage of inventory and drop in sales
Here are some ways in which you can avoid the above
Categorize your inventory into priority groups: This will help you understand which items you need to order, when and how much.
Accurate forecasting: You need to focus on getting this right.
Monitor all products: Ensure you give priority to the high profit earning products.
Maintain stock: You need to keep enough inventory held for unforeseen demands or need (contingency stock) with optimal requirements in mind.
Replenish stock: Ensure your stock should not drop below a comfortable level, or even down to zero (reorder point); this will ensure you have enough stock available to satisfy the customers.
Perform cycle count: This process will help you to have less disruption to business operations, increased inventory accuracy, and cost savings.
Reduce carrying cost: This helps in avoiding bigger losses by holding inventory over a long period of time.
Have an effective OMS solution: Last but not the least, using an effective inventory management software will help to manage your inventory management operations seamlessly. Along with helping all the above features via automation, an effective OMS comes with great benefits that include avoiding errors, quicker order turnaround and better customer interaction.
Summary
Managing an effective inventory process will help you manage ordering, stock, storing, providing a seamlessly mechanism of your inventory. Overall helping improve customer experience, including managing refund queries and therefore resulting in more repeat buyers, happy customers and improved margins.
