Every business begins with a simple idea. An idea that has the potential to be transformed into a physical counterpart, bigger than it! With time, that physical counterpart looks to grow and bloom into an empire backed with the right strategies and techniques. From exploiting new markets to formulating better marketing strategies, there are countless ways to scale up a business. Time has brought about more to the list of techniques that can take any existing enterprise to unparalleled heights. From workforce management solutions to field management software, innovations have been vital for business people to make the next big move and enhance the way we live.
All small and large scale manufacturing industries have one thing in common, one extremely essential thing; inventory. All the products and stocks required to formulate a balance between the supply and demand – leading to an efficient and effective supply chain. For many years, inventory management has been a cumbersome job – requiring physical presence for even the smallest of tasks.
Need to see the number of products available? You just had to be there in the warehouse or factory. Physically! Coupled with this was equally exhaustive manual paperwork to keep track of everything.
However, one of the greatest technological advancements in the business world has been the creation of a digital Inventory Management System. It has changed the way people managed their inventories by digitizing various tracking methods, including checks on the available stock and orders. Everything from initiating the process of product delivery to its final dispatching has become a process only a few centimeters away from you.
In this article, we will delve deep into all the benefits of a digital inventory management system that have helped countless businesses revamp their model and keep up with increasing sales figures.
Inventory management software features
It’s safe to say that inventory management software is replete with features! All the features congregate to produce such excellent results for its users. Business owners have remarked about efficient tracking, increased productivity, and more simply by incorporating it as part of their business model.
Enterprises that earlier fell prey to imbalanced supply and demand has witnessed a revolution in the way they can keep their supply chains in check. At the same time, large scale companies have become able to scale up their workflows and meet accentuating demands. Moreover, with a specially designed inventory management system for small business, young entrepreneurs have become able to dedicate their valuable time to meaningful aspects of the startup like increasing their workforce and much more.
Here are some of the critical features of inventory management software:
Barcode scanning
One of the many bells and whistles of effective inventory management software is the integration of barcode scanners. Gone are the days when you had to manually label thousands of products in your warehouse; now, you can simply mark each item with a unique barcode label and use scanners to keep track of them. As products move in and out of the chain, the system automatically adds the changes to the database.
In this way, you have got the exact numbers in your supervision. At the time of misplacement, you can know precisely what went wrong. Besides, this process is incredibly time-efficient as it takes only instants to identify and track products.
Inventory optimization
Inventory management software also lets you keep the right amount of stock in your inventory. Since everything is in front of your screen with all the information about their numbers, you can prevent things like over and under stocking, saving your business from long term losses.
This ensures you are neither underutilizing, not overburdening your valuable human resource. As a result, it brings a win-win situation for both the owner and the employee.
Stock notifications
Love being notified when someone texts you, right?! Well, inventory management system software brings that to your business too. You can be conveniently notified when you have exceeded a particular benchmark for your stocks or informed when you haven’t been able to meet your goals in a long time. This brings rapidity to the table!
You can take quick and prompt steps to the changing dynamics of your business. This ensures your stocks are always in line with the projected demand, and your customer is provided with the best possible experience.
Report generation
Reports are integral to efficient inventory management system software. With in-built reports, you can remain updated with all the fluctuations in your sales while being aware of the least and best performing products. This is great when making every product perform and sell up to the goal.
For instance, in the best-case scenario, you can identify a particular product that lacks the sales figures you had imagined it to get, and therefore change your marketing strategy to increase those.
Multi-Location management
If your business expands within wide perimeters, you can effectively supervise the stocks within every warehouse from a single software. This means there is no lack of cohesion in your inventory management, and you are always ready for increasing demands.
Stock returns handling
For businesses that offer return policies, a digital software solution automates the entire process of stock returns, making it faster.
Material grouping
Suppose you are dealing with a wide variety of product types. In that case, you can use these software solutions to categorize products into different groups and make it easier for you to overview them.
Purchase order records
With the introduction of purchase order records, an inventory management system for small business allows the entrepreneur to keep a strict check on various performance metrics of his products. In this way, the company can meet even the most demanding customer needs and provide an excellent experience.
Benefits of an Inventory management system
Cost-savings using IMS
With everything made digital, the chances of an error are reduced to a minimum. This means you can prevent significant losses that could originate due to inadequate tracking systems. Moreover, you don’t have to rely on any physical force for the management and cut costs on labour while ensuring that you keep your stocks in the right margins.
Improved business negotiations
With efficient inventory tracking comes improved business negotiation as you can identify which supplier is leading to an overall net profit for your business.
Reduced chances of overselling
By keeping your stocks in line with the sales, you can formulate an efficient balance that ensures your business can cater to many customers in the long run.
How to choose the Best Inventory Management System for Business
Before investing in inventory management software, you need to keep your budget and business requirements in view. Knowing what you want to improve in the existing business model will help you make the right decision.
Types of inventory management
There are two types of inventory management software: cloud-based and server-based. Cloud-based is a superior choice for businesses that do not want to make substantial capital investments.
Conclusion
Before we leave it to you, you must understand everything about your desired software solution. You need to realize that it’s not expenditure but rather an investment in your business that will help you take your enterprise to the next level.
