Inventory Management Tips and Tools for Your Small Business

Inventory management issues can spell disaster for your small business. Without a solid inventory management system in place, you can run into all kinds of costly problems, from running out of your hottest selling stock to obsolete products that are selling too slowly. Fortunately, preventing these setbacks is easier than you might think! Take advantage of the following inventory management solutions to help avoid common small business mishaps and keep your company moving forward as smoothly as possible.

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Use Inventory Management Software

The right inventory management software can make your life much easier while also helping you avoid costly mistakes. Rather than tracking your inventory manually on a spreadsheet, use inventory management software to automatically track orders, sales, deliveries, and overall stock levels. According to Chron, many inventory platforms can even integrate with accounting software to track cash flow and save on bookkeeping costs. What’s more, as your business grows, the system can scale with you, and provide the flexibility to match your changing needs.

If you store items in a warehouse, consider implementing special warehouse management software to optimize space utilization and improve labor efficiency. This software can help you monitor warehouse storage, improve workflow, and avoid shipping and receiving errors. Warehouse management tools, like these, can reduce data entry issues, save you time, and help you make better decisions for your growing business!

Backup and Protect Your Data

While digital inventory management tools are more efficient and reliable than manual records, these software-based tools can leave your data vulnerable to hackers and system malfunctions. It’s critical to back up your data regularly and choose a software solution that prioritizes security, especially if you’ll be storing sensitive customer data. Consider using a cloud-based inventory management system, so your inventory data is always accessible on any device and less apt to fall victim to cyber criminals. According to Rutter Networking Technologies, cloud storage makes it easier to automate time-consuming business tasks and keep your data secure.

Make Data-Driven Decisions

A great inventory management solution will allow you to make data-driven decisions to propel your business forward. Relying on automated inventory management tools can help you avoid overstocking and understocking—problems which can upset your customers, frustrate your employees, and cost you a lot of money in deteriorating stock and unnecessary storage fees. Plus, any money that’s tied up in stock is money that you can’t invest back into your business!

Knowing how much stock you have at any given time will help you meet the needs of your customers without holding excess inventory. Your automated inventory system can also help you keep track of items that are selling slowly, so you can promote these products or discount them to speed sales and free up storage space. Finally, inventory management automation tools will help you track purchasing trends so you can avoid overstocking hot products that might go obsolete in the coming months or years.

Prioritize Inventory Management Training for Staff

The majority of inventory management issues facing small businesses result from human error. Make sure everyone on your team understands the inventory management system and knows how to operate it correctly. Fortunately, many inventory management software providers offer on-site training for staff, so make sure you take advantage of this. A good training approach will also ensure your staff members fulfill orders efficiently while minimizing mistakes, so you can avoid customers ending up with the wrong items. Depending on the size of your business, you may even want to hire a professional inventory manager to oversee everything. You can find specialists in inventory management, e-commerce strategy, and supply chain management through freelance staffing agencies.

Inventory management should be a point of focus for any small business owner. Even if your current inventory management solution is working for now, you could run into major problems down the line if your system lacks scalability. Take advantage of software and automation tools, prioritize security, and invest in staff training to ensure your inventory management strategies will keep up with the growth of your business!

Want to learn more? Contact our friends over at Abilitator