Having a manual approach to inventory management could involve countless meetings, extensive personal management of employees, and rigorous interactions and alignment practices. Choosing to automate your inventory control, is basically akin to adding<\/span> workforce optimization software<\/span><\/a> to your business. It relieves your team of a lot of manual responsibility, ensuring that you are dealing with 100% accuracy at every turn.<\/span><\/p>\n Shopify has an entire<\/span> inventory management<\/span> section devoted to keeping tabs on stock, order management<\/a>, fulfilment, customers, \u2014in other words, the key features of an inventory management system<\/a>. However, there are bolt-on services that can be used to heighten the capabilities of the software and<\/span> automate processes<\/span><\/a> even further.<\/span><\/p>\n Making use of inventory management software<\/a> is the first step towards managing your inventory requirements. But each business is different, and so too are the inventory management tools and features you\u2019ll need. We have put together an inventory management software<\/a> features list, showing the ten essential components every Shopify merchant needs.<\/span><\/p>\n Inventory management centralizes all basic inventory features that allow you to manage and control your stock. Shopify has this built into its software but there are additional applications that can add onto the in-built features to maximize its power.<\/span><\/p>\n Some of the <\/span>inventory management software<\/span><\/a> capabilities that your business will make use of on a regular basis include, but are not limited to:<\/span><\/p>\n All inventory management information syncs with the rest of your inventory system in order to deliver complete, valid information to all vendors and team members. That way, you shouldn\u2019t run into problems with overstocking or understocking.<\/span><\/p>\n Inventory management software<\/a> can also come with a collaborative element, which allows multiple vendors to work with the same accurate inventory data. They can manage your inventory remotely and create their own system for working with the same data.<\/span><\/p>\n If you work with a network of vendors, there is an inventory management system feature called vendor-managed inventory (VMI). This allows your vendors to deal directly with suppliers for recurring deliveries or to replenish stock. This means that your vendors don\u2019t need to rely on you whenever they require new stock. They can bypass you and go direct to the supplier, saving you time, effort, and administration.<\/span><\/p>\n Barcoding products<\/a> and tagging them is a means to easily track and identify products. In land-based stores, barcodes are used to manage stock and create a smooth and streamlined check-out process. The same applies to Shopify stores. Managing your inventory with barcodes and tags makes it much easier to categorize.<\/span><\/p>\n Assigning products with barcodes and tags as they come into the store is the most time-consuming part. Once each product has a barcode and tags assigned, all processes to follow become much simpler. The following tasks are made easier with the use of barcodes and tags:<\/span><\/p>\n Employee performance in general will be swift and easy with a well-managed and barcoded system, so make sure this feature is among your inventory management software capabilities.<\/span><\/p>\n Barcoding your products plays a huge role in the inventory tracking process<\/a>. Using the same barcode from the warehouse<\/a> to the checkout process in your online store, enables complete control over each individual product at all times. This enables accuracy, ease of use for everyone, streamlined performance, and simplicity in a number of other functions.<\/span><\/p>\n Inventory can be tracked through multiple different means including barcodes, serial numbers, or any other identification that has been set up by the store or warehouse. Having this in place enables real-time return of data and product information at any time. This can be used to pull <\/span>reports and audits on products<\/span><\/a> or to identify where in the supply chain<\/a> a product has been delayed. It\u2019s an essential component of running a successful Shopify<\/a> store, and a feature of an effective inventory management system.<\/span><\/p>\n If your business ever runs into a situation where products need to be recalled, inventory tracking<\/a> will be your new best friend. All inventory can be traced instantly, making it easy to find and recall the products without damaging your credibility or resulting in massive losses in revenue. The same applies to businesses dealing with perishables or food with sell-by dates. When products are nearing their sell-by date, they can also be traced and pulled from the system.<\/span><\/p>\n Inventory notifications and alerts enable smooth and effective management of your store, preventing you reaching dire states of low stock on popular items. The moment stock is low, you will receive an alert notifying you of the amount of stock left. You can decide what is considered low stock so that you have ample time to restock before your customers even notice.<\/span><\/p>\n Other alerts can be configured to ensure you\u2019re never dealing with a critical situation. For example, you can be alerted as to what comes in, what goes out, if there were any issues with an order, if there is a delay in shipping. You can even receive updates on the status of a shipment from start to finish. These alerts can be received via SMS or email in real-time.<\/span><\/p>\n There are a number of benefits to this feature\u00a0inventory management system feature:<\/span><\/p>\n Certain branches of a business might have higher needs for a particular product than others. This is usually in the case of land-based stores, but it can also affect online order fulfillment when the physical product comes from separate warehouses. These needs could be due to<\/span> trends for ecommerce<\/span><\/a> in general or geographical differences.<\/span><\/p>\n This is where transfer management comes into play\u2014and it\u2019s something to look out for when researching inventory management software capabilities. This process enables you to track your inventory regardless of where it moves. It also helps guide your employees as to where inventory is located, streamlining processes.<\/span><\/p>\n Transfer management is highly effective in the following areas:<\/span><\/p>\n Purchasing from suppliers has its own system that needs to fit in with the features of an inventory management system. A purchasing system feature will enable store owners to create their own purchase orders. You can then track and manage your purchase orders. This feature generally comes with templates that can be used to base your own off, enabling businesses to start from the ground up.<\/span><\/p>\n All purchasing can be controlled using this management feature. It can integrate with your existing inventory setup to incorporate your barcoding, tags, and product information. PO’s can also be generated automatically when stock levels are low and need to be replenished. It enables supplier management, backordering, and bulk PO’s, too.<\/span><\/p>\n Next on our inventory management software features list is order management<\/a>. Shopify has this feature built into the software, but you can also add on additional applications that further enhance these capabilities. A comprehensive <\/span>order management system<\/span><\/a> helps you<\/span> manage your sales<\/span><\/a> effectively, staying on top of each and every element. There are a number of functions that are incorporated into this feature, including the following:<\/span><\/p>\n If you work with affiliates, you can also track and manage their orders through an effective order management system. Affiliate network applications make it easy to track and manage the inventory each affiliate has moved, while also including the percentage income owed to them for each sale.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Shopify supports the integration of affiliate applications, which is a lucrative way to enhance sales and boost brand awareness. As a side note, perhaps you want to<\/span> start an affiliate program<\/span><\/a> now if you haven\u2019t already?<\/span><\/p>\n Reporting and analytics combined form one of the most important aspects of running a business that relies on the movement of inventory. Having access to real-time data, such as product sales, order tracking, and more can prove imperative to your success. As such, this is one of the major features of an effective inventory management system.<\/span><\/p>\n The following functions are supported with effective reporting and analytics:<\/span><\/p>\n Having access to this information can help you make more educated decisions about the future of your business or products. Where products are under-performing, the reports will show you. Where there are huge spikes in sales, your analytics can help you ascertain what you did to get that right.<\/span><\/p>\n When certain products are in demand, you want to ensure you have ample stock of said lines. This can be achieved with demand forecasting<\/a>. Based on purchase history and other sales data, you can forecast what products will be in demand for a future season.<\/span><\/p>\n Demand forecasting is one of the key features of an inventory management system, and comes with the following benefits:<\/span><\/p>\n Being able to <\/span>integrate your inventory management system<\/span><\/a> features with a host of other applications will help you get the most out of the running of your Shopify store.<\/span><\/p>\n As a fully functioning digital business, there are a number of applications and different pieces of software that can be used to streamline business operations. Having a smooth and free flow of data and information between all applications is essential in order to get the full benefit of each one individually, and all of them as a whole.<\/span><\/p>\n Ensuring that your inventory management software integrates with other applications will make all your inventory data available for use in other applications. This opens up a world of benefits for your business.<\/span><\/p>\n As an example, it\u2019s possible you want to integrate with customer experience management software or voice of the customer (VOC) software. There are a number of customer experience software solutions that are already built to integrate seamlessly with any other software. It helps, though, having this accessibility portion taken care of from your side too.<\/span><\/p>\n All of your customer support,<\/span> marketing communication tools<\/a>, and customer interactions can connect seamlessly to purchases made. This fleshes out the insights gained about your customers, their behavior, and their purchase preferences and expectations.<\/span><\/p>\n1. Inventory Management<\/span><\/h2>\n
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\n<\/span><\/p>\n2. Barcoding and Tagging<\/span><\/h2>\n
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3. Inventory Tracking<\/span><\/h2>\n
4. Inventory Notifications and Alerts<\/span><\/h2>\n
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5. Transfer Management<\/span><\/h2>\n
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6. Purchasing<\/span><\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.brightpearl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/image3.png\")
<\/p>\n7. Order Management<\/span><\/h2>\n
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8. Reporting and Analytics<\/span><\/h2>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.brightpearl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/image2.png\")
<\/p>\n9. Demand Forecasting<\/span><\/h2>\n
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10. Inventory App Integration<\/span><\/h2>\n
Conclusion<\/span><\/h2>\n