The Importance of Accurate Inventory During and Post-COVID

The Costs of Inaccurate Inventory

Even under normal economic conditions, the costs of not maintaining accurate inventory are high. Maintaining accurate inventory numbers is essential for any business. That said, trying to maintain accurate inventory counts when hundreds of items are flowing in and out of your warehouse(s) every week or even every day can be a logistical nightmare.

The costs of not maintaining accurate inventory numbers include:

• Missed or lost sales opportunities

• Missing, damaged, or stolen inventory

• Wasted or misallocated resources

• Wasted warehouse space

• Unhappy customers

For some businesses, their warehouse operations can literally make or break their business. To put it another way, it doesn’t matter how great your products are if they never make it to your customers, or never make it to your customers on time.

That’s under normal economic conditions. Add in the stress of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the stay-at-home orders, and maintaining accurate inventory numbers and smooth warehouse operations becomes even more essential than ever.

Socially Distanced Shopping

People trying to social distance might be unwilling or unable to go to stores in person, so retailers have less room for error or delays when it comes to delivering items.

Over the last few years, customer expectations for online orders have become higher than ever. They expect a smooth and easy ordering experience from the moment that they put an item in their cart to the moment it arrives at their door. In the era of COVID, many people are also stressed and unhappy. Many people are less able to cope with unexpected stresses and will have a stronger reaction to delayed or incorrect orders. In some cases, these unhappy customers may simply abandon your business and switch to one of your competitors instead if your business fails to deliver the experience they expect.

Better Warehouse Operations

Fortunately, there are warehouse management, inventory management, and inventory counting strategies that businesses can use to ensure that their warehouses run smoothly and effectively, and that inventory is accounted for at all times. Implementing cycle counting, which involves counting a small number of items per day until the full inventory has been counted, is a great start.

Changing your warehouse or inventory management operations to make them more efficient is always a good business move. It saves your company time and money and improves the customer experience.

In the era of COVID, businesses may be hesitant about making drastic changes to their business operations. They may have already had to face COVID-related changes, possibly including rearranged workspace layouts to increase social distancing and other health-related measures. Some, particularly restaurants, may also be dealing with customers who expect discounts due to COVID-related service changes at a time when the businesses are facing higher costs and reduced income due to COVID. Change is never easy, and in this uncertain climate, it’s understandable that some businesses would be leery of making further changes unless forced to do so by COVID-related regulations.

COVID Accelerates Changes in the eCommerce Retail Space

At the same time, COVID is likely to have permanent or at least long-term repercussions on consumer behavior and expectations. The pandemic has had a huge impact on consumer buying trends. Some people that used to only make the occasional purchase online are now buying almost everything over the Internet, while others who had never placed an online order before are now experience the joy and convenience of ordering items from the safety of their own home.

Any changes that COVID may have caused in the eCommerce space are more an acceleration of pre-existing trends than a departure. Consumers already had higher expectations in both the B2B and B2C space due to years of shopping on Amazon and other big retailers and enjoying perks such as free two-day shipping. Those expectations are not going away. It is no longer optional for retail businesses to have a presence online. Having a website is a good start, but it’s not enough to ensure good service. Good warehouse operations are essential to fulfilling those customer orders in a timely manner.

The costs of inaccurate inventory or a poor eCommerce experience are high, but the benefits of doing them right yield great rewards for successful businesses.

About US

CertiPro is full-service technology partner. What does that mean? It means that we provide end-to-end support for Sage Magento integrations. Our Automated Inventory Cycle Count (AICC) tool allows companies to implement cycle counting in Sage 100, Sage 300, and Sage 500. We also offer E-Link, a Sage Magento integration that forms a two-way sync between Sage ERP and Magento and handles all business connection points for business partner portals and other B2B/B2C eCommerce needs.