It’s Easy to Find Low-performing and Over-stock Items With Inventory Tracking

May 21st 2019 15:00:00 PM

It’s a fact of life that not everything you have in inventory is going to turn into a best-selling item. Every company is bound to have some items that didn’t perform as well as expected even though the market pointed to being able to move them easily. Some items in this category represent customer returns that sit in the warehouse and haven’t been able to be sold to another buyer, while others are surplus or getting toward the end of their shelf life.

All of them have one thing in common. They take up valuable space in the warehouse and they represent money that has already been spent. The funds that have been paid for inventory can’t be recovered unless the inventory is converted into sales. Once you start looking at the inventory in the warehouse in terms of cash, it’s easier to understand why you don’t want to lose track of any “stragglers,” even the ones that aren’t performing up to par. A robust inventory tracking system will help you make decisions to get the most out of low-performing items and overstocks. 

Short on reading time? We understand. Contact Scanco online or at (330) 645-9959 to learn how simple it can be to solve overstock issues with inventory tracking solutions created by the distribution experts. 

Set Up a Process to Automatically Report on the Issue 

Once you know you have certain items that are overstocks, don’t perform well, or are defective, it’s important to keep track of them. Set up a process that will tell you: 

• Where the items are located
• How long you’ve been storing them
• Whether inventory levels have changed (due to sales or returns) 

You’ll also want to assign a reason or reasons for the issue. Once you understand the reason why a certain item isn’t moving, you can make better decisions about your options for resolving it. 

Consider Short-Term Options 

Depending on the type of items you want to move quickly, you have several options available. By now, you’ve taken a good look at the numbers generated from your inventory tracking software and you know exactly how many units you have in stock and how long they’ve been taking up space. 

1. Look at transferring slow movers away from prime locations in your warehouse. Keep this space for items that are being picked frequently. You can also look at moving items to another warehouse with more available storage capability.
2. Sell items to customers at a discounted price or offer them as a substitution in orders where applicable.
3. Depending on the type of item, can it be used for training?

Look at Long-Term Solutions 

As you’re doing your inventory tracking, keep in mind that you may need to consider some long-term solutions to the issues that come up. This doesn’t mean you’ve failed in your inventory management goals; it just means that there isn’t a “one-size fits all” solution that is going to work in every instance. 

It’s important to be flexible when looking for solutions, and you may want to consider one or more of the following when dealing with overstocks: 

1. Over-ordered seasonal merchandise can be moved to an inexpensive storage facility, temporarily. Bring it back to your main warehouse when orders (are more likely to) pick up.
2. When numbers get low on overstock or slow-moving items, offer them to your team at a discounted price to clear them out.
3. If you really need to get rid of items which you can’t seem to move otherwise, consider donating them to charity.

Scanco Inventory Tracking Gives You the Information for Good Business Decisions 

No one wants to get caught making decisions about their warehouse or distribution business without having a good base of facts to go on. Scanco Warehouse for Sage 100 lets you keep track of your inventory, even in a high-volume environment. You’ll be able to monitor damaged orders, as well as items that aren’t performing as well as expected with this fully-automated option. 

Start the ball rolling to learn more about Scanco Warehouse for Sage 100 by contacting us online or call (330) 645-9959 to arrange your personal consultation with a Scanco Solutions Expert.