Tag Archive: stockout

Tips for Mitigating and Preventing Stockouts

January 18, 2017  Published by

The more retailers that you sell your products through, the more challenging it is to manage that inventory – and the costs of sub-optimal B2B inventory management can be steep. In 2015, CNBC reported that stockouts accounted for $634.1 billion in lost retail sales for the year. Those losses can easily pass on to you. If retailers are not confident in your product availability, they will find other suppliers.    Preventing stockouts with well-done B2B inventory tracking goes beyond keeping an accurate SKU count. Ideally, your inventory management software and staff should have the following capabilities. Detailed tracking information Your inventory…... View Article

Tips for Managing Excess Inventory

August 10, 2016  Published by

A continuous flow of inventory is a major goal for ecommerce businesses. But when seasonal, market, or other fluctuations negatively affect your sales, you may find yourself stuck with excess inventory. Consider the following tips to address the excess inventory you have, and keep more of it from building up. Make a plan ASAP The longer you wait to do something about your excess inventory, the more problems it causes by taking up space (which is even worse if you are leasing additional space just for excess), increasing taxes (if you wait until that time of year), and potentially devaluing…... View Article

How Much are You Losing on Back-Ordered Inventory?

October 21, 2015  Published by

Many ecommerce amateurs tend to think of back-orders as “sales about to happen.” But when you look at the big picture, the hidden costs behind backorders reveal why it’s important to have top-notch inventory management. [more] The longer a product stays on backorder, the longer you are dealing with: Lost sales If the product is not exclusive to your company, customers will move on to a competitor in order to get the product shipped faster. Strained call center resources The longer an item stays on backorder, the more customer calls you’ll receive asking either when the order will ship, or…... View Article

The Benefits of Back-in-Stock Alerts

September 17, 2014  Published by

On one hand, it’s great if your ecommerce site has out-of-stock items – it means you’ve sold them all! On the other hand, they can cause bouncing website traffic and cart abandonment. If the item will be restocked, the product page should not be removed your site. Rather, you should implement a back-in-stock alert for your customers. [more] Back-in-stock alerts are not just a convenience for customers – they have benefits for the e-tailers who provide them. When customers opt-in for back-in-stock alerts, they give you contact information. Not only have you just saved a sale and kept the customer…... View Article

How to Have Smarter Inventory Management

February 26, 2014  Published by

Even if your ecommerce sales are through the roof, your success will be short-lived without capable inventory management. This is especially true if, like many of our customers, your wares extend across multiple marketplaces like Amazon, eBay, and even brick-and-mortar stores. To avoid stockouts or stagnation, it’s wise to invest in inventory management. [more] It may seem obvious, but when your goods are sold through multiple channels, you need to remember that your inventory is limited. If all the channels aren’t connected properly, you may end up dealing with stockouts, double-sales, and unhappy customers. The easiest way to control the…... View Article

Managing Backorders and Keeping Customers Happy

April 24, 2013  Published by

Just because your store has run out of product does not mean that your sales have to slow down. There are a few ways you can manage this kind of scenario. For example, you can pre-sell upcoming items (which is commonly done when adding new inventory selections). You can also sell products that aren’t in stock, or just oversell the inventory you have on-hand because more stock will be in your warehouse shortly. It sounds risky – selling products that you don’t actually have – but as long as you have all of your fulfillment services running smoothly, you can…... View Article