Multichannel Inventory Management Simplified
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Multichannel Inventory Management Simplified
In today’s competitive environment, businesses constantly strive to reach customers wherever they are, often requiring selling on multiple platforms or channels, be it their website, a marketplace, EDI, by phone, or via sales representatives. Managing inventory across all these channels can be challenging; multichannel inventory management solves this challenge, and a few others, in the process.
What is multichannel inventory management?
Multichannel inventory management keeps track of inventory levels across various sales channels, ensuring that inventory counts remain accurate and updated whether a product is sold on a website, through a third-party marketplace, or via EDI or a sales rep.
In addition to centralizing inventory, orders and customer data are consolidated, providing accurate and consistent information for centralized order fulfillment, handling customer inquiries, real-time reporting, and improved decision-making.
Why is multichannel inventory management critical?
Streamlined operations
Managing inventory without a centralized system can lead to inefficiencies and errors as businesses expand into various sales channels. Multichannel inventory management ensures a streamlined operation across all channels.
Customer satisfaction
Businesses significantly enhance customer satisfaction and trust by ensuring real-time stock availability and promptly fulfilling orders. A customer’s loyalty is often won or lost based on the accuracy and efficiency of order fulfillment.
Financial health
Overstocking or understocking can both negatively affect a business’s finances. Proper inventory management helps maintain the right balance, reducing holding costs and preventing lost sales.
Agile decision making
With centralized customer data and real-time reporting, businesses make informed decisions quickly. From procurement to warehouse management to sales promotions, accurate inventory data plays a pivotal role.
Enhanced productivity
With automated inventory tracking and order management, businesses allocate human resources to more strategic tasks rather than mundane inventory checks and manual reconciliations.
How does multichannel inventory management important work?
The core principle of multichannel inventory management, irrespective of the sales channel, is maintaining consistent and accurate stock levels across all platforms. With a centralized view of stock and orders across websites, marketplaces, and sales rep orders, businesses operate efficiently, meet customer expectations, and maximize sales opportunities.
Inventory sync
Inventory synchronization refers to updating stock levels across all sales channels whenever a sale occurs or stock is replenished. The inventory sync process is simplified with automated two-way sync of orders, product availability, customer information, and tracking information with time interval settings for online marketplaces and website platforms.
Order management
Centralized order management across multichannel sales ensures that all orders, regardless of origin (website, marketplace, sales rep, EDI), are captured in one system. Centralization aids in order management and ensures that all sales channels have the most updated order status.
Order fulfillment
Multichannel inventory and order management provide a unified view of orders, allowing businesses to optimize the fulfillment process, including selecting the right warehouse for shipment, determining the most cost-effective shipping method, and ensuring timely dispatch to meet delivery commitments.
Customer service
Centralizing customer data and order histories allows customer service representatives to respond to inquiries quickly and accurately. Whether it’s about the status of an order, product information, or returns, having all information in one place drastically improves response times and customer satisfaction.
Multichannel inventory management use case: Rotorcorp’s Transformation Journey
Background
Rotorcorp, an international provider of parts and engines for Robinson R44 and R22 helicopters, was experiencing rapid growth. Serving a niche yet vital market, Rotorcorp found itself where efficient and effective inventory management became crucial to maintain its stellar service standards and meet the increasing demand.
The challenge
- Complex inventory: With an inventory comprising over 8,000 different parts, Rotorcorp’s old system needed to handle the intricacies of such a vast catalog more efficiently.
- Multichannel sales: Operating locally and internationally meant Rotorcorp had to manage sales and inventory across different channels, countries, and regulatory environments.
- Order fulfillment: As the demand grew, so did the challenge of order fulfillment. Ensuring timely and accurate deliveries was becoming increasingly complicated.
The solution
Rotorcorp turned to Acctivate, a sophisticated multichannel inventory management system.
- Centralized system: With everything centralized, from customer data to order histories and inventory counts, Rotorcorp now has a bird’s-eye view of its operations. They monitor stock levels in real time, ensuring they are neither overstocking nor running out of crucial parts.
- Efficient order processing: With the new system in place, Rotorcorp can streamline its order processing, drastically reducing the time from order placement to shipment.
- Regulatory compliance: The multichannel inventory management system ensures that Rotorcorp complies with various international regulations by providing necessary documentation, tracking, and reporting tools.
- Customer satisfaction: The improved efficiency has led to better customer service. Orders are accurate, returns are handled promptly, and customers receive real-time information on their orders.
The outcome
With Acctivate, Rotorcorp experienced a transformative shift in its operations. The challenges that once seemed daunting are now efficiently managed with Acctivate. Not only did Rotocorp achieve operational efficiency, but they also saw a significant increase in customer satisfaction and loyalty. Moreover, the centralized data offered them previously overlooked insights, helping in strategic decision-making and future growth plans.
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