How can software for inventory management help your business?
Software for inventory and warehouse management is used for tracking inventory as it flows in and out of a business. Central to all operations, software for inventory facilitates the purchasing process, manages sales, order and warehouse management, and tracks inventory locations and levels, and product availability.
KEY FEATURES
Bill of Materials, Kitting & Assemblies
Barcode Software
Traceability 
Warehouse Management
Landed CostMany small businesses think they don’t need inventory management software and just get by with QuickBooks, spreadsheets and manual inventory counts. But, today’s hyper-competitive environment requires technology to succeed. Software for inventory and warehouse management does much more than simply track inventory – it manages purchasing, vendors, customer service, order management and fulfillment and much more.
The difference between accounting software and software for inventory and warehouse management
Most businesses have a large amount of capital invested in inventory. Yet, many businesses attempt to manage their inventory with spreadsheets and accounting software. Accounting software can do many great things, but managing inventory is not one of them. So, what can inventory software do for your business that accounting software can’t do?
Accounting software handles accounts payable, accounts receivable, and payroll. You can typically track your expenses, send invoices, pay vendors, and create a profit and loss statement or a balance sheet. Your accountant can normally log in to your accounting system or you can output a file to send to them to handle taxes or other functions. Without a doubt, accounting is a critical component in managing a business.
But, while accounting software may have some simple inventory management features included, it is not designed to manage and control the functions of an inventory-centric business.
Acctivate inventory and warehouse management user, Scottco Marine
Let’s look at a few examples…
In most cases, you can’t sell it if you don’t have it, so having the correct inventory in the correct amount is important from both a profitability and a customer satisfaction standpoint.
An inventory management software system has tools to analyze trends, enabling more accurate forecasting of which items are needed and when. By doing so, it can increase predictability and help with balancing stock levels and service levels, with the least inventory investment.
Keeping tight control over the cost of goods sold (COGS) for the products manufactured or purchased from vendors to be sold to customers is essential for tracking profitability. With vendor prices constantly changing and inventory flowing in and out of the business, an inventory system tracks all the activities and calculates the COGS appropriately.
Inventory is at the center of a business, and an inventory management software system is as well, controlling and providing visibility throughout the company. From purchasing, to the warehouse, to sales, to fulfillment, inventory software assists with operations and enables management the ability to monitor and manage activities in real-time.
Acctivate software for inventory and warehouse management user, DataRay
What features should inventory and warehouse management software have?
Nearly all inventory-centric businesses need certain features to control their inventory and manage warehousing functions such as handling transactions, looking up products quickly, and accessing inventory availability & history information.
Additionally, features that allow flexibility and support for future needs should be considered to ensure the software purchased today will also support your business as it grows.
Acctivate software for inventory management user, Integrated Food Service
Since not all businesses are the same, specialized inventory capabilities also need to be available to those companies requiring them.
Examples include barcoding and mobile, inventory control, multiple location control, bill of materials, assembly & kitting, track & trace, and matrix inventory. Some businesses require all of these capabilities, and some business may just need some of these features in the future – but having the option to implement them when needed is a must.
One final consideration must be the ability to easily handle growth. As a business grows, the software should easily accommodate additional users.
The key is having flexibility and not getting boxed-in with software that can’t grow with you so your business has what it needs, when & how you need it.
Acctivate inventory software user, MR BOX
Award-winning Acctivate
Since its inception as one of the first QuickBooks® add-ons, Acctivate has continued to evolve, winning numerous awards, integrating with best-of-breed applications, and gaining the praise of customers worldwide for its ease-of-use and depth of features.
Today, Acctivate is where decades of knowledge intersect with forward-thinking software development.
Acctivate user, Heron Point Seafood
At the core of Acctivate lies inventory control – with features built from a real-world understanding of managing inventory and designed for practical use so access to inventory information and managing tasks is both quick and easy.
Acctivate software user, Pigs Unlimited
Inventory management software that delivers what you need to know, all on one screen
Acctivate’s inventory product screen provides real-time access to all aspects on inventory from one place.
It’s inventory management simplified – inventory quantities, on order information, inventory committed to customers, costing information, product specifications, even product photos – all on one screen, for quick analysis and management.
Acctivate user, Arabel
You say potato, I say patata
Different users may sometimes describe the same product in different ways.
The product description the sales team uses could be far different from how purchasing refers to the product or, if you are global, it can be as simple as an alternate language for use in that country.
Not a problem with Acctivate.
Items in inventory can be described with two descriptions to accommodate different user groups and needs, including alternate languages, customer types, departmental groups and more.
Learn more about inventory control with Acctivate »
Acctivate user, Cantrell Turf Equipment
Inventory management software that can handle multiple units of measure
Some products are purchased in cases and sold as single units. And, some products are purchased in single units and sold in multiple quantities.
For example, let’s say you sell pens.
You may buy and stock by each pen.
However, when you sell the pens, you may sell them by the pair, by the case, or by the dozen.
With Acctivate, there are no limits to the number of units that can be defined.
An item that is stocked by each can be sold by case, sold by dozen, packaged and shipped by pair or any other quantity configuration you may need.
Acctivate user, Jewish Educational Toys
Make it to order, make it to stock, or do both – Acctivate takes care of it
Whether products are made on demand (kitting), made to stock (assembly), or a combination of the two, Acctivate controls the inventory, provides visibility on sales, margins, availability and helps maximize resources with great flexibility.
Businesses that make their own products need to maintain a bill of materials, produce work orders, and manage the component/raw materials inventory.
With made to stock inventory, or assemblies, a new product is created, with the components used depleted from inventory and the new product added to the finished goods inventory.
With kitting, products are made on demand or made to order, enabling companies to sell products as single units that are composed of multiple components by kitting, or making them on demand, when shipped.
Learn more about BOM, kitting and assemblies »
Acctivate inventory and warehouse management user, China Auto Group
Warehouse management
As inventory-intensive businesses grow, their warehouse needs seem to grow at an even faster pace.
Acctivate efficiently manages receiving, transfers, physical counts, fulfillment, deliveries, and handling breakage and customer returns quickly, simply and accurately, across one location or many.
Learn more about warehouse management »
Improve accuracy & efficiency
Industry experts estimate that barcoding inventory combined with an inventory system produces inventory accuracy of 99%.
Replacing pens and paper with barcodes and scanners reduces costs, improves operations and is available to businesses of all sizes.
Acctivate barcoding is easy to implement, easy to use and delivers a quick return on investment.