6 Ways to keep your Inventory Organized

A handy guide to get your inventory organized.

While running a business, it is important to have an organised inventory. Sure it is difficult given the unpredictable demand but it is possible. Having an updated and organised inventory saves your time to a great extent. Suppose, you run textile business. Having a record of your stocks, sold products, number of fabric, etc. is of utmost priority but what if your inventory is unorganized? This would affect your business and sales. Keeping this data updated and organized is critical for your business as it helps in fetching more profit, cutting losses, increasing productivity and keep a detailed track of  your product efficiencies and inefficiencies.

However, at times it so happens that even after having an updated inventory, you face loss and drop in your business productivity. And, this is probably because you might have missed something while organizing it. This article will help you keep your inventory organised and on track in the most reliable manner. Read on to know the 6 most important points to check while organizing your inventory.

6 ways to keep your inventory organised:

1. Organize products and vendor information:

First things first, you have to set up the record of your products/stocks and also of your suppliers and vendors in an easily accessible system. It is best advised to use a reliable and budget-friendly POS or order management system. Ensure that you have recorded both product-specific and supplier information into your inventory system. Typical information like product name, product category, regular retail price/MSRP, etc. must be correctly entered into the POS.

2. Create and Submit accurate PO:

One of the easiest way to organised and your inventory is by having an accurate record of your Purchase Order(PO). An accurate purchase order helps you track every stock purchase, right from from the placing of order to paying the bill. PO are generally created and submitted manually(handwritten) or by using spreadsheets but, this includes a risk of having some errors and faults(say, while calculating or entering the stocks). Hence, using a POS software is the most reliable option here.

3. Receive Inventory Accurately:

Another thing you must take care of is that you receive the inventory accurately. No matter how hi-tech or tech-savvy your PO is, it cannot redeem stock receiving errors.Hence, it is advisable to follow a standard method for receiving inventory.

4. Tag and Label Inventory:

If you really want to have a productive business and save your time, then start labeling your inventories. Using bar-code labels can make functioning easier and quicker. POS system bar-codes label print automatically when you receive stock into the system. Sometimes, your products might be already labelled by the manufacturers, which makes your task easier. You can even track these in your POS system.

5. Track your sales & products sold:

A must-do task for any business to operate smoothly is to track the sales and products sold. And yes, it is more than just calculating the total at end of the day.  You must keep a track of each item  sold and every order in detail. Generally, this too is done manually by using spreadsheet but again there might be man-made errors. A POS system is the best and reliable solution for an error-free entry.

6. Organize your stockroom:

Last but not the least, have an organised and well maintained stockroom. If your stockroom/warehouse is messy, there is no way that the most technologically advanced POS can help you. For maintaining an organised inventory, you need to know where your products are. The bottom line, ensure that your stockroom is properly stacked and stocked.

Whether it is small business or a large business, having an organised, updated and well-maintained inventory is as important as having your meal properly. You can use the various POS system that are available today for an easy operation of your business. Also, you can check out the Billing and Inventory Software that we offer at www.swiftretail.com .