How to choose the right inventory management system for Amazon

Feb 14

Building your business on Amazon is an excellent way to reach new customers and boost profits. Amazon is the largest Ecommerce platform in the world, according to eMarketer. According to the retailer's 2022 earnings report, its online stores earned $110 billion in net revenue despite the COVID-19 pandemic going on.

Understanding how inventory management works are the first step to success on Amazon. There is a large audience for you to reach through Amazon, but using the wrong tools can lead to failure. Orders can pile up, and you can't keep up when you can't fulfill what's being demanded. Managing your inventory manually makes it difficult and time-consuming to catch up. Inventory management systems can provide an effective solution.

As an Amazon seller, you will want to keep these key options in mind when choosing a system for managing your inventory. Make sure to check our amazon inventory management system Inventooly. It provides all the useful features needed to effectively manage your inventory and is quite easy to use.

What inventory management for Amazon does for its sellers

Systems for inventory management for Amazon help you maintain records of inventory levels, deliveries, sales, and orders that happen at your Amazon account.

What is the goal? Sync your inventory across all your listings to reduce carrying costs, minimize fees, and minimize fees. As a result, you can minimize hassles while also maintaining an accurate balance between having too little and too much inventory. Furthermore, Amazon product lifecycle management requires proper inventory management. This is accomplished by assessing what to charge for each product and by determining how much to stock.

If you use Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA), or FBA onsite, inventory management systems for Amazon become even more essential. Amazon FBA extends your reach to Amazon's vast supply chain. For a fee, Amazon will ship your customer's orders to their door and store your inventory at one of its 25 fulfillment centers. The Amazon FBA program provides the support you need to offer two-day or one-day shipping if you don't have a fulfillment structure in place.

Using Amazon FBA requires that you maintain enough inventory at the FBA distribution centers to properly fulfill orders from Amazon, but not so much that Amazon will charge you late fees. For forecasting and inventory planning, keeping track of your inventory across each warehouse, including Amazon FBA, is critical.

Which inventory management system is best for me?

In order to select an inventory management system that will meet your business needs, consider the following seven factors.

Specific requirements applicable to your organization

Purchasing a system for inventory management requires an understanding of your requirements. Once you've defined the inventory management challenges you face, you can determine the solutions you want.

You must ask yourself. Is it important to you to monitor the progress of my shipment, for instance? Are you interested in knowing about your inventory levels? It will be easier to get a fixed price if you thoroughly describe your requirements to the vendor.

How Much Does the Software Cost?

Your requirements will determine how much you will have to pay for the software. Ideally, you should find out what the market price for the software is, so you can decide whether to accept the vendor's offer or not. Your business finances should be in good order before you invest in inventory management software. If you're planning on investing in technology, check your budget first.

Nowadays, businesses can implement inventory management systems at a more affordable price due to cloud-based software. The most suitable choice for small businesses, startups, or low-budget companies is to use cloud-based inventory management software.

How Customization is Done

You may have to customize your inventory management system if you have highly complex specifications. Consult the vendor to determine whether the software can be tailored to meet your exact needs and how long customization will take. Consider combining a new inventory management system with your existing one if you already have one without the new features.

User-Friendliness

The successful implementation of your inventory management system depends on usability, which many business owners overlook. Learning the ins and outs of the software can take your staff hours. If that's the case, it's probably not a worthwhile purchase. Choose the solution that is easy-to-use rather than the complicated one if you want to simplify inventory management.

Connectivity with Other Systems

Your inventory management software may not be integrated with other software, but as your business grows, you may need the integrations. In addition, inventory management affects the operations of your business in a number of ways. Nowadays, most startups use at least four different software systems to simplify their operations.

If you desire easy integration, you should choose software that is easy to use. System integrations can include warehouse management, eCommerce, and purchasing management.

The Flexibility

Flexibility is yet another important factor to think about when choosing an inventory management system. You should find out how mobile-friendly the software you are considering is, how many users can use it, if it's a web-based or on-premises system, etc. Consideration should be given to flexibility, especially if you store products at multiple Amazon warehouses.

Providing Support

You wouldn't like to be left in the dark once you have selected an inventory management system and have to figure out how to use it all yourself. You expect someone to provide the solution as quickly as possible to your problems of finding purchase transactions or setting up low-level stock notifications. Make sure your vendor provides comprehensive support, including training, warranty, and assistance.

Conclusion

You face a greater risk of errors when manually managing your inventory, as it is both exhausting and tiring. Having an inventory management system that addresses the particular challenges and requirements of the channels you sell on will make the process much easier. Your customers will be happy since you will not need overstock or understock and order at the proper frequency.

Inventory management for Amazon can sometimes prove to be hectic if you are a new seller. But you can always seek the assistance of professionals. The 24/7 support and guidance of experts will be available to you if you choose to use Inventooly to manage your inventory.