Why you need a warehouse management system (WMS)
In order to succeed as an eCommerce business, keep in mind that you’ll be going against behemots such as Amazon. As such, you must be able to consistently deliver accurate fulfillment at a low rate. Consumers who shop online expect that orders will ship quickly and without issues, and meeting this expectation is crucial for the growth of small to medium businesses.
Effective warehouse management is incredibly important for the success of your business, and a warehouse management system may be the solution you need. As such, please feel free to read on to learn more about how a warehouse management system will benefit your eCommerce business.
Clear signs that you need a warehouse management system
The fulfillment process is very dynamic and complicated, and this can lead to many challenges. As your business grows on multiple channels, attempting to manage your warehouse manually will become impossible. To ensure proper fulfillment and customer satisfaction, you may need to implement a warehouse management system or WMS. Some signs that it is time to upgrade from manual warehouse management to an automated WMS include:
-High error rates with quantity, packaging, damaged goods, incorrect paperwork, or other customer shipping complaints.
-High expediting costs. Poor layout, picking, and slotting can cost more time and result in missed deadlines and greater expediting costs. A WMS can help you improve your slotting and picking to ensure proper cycle counts and timely invoices.
-Higher than expected fulfillment costs. When done properly, the fulfillment cost per unit should go down as your business grows. However, trying to keep up with proper fulfillment while handling increasing demands is incredibly difficult. A WMS helps you efficiently use your warehouse and ultimately ensure the profitability of your business.
The main benefits of a warehouse management system (WMS)
As you might expect, a WMS will help streamline your fulfillment workflow and your entire supply chain. Choosing the correct WMS for your business will help you address the most common warehouse obstacles and allow you to scale your business effectively.
The top benefits of a WMS include:
-Improved control over your inventory and orders. A WMS improves the order fulfillment process and decreases your order cycle time. You can track all of your orders with your WMS which will help you improve inventory accuracy and order fulfillment. Inventory management becomes much simpler and quicker with a WMS.
-Better customer service. Shipping is important for customer satisfaction. A WMS will make sure your inventory is properly stocked and your fulfillment process is as accurate as can be. Through automation, your WMS simplifies organizing and tracking so you can have up-to-date information.
-Low operational expenses. A WMS will help you reduce waste by identifying which units to pick first and which units may require a sales push. It will also help you efficiently use space and labor, and improve the effectiveness of your staff.
-Quick dispatching of orders. Orders can be managed individually or by using a feature called “pickwaves”, which simplifies the order picking process a lot.
-Quick refunds for your customers directly from the WMS.
-Easily print invoices and labels for all of your orders, directly from the software.
-Compliance regulations. As you may know, there are many compliance regulations that impact your supply chain. Meeting these supply chain and government regulations while satisfying customers is very challenging. With real-time recording and data tracking through your WMS, you can boost your business intelligence and exceed compliance regulations.
This is why we consider NVENTREE to be one of the best warehouse and inventory management systems. It will help you manage your stocks, products and orders across multiple platforms, such as eBay, Amazon and your shopping cart from one easy-to-use interface, instead of having to log into each channel separately.
Closing thoughts
The right Warehouse Management System can improve your sales and increase profits not simply by helping you sell more, but by selling faster and more accurately to happier customers. Furthermore, your existing workforce is able to pick and receive more items in less time, with fewer errors. This precision reduces customer inquiries and simplifies customer support.
Postponing implementation of a warehouse management system may be costing your business in ways you cannot afford: higher labor costs, chargebacks, excess returns, and unhappy customers. With top retailers setting the standards with serious deductions and chargebacks for mistakes, the standards have become very high. Be the company with high customer satisfaction ratings by implementing a warehouse management system.