Any business that uses physical stock needs to keep organised. Stock control is essential. Whether you’re packing orders yourself or have been able to hire a team to handle orders, follow these tips to keep stock moving efficiently around your warehouse.
Use space wisely
Make the most of the space you have. Layout your warehouse sensibly with racking and shelving, so your staff can move around the space and find the stock they need quickly. If you manage the space you have in an effective way, you can avoid having to hire a bigger space before you actually need it.
Mark aisles clearly, and label each shelf and area with what is stored there, so it’s easy to find what you need and keep the place tidy. Establish picking routes to keep staff flowing smoothly through the warehouse. Store the items that sell the fastest at the front, where they’re quick to access, and don’t overstock on slower sellers.
Choose the right delivery options
If you use a third-party contractor to make your deliveries, make sure you’ve chosen someone reliable. Late, lost or damaged deliveries will reflect poorly back on your business, even if you’re using an outside company to make them.
Keep stock areas tidy
If your storage space isn’t very big, it’s even more important to keep things tidy so you can find what you need and don’t lose any stock in the mess. Have regular stock audits
Make sure you keep accurate numbers and know exactly how much of each line of stock you have stored, and that the actual amounts match your records. If the stock is being delivered short or is being stolen, you can find an issue much quicker with regular checks.
Use software
You can use stock control software to help keep things running smoothly. Load management software is perfect for tracking stock and arranging the efficient movement of stock and supplies. Keeping logistics in good order like this puts you in a good position to keep your business running in an organised way.
Check deliveries
Whenever you have a new delivery of stock, check it carefully when it arrives. New stock should always be checked for damage, and to make sure problems like incorrect items or too few items being sent are caught. Check-in new stock promptly and store it in its proper place so it’s not taking up space on the floor while it waits to be unpacked and put away.
Streamline packing
When packing orders, make the process as streamlined as you can. Don’t keep multiple kinds of products in one place as this makes it easy to get confused and mispick. Keep sale items, top sellers, new items and other products in clearly designated spaces, and put the items that you send out most often closest to the front so they’re quickest to grab for shipping.
Simplify the packing process by keeping a small number of standard shipping packages to keep things moving. If you only have one or two boxes to choose from, things will be speedier than if you’re spending time searching for the right size box out of dozens of choices.