Inventory management is at the core of retail businesses of all sizes. Therefore, having a clear and updated picture of all available and unavailable stock is a must. This is where real-time inventory tracking delivers significant advantages. Across all channels, the retailers have a centralised real-time view that ensures optimal inventory management.
From reducing overstock to consistently meeting consumer expectations, real-time inventory tracking offers numerous benefits for retail businesses.
In this blog, we will take a look at these benefits that give retail businesses a competitive edge over their rivals. But, before that, let us learn the importance of inventory management.
From reducing overstock to consistently meeting consumer expectations, real-time inventory tracking offers numerous benefits for retail businesses.
In this blog, we will take a look at these benefits that give retail businesses a competitive edge over their rivals. But, before that, let us learn the importance of inventory management.
- Significance of Inventory Management
Inventory management is a top priority for achieving the long-term objectives of retail businesses. The primary aim of retail inventory management is to optimise inventory levels and cost reduction while increasing sales and enhancing consumer satisfaction.
In addition to reducing the instances of stockouts and allowing faster replenishment, effective inventory management enables accurate tracking of product locations.
While inventory management offers a great advantage to retail businesses, there are inherent limitations to it, primarily due to outdated practices. The manual way of inventory tracking using spreadsheets falls short more often than not and ultimately leads to inconsistent tracking.
Manually meeting the dynamic demands of the marketplace is incredibly difficult. This is where the advantages of an inventory control system offering real-time tracking are a game-changer.
Let us now take a look at how real-time inventory tracking benefits retail businesses with inventory management. - Precise Inventory Tracking
With real-time inventory tracking, retail businesses gain real-time and accurate visibility into the stock levels. Businesses gain clarity on what needs reordering and what does not. Moreover, they will be able to identify slow-moving items to optimise the inventory.
Having seamless integration of POS data and warehouse feeds is essential for ensuring an updated status of the inventory, whether it’s new shipments, transfers, or returns. Moreover, as soon as the goods are moved or received, the inventory count is updated. - Prevention of Overstocking/ Stockouts
One of the common concerns among retail businesses of all sizes often stems from overstocking or stockouts. The former ties up the capital and increases the carrying expense, while the latter usually leads to lost sales and customer dissatisfaction.
The solution lies in ordering the precise amount of inventory. However, to achieve that, businesses need to know the key real-time metrics of the inventory. This is exactly what a sound real-time inventory tracking system delivers.
By looking at the supply and demand at the segment and fulfilment-type level, the retail businesses prevent overstocking and stockouts.
The replenishment optimisation and optimised walk-in reserves make sure the shelves are never empty when it comes to the best-selling and high-demand products. Moreover, it reduces the lost sales and disappointed consumers as the customers get reliable stock availability. - Proactive Inventory Controls
Inventory issues often surface only after it’s too late. Having real-time inventory tracking in place, retail businesses can enjoy proactive controls such as pre-order management, inventory locks, and threshold-based alerts.
With pre-order efficiency, the businesses can capture the demand safely ahead of launch without impacting any ATP accuracy. Threshold-based alerts notify businesses of low, medium, and high stocks before it is too late. In addition to these, the inventory lock ensures stock security for priority orders or VIP customers. - Better Order Promising
The importance of inventory management is undeniable for the consistent success of retail businesses. In fact, sound management of inventory is important for order promising.
By combining real-time inventory with fulfillment capacity and transit times, the businesses can calculate exact EDD (Estimated Delivery Dates) with configurable order promising.
Such practices ensure customers receive accurate delivery dates rather than vague estimates. Over time, these accurate deliveries ensure customer satisfaction and retention. - Operational Efficiency
Be it small businesses or large stores, your workforce benefits significantly, and “your teams gain efficiency. Moreover, the boost in employee productivity is a boost in productivity that benefits both employees and the business.
In addition to automating the routine tasks, real-time tracking streamlines many other retail operations. Your staff spend no time on manually reconciling inventory, which is prone to errors due to dynamic demands, and focuses on making strategic decisions more quickly. - Conclusion
No retail business can deny the importance of inventory management. Having a clear picture of what is available across all stores, warehouses, and channels at any given moment is crucial for businesses to meet evolving demands. This is where OnePint.ai can serve as a trusted partner for retail companies. With OnePint.ai’s predictive capabilities for stockouts and overstocks, businesses can make smarter decisions and stay ahead.
Having a real time inventory tracking system is the answer for retail businesses. Businesses can enhance customer experiences and transform their operations, thanks to supply and demand tracking, proactive controls, configurable order promising, and many other features of real-time inventory tracking. - FAQs
1.What is real-time inventory tracking?
Real-time inventory tracking is a system that allows businesses to track stock levels instantly. The updates happen as soon as stock moves — through sales, receipts, returns, or transfers.
2. What is real-time inventory management in retail?
In retail, real-time inventory management provides continuous tracking, monitoring, and updating of stock levels.
3. What is real-time inventory tracking using AI?
Introducing AI to real-time inventory tracking is an advanced method where AI technologies are used. To monitor, check, and update the stock levels as soon as any changes happen.
4. How can retailers implement real-time inventory tracking in their stores?
The first step in implementing real-time inventory tracking in their stores is to consider a centralised inventory management system. It will ensure that returns, transfers, and sales instantly update stock levels across all channels.
5. How does an inventory control system improve operational efficiency in retail?
By reducing errors, automating stock tracking, and ensuring product availability.