In rapidly-expanding businesses, good inventory management is essential for maintaining control of your assets and ensuring that your business continues to run smoothly. With so many moving parts, it can be difficult to keep track of everything and easy to make mistakes that can cost you time and money. However, by following the below guidelines from the DBR Chamber of Commerce, you can improve your inventory management and keep your business running like a well-oiled machine.

Cloud-Based Inventory Management Software 

This can be a godsend for expanding businesses. This type of software allows you to track your inventory in real time, no matter where it is located. Additionally, cloud-based software is typically more affordable than traditional on-premises software and can be scaled up or down as needed. If you are not already using cloud-based inventory management software, now is the time to make the switch.

The FIFO Method 

This stands for first in, first out, and it’s another good way to maintain control of your inventory levels. This method ensures that the oldest items in your inventory are sold before they have a chance to go bad or become outdated. By implementing the FIFO method, you can avoid losses due to spoilage or obsolescence and keep your inventory levels well-managed.

Understanding and Forecasting Demand

This is crucial when you’re managing a quickly-growing business. If you do not order enough inventory to meet customer demand, you will lose sales and damage your reputation. On the other hand, if you order too much inventory, you will tie up valuable resources and incur unnecessary storage costs. Working with a data-driven demand forecasting tool can help you stay on top of customer demand and avoid these costly mistakes.

Emphasize Quality Control

When building your business, it is easy to cut corners in an effort to save time and money. However, this can lead to inferior products or services that damage your reputation and cost you customers in the long run. By ensuring that quality control is always a top priority, you can avoid these pitfalls and maintain a high level of quality in your products or services.

Audit and Track Stock Levels

An auditing and tracking system for stock levels should also be put into place within the organization so as not to be caught off guard when dealing with sudden changes in customer demand. This helps optimize production processes and deliveries so as to meet customer expectations without overproducing what may not be necessary.

Tracking and auditing your stock levels can be as simple as creating PDFs that you regularly update with inventory levels. PDFs are a great option, because you can store them digitally as well as have easy-to-read printed copies that hang in your warehouse. You can also email them between team members to keep everyone aware of your stock levels. If you’re not comfortable creating a PDF from scratch, opt for a PDF file converter to transfer Microsoft Word or Excel files to PDF format. Simply drag and drop the desired file into the tool and it will create a PDF.

Stay Organized     

Maintaining organization in your warehouse will also prove helpful, as empty space quickly becomes filled with stock as a business expands. This will help facilitate quick movement of people and items within the space while allowing for smooth operations overall.                       

Revisit Your Business Structure

Changing from a sole proprietorship to an LLC provides numerous benefits that could help a rapidly-growing business run more efficiently. For one, you’ll limit your liability as the business owner, meaning you won’t be personally responsible should your company ever face legal issues. Plus, you’ll enjoy tax benefits and establish credibility with vendors and customers. While not directly tied to inventory, setting up an LLC for your business will help support smooth operations.

There are many moving parts involved in growing businesses, which can make it difficult to maintain control. Cloud-based inventory management software, the FIFO method, data-driven demand forecasting, PDF auditing and tracking systems, keeping warehouses organized, and establishing an LLC structure all work together to improve inventory management. These guidelines are important because they provide structure during a chaotic period, preventing common mistakes that cost time and money. Most importantly, they allow businesses to transition into their next phase without sacrificing quality.

Joining the DBR Chamber of Commerce will give your business an edge in our community and beyond. Become a member today!