If you want to grow your business, you can’t expect others to do the same thing. These 5 inventory management tools are free and can help you monitor inventory levels.
How to Use Inventory Management Tools and What Are They?
Inventory control or inventory management is the process of managing inventory flow within a company. An inventory management system that is suitable for every industry streamlines the process of controlling inventory flow and quality to ensure the correct amount of stock is available at the appropriate time.
Many people associate inventory management with retail, but many other industries use inventory management systems to streamline operations such as manufacturing, utilities, and healthcare.
Many inventory software programs are free and can be used to help you determine what your business needs. Even the most advanced inventory management software can be limited by the free plan. Zoho Inventory, for example, has restrictions on sales orders even when it is part of its paid plans. If you have multiple warehouses to track, multiple currencies to support, or need to create custom views within your workflows, upgrading to the first paid tier at $79/month is sufficient.
The base plan starts at $79/month, with a 1,500 purchase order. It also includes three users. Additional warehouses are $10 per month, while additional users cost $3 per month. The higher tiers offer batch and serial number tracking, and automated workflows. It’s an excellent choice for entrepreneurs looking for inventory software to grow their businesses. If you only place a few orders per year, there’s no better way to manage inventory.
A CRM is a tool that can be used to manage your customer relationships.
Businesses used to manage inventory management and customer relationship management software (CRM) separately for a long time. Although inventory management software is primarily used to manage back-end business operations such as billing, shipping details, purchase history, and financial data, CRM software handles front-end business operations. This includes recording customer details, and customer interactions, tracking sales, managing sales, and creating marketing campaigns.
Integration of Inventory Management A CRM solution and a system can create a win-win scenario for businesses. Because you can access data-driven insights about customer preferences, it streamlines business operations and increases productivity.
Integrate inventory management system and CRM solution
- Businesses get a 360-degree view of their customers
- Easy access to customer information
- Reduces human error in data entry
- Different business processes can be streamlined
Zoho Inventory is a popular choice for small businesses that need multi-channel selling. It offers low-stock alerts and kitting options as well as integrated CRM apps and payment gateways.
This allows you to easily manage inventory costs and stock levels across all sales channels. RightControl’s free plan, which allows you to track 10 items, but also includes the best CRM system, is recommended for service companies that only need to track a few items.
Google Analytics
Online retailers and small businesses can quickly find out about out-of-stock issues. It can hurt sales and brand image, which is unfortunate. There is a solution to every problem. In this instance, Google Analytics, or data analytics, integrated with inventory management software, can be a great solution. Analytics and reporting are two features found in many of the latest and most advanced software systems. They allow data-driven decisions to satisfy customer demand.
Google Analytics doesn’t allow you to store any information that could identify a person. Most CRM systems can track last-click data by using their UTM parameters. This allows you to tell Google Analytics or your CRM which channel the traffic/conversion should be attributed to.
The ability to connect analytics and CRM data can be used to track the entire customer journey, which will help you propel your company forward.
Barcode scanners can be used to track inventory
Barcodes can be used to identify products and businesses. Large and small Small Businesses Barcodes can give businesses an advantage in order and inventory management. Barcodes allow businesses to keep accurate inventory records.
It is quick and easy with minimal human error. Barcodes are unique to each product. You cannot make any mistakes by scanning the product with your hand. Barcodes are a great way to track inventory. It is a great tool for in-
- Inventory tracking efficiently and accurately
- Avoid mistakes in sales documents or stock adjustments.
- Saving time creating documents.
- Faster fulfillment of orders
This may be why many inventory management systems have barcode scanning and recording. Sortly, for example, is a cloud-based inventory management platform that boasts a mobile barcode scanner app. This allows business managers to scan QR codes and barcodes even when they are offline. This allows you to scan outgoing and incoming inventory even if your phone doesn’t have a signal.
Once you log in, it automatically syncs with the account. Zoho has an offline mode for its mobile app. Sortly, however, offers inventory for multiple locations. RightControl is another option. RightControl allows you to use a barcode scanner not only to track stock and allocate stock but also to generate barcodes that can be assigned to specific items. This makes it easy to add products to your eCommerce store’s catalog and track each item in inventory.
Use a Point of Sale system
Point-of-sale (POS) systems that are efficient and time-saving can make it easier to manage your hours. An efficient POS system with inventory management will help you keep track of important data and reduce the amount of bookkeeping and record-keeping.
Point-of-sale software that is well-implemented can help you track your sales and inventory, prepare tax records, and order new supplies on a weekly or monthly basis.
How well you manage your finances and inventory can make a big difference in the success of your restaurant or retail store. These are the factors that will determine your profitability.
Odoo is an open-source double-entry inventory tracking software for warehouse management. It includes tons of functionality such as customer relationship management (CRM), point–of–sale, and human resource management. You can even create a customer portal so that your clients can log into it and see the status of their orders.
Square POS is a free point-of-sale inventory software. Users of the free version have access to analytics, customer management, invoicing, and the ability to send digital receipts or offline mode. It is very easy to use. Many of these services have interesting and useful features included in their paid plans. There are many options available depending on the business needs.
Utilize Web Analytics
Inventory analytics is a measurement that focuses on current goods, property, and raw materials. Analytics help to monitor stock levels at different locations and assist in order fulfillment. Low inventory levels can hurt business processes and indicate areas for improvement. Inventory can include raw materials, finished goods, and works in progress. To forecast future demand, inventory managers analyze the quantity and quality of inventories.
Data from inventory analytics provides insight into future and current needs. An inventory analytics tool helps to understand inventory and improve its performance. Inventory managers monitor key performance indicators (KPIs), which are used to identify areas of improvement or processes that need attention.
The Best inventory management systems contain the data necessary to conduct a detailed study of inventory performance. These systems are often integrated into inventory management software and track products throughout the supply chain.
Monitoring is a great way to avoid over-stocking or under-stock situations. Regular monitoring of inventory analytics can improve the performance and function of inventory management software.
Bottom line
You wouldn’t attempt to build a house if you didn’t have the right tools.
Many businesses believe they can manage their inventory management system on their own, but this is not true. However, inventory management software is vital for any business that has a large stock or many moving parts. It is the core of most advanced inventory management systems.
You need to track your assets, products, and tools to grow your business, no matter how small or large it is. This inventory management software makes it easy. There are many free inventory tools available to meet growing demand. The best inventory management software for free includes key features such as point of sale and data analytics.
Most inventory Management Systems are designed with specific niches in view. The best inventory software for your company depends on your specific business requirements. Inventory management software can be used on its own without the need for additional programs or systems. It is easy to set up and use. It is possible to find systems that can integrate with your point-of-sale software (POS) or other systems, so everything is in one place.
