Magento is the most popular eCommerce platform in the world. It has more than $155 Billion in gross merchandise volume each year. To grow their businesses, many merchants have turned to Magento products and services from all over the world.
Magento inventory reports are essential for many retailers. This allows them to keep track of in-stock and out of-stock items. Magento does not have this reporting option.
Are you a Magento merchant curious about inventory reports and their benefits? This article will provide an overview of the Magento reporting system, the types and reasons we need them. We’ll also share tips for creating the best Magento inventory report.
What are Magento reports?
It is important to have a good understanding of all the reporting options on Magento before you start to learn about inventory reports. There are five types of default reports available in Magento 2.
- Sales reports
- Marketing reports
- Read reviews
- Customer reports
- Product reports
Businesses can export sales reports to get useful data about their sales performance. These reports contain 7 sections: Orders and Tax, Invoiced Shipping, Refunds Coupons and PayPal/Braintree Settlements.
Marketing reports The Marketing Report provides information about online shopping carts and search terms. It also includes newsletter transmissions.
Review reports The Review Report displays summary product reviews that can be filtered by customer or product. Magento merchants have access to the reviews of all customers and all products with feedback.
Customer reports The Customer Report provides information about customer activities over a specified time period. These data include the customer’s order total, order count and number of new customers.
Product reports The product report contains all the information you need about the products. It includes bestsellers, ordered numbers, stock levels and downloads.
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Why are inventory reports necessary?
An inventory report provides a summary of the stock position of a company, with details such as bestsellers and other information that is related to inventory management.
Magento does not include an inventory report default, but it is important for all businesses to keep current about stock levels. Here are some reasons:
Forecast and report on demand
Stock-outs are more expensive than many businesses realize. A study found that 21% to 43% would shop at other stores to purchase a specific item in the event of a stock-out. Out-of-stock not only can cause a loss of sales, but it can also make your competitor more profitable. This is a very undesirable situation.
Every business must prevent stock-outs from the very beginning of inventory management. Businesses can track the current customer demand with an inventory report.
It can also give an overview of inventory changes over certain periods so store owners can predict future demand. Businesses are more likely not to overorder if the forecast is accurate and reasonable.
Avoid inventory problems
It is not enough to prevent stock-outs. Businesses must manage their inventory well to avoid inventory problems. Storing expired items is an example. The US spends approximately $218 million each year to dispose of food that has not been eaten. An inventory report is a useful tool to notify store owners about the stock’s lifecycle.
Deadstock can also cause problems. This is when items go out of fashion or are out of style. Storage costs can increase if you have too many products in your store at once. Businesses need to have an accurate inventory forecast in order to order enough stock.
Organize your warehouse efficiently
Warehouse management is the ability to manage warehouse operations, including pick-up and delivery. Businesses can save time and labor by managing warehouses effectively. Did you know that 50% of picking time can be spent on travel?
Here’s the good news. An inventory report is a great tool for store managers to see the stock flow. Businesses will then arrange the most popular items in an easy-access location, while the slower-moving items are placed in a far corner. This arrangement can reduce time and labor and lead to quicker delivery and higher customer satisfaction.
Encourage the performance of online and offline stores
Inventory reports are useful for businesses that have multiple stores spread from offline to online. They help support the performance of all these locations. There are many undesirable situations that can occur between offline and online stores. For example, out-of-stock products that are still on the company’s site.
It is crucial for companies to identify their hot stock and then pre-arrange the appropriate number of items for each location. This information can be gleaned from an inventory report that includes filters for products and locations.
Different types of inventory reports
Businesses should be aware of the advantages of an inventory report and choose the one that best suits their needs. Here are the four types of inventory reports along with their respective features.
Stock on hand
Inventory on hand reports show the inventory of products a company currently has in stock and their current stock values. This report allows businesses to see the total capital they have in stock. This information allows them to forecast, re-order and make financial plans.
Stock low
Low stock reports, as the name suggests, inform store owners of products that are almost out-of-stock. This information is useful in that it warns businesses about the need to stock items quickly and identifies the most popular products.
Performance of the product
This report identifies the top-selling products, which gives businesses insight into which items are most profitable and popular. It can help to determine the sales gap as best-sellers can sell out in a shorter or longer time. Product performance reports are a great tool for planning and marketing.
How do you create the best inventory reports for your Magento store?
We will now explain what reports Magento offers and why businesses need inventory reports.
Incorporate useful technology
First, make sure you have the right technology. Many businesses now choose a point of sale (POS) system that includes inventory features. Businesses can monitor inventory changes easily and export useful reports to reduce manual labor. Multi-store or multi-warehouse management can also benefit from a POS system.
ConnectPOS is a leading POS provider and offers great solutions to Magento retailers, including inventory management tools as well as auto-generated inventory reports. It is well-known for its ability to sync multiple warehouses and stores in real-time.
Businesses can also add inventory report extensions to their reports with advanced and custom options. The Magento 2 Reports extension by Kobe Digital is a great choice because of the flexibility and customizable charts or filters.
Transparency about the number
In order to ensure accuracy in inventory reporting, business owners must be diligent in their efforts. It is important to disclose the numbers in your reports. This includes the inventory performance and the items in your warehouses. It is important to explain how you arrived at the final number to your coworkers.
Your staff can be trained to optimize the report
Unless your business is a small one-person operation, it is important that your employees are trained in inventory reporting. Businesses should ensure that their staff is familiar with the products and inventory. It should not only include the product features but also include information about customers and their purchasing habits. Employees can gain a better understanding and takeaway from inventory reports.
Make sure that your staff is familiar with the technology used to support inventory reporting using Magento. Employees should know how to use the technology to support inventory reporting on Magento. This includes understanding the numbers and informing customers about stock information. If they aren’t used properly, even the most powerful inventory management tools can be wasted.
It will recur.
Stocks can change quickly so businesses need to generate inventory reports often in order to keep track of inventory status. How often should companies generate inventory reports?
It all depends on who uses it. The marketing team might need a weekly report to assess the effectiveness of their strategy. Other departments may only require a monthly report to evaluate the overall performance.
Businesses should also look at reports after busy selling periods to see the period-over time growth (e.g. Christmas 2020 and Christmas2021). The frequency of inventory reporting depends on the business operations. If you order items daily, for example, you will need to generate more reports.
Keep an eye on the hot stocks
Businesses should make good use of inventory reports to find out about the best-sellers. Store owners can better predict the stock-out date and the quantity of their next order by keeping track of hot stocks. COVID-19, a sudden need for hand sanitizers, can be an example of this.
A survey also revealed that 34% have shipped an order late because they accidentally sold out-of-stock items. This is something that businesses do not want to happen. It could be because they underestimated customers’ needs. Knowing the hot stocks will help to minimize this problem and remind businesses that they must restock on-time.
Don’t forget your dead stocks
It’s always beneficial to consider both sides of the spectrum. Hot stocks are not the only thing you should be looking at. Dead stock is any unsellable goods that have been stored in your warehouse for an extended period. Stock that isn’t being used, such as expired food or seasonal products, can lead to higher holding costs and extra effort when reorganizing the warehouse.
An inventory report is a tool that helps you identify patterns in customer purchases and reminds you how many stocks are dead. This information will allow you to make timely decisions regarding how to deal with dead stock and prevent future over-orders.
Wrapping up
This article will cover everything you need to know regarding inventory reports for Magento stores. Businesses in every industry need to create inventory reports regularly to improve customer satisfaction and keep stock levels under control. Companies can use the Magento platform to create a flexible reporting extension or a point-of-sale solution that provides all-in-one solutions.