5 ways to optimise your stock management with NetSuite & Optiply

Since Covid-19, supply chain disruptions are present-day challenges for e-commerce businesses. The direct consequence of these challenges is that stock management is even more crucial for your business. Insights into the performance of your products will enable you to improve purchasing decisions and stock management. What are the current difficulties when managing your stock? How can automated data-driven purchasing tools improve your stock management? You find the answers in this blog, together with five ways to optimise your stock management with the help of NetSuite and Optiply.

What are the difficulties that e-commerce businesses experience in managing their stock?

Growing your business can be difficult with the challenge of a disrupted supply chain. It is harder to supply demand due to transport delays, raw material shortages and/or increased purchase prices. Under these circumstances, stock management becomes more crucial. What are the pitfalls when it comes to stock management:

• Without accurate data insights into your fast- and slow sellers it can be challenging to control your stock and purchaser accurately.
• Relying on a partly manual purchasing process will make it harder to keep control of your purchasing tasks. Manual input may give you a sense of control and flexibility. However, it means at the same time that your process is time-consuming, sensitive to mistakes and hard to scale.
• Limited insights into the performance of your purchasing decisions make it harder to analyse and adjust these when needed. Inaccurate purchases can lead to excess stock or understock.
• Cash flow problems can arise when you make the wrong purchasing decisions over a longer period. If you are purchasing the wrong products, there is a risk that your cash is tied up in excess stock.

How does Netsuite improve stock management for e-commerce businesses?

A lot can happen in a day for your business. So you need real-time company-wide visibility to ensure that you are not making decisions based on ancient data. NetSuite provides up-to-date information across multiple locations. Regarding sales trends, financials and stock levels, all in one place. If one of your locations is approaching dangerously low stock of a specific SKU. It could easily be transferred from another (potentially overstocked) location to avoid a stockout. No matter how good your replenishment and stock management are between locations, regularly counting the stock is still necessary.

Additionally, it can drain resources for lengthy periods without the proper systems in place. NetSuite provides reminders for each SKU to be counted. Whilst significantly reducing the resources required and the potential for human error through cycle counting (categorising stock based on the volume of transactions and/or value) within each location. Having a global view of your business also allows you to reduce shipping costs with predefined fulfilment rules. Eliminate multiple shipments for a single order, a capability that Optiply’s forecasting tools enhance.

Stock management solutions from Optiply for e-commerce businesses

Improve your stock management by adding a purchasing tool that can give you detailed data insights. Optiply can analyse your business’ stock and categorise the products via the ABC analysis. This means that category A products are impactful and the B and C categories have less impact on your business’ revenue. In addition to this, historic sales data and forecasting models are used to give you real-time purchasing advice. It allows you to speed up your purchasing process and make it less sensitive to errors. By improving the accuracy of your purchasing decisions your stock management will improve as well. That will enable you to fulfil customer demand continuously. Without having the risk of piling up excess stock or being understocked leading to stockouts.

5 ways to optimise your stock management with NetSuite and Optiply

1. Add automation to end manual steps in the purchasing process

Automation improves your purchasing process by making it less time-consuming and less dependent on manual input. For example, by taking over a task such as replenishment. This gives you time to focus on other parts of your business.

2. Use data to make the performance of products visible

With a data-driven purchasing tool, you always have an accurate insight into the performance of your stock. Which products are having the most impact on your revenue? And which products should you purchase less of and/or phase out?

3. Avoid lost sales by improving your purchasing decisions

Using automation with real-time data can give you accurate purchasing advice. This directly impacts your purchasing decisions. And can result in a low number of lost sales due to fewer stockouts.

4. Improve the collaboration between your teams with data

Use the knowledge of a data-driven purchasing tool to improve the collaboration between teams in your business. Make data visible to help and decide, for example, with marketing the products you want to push in the next campaign. And analyse and improve your forecasts together with the sales team.

5. Integrate your systems to improve your business structure

As per the previous point, you will ideally have a system that allows you to have shared access across multiple departments/ locations. Integrate systems, make sure that data can be shared and present data in a way that allows you to start a conversation and identify and track cross-team actions and owners. It will not only improve your purchasing operations but also your company-wide structure.

NetSuite customers report up to an 80% increase in business insights. This results in a 30% reduction in stock costs. Implementing Optiply boasts 80% less time spent on purchasing and 26% less stock being held.

Accelerate your business growth with automation from NetSuite and Optiply

Do you want to achieve these five goals for your business? Automating and streamlining your stock management with the help of NetSuite provider Excellent Zephyr and Optiply is a no-brainer. By implementing Optiply together with NetSuite, you will reduce time spent on purchasing and be able to do so with more confidence. Given visibility over your entire business, you will be able to purchase, transfer and sell stock like never before, holding less stock across your operation but ensuring fewer stock-outs.