{"id":1675047,"date":"2020-05-27T11:13:45","date_gmt":"2020-05-27T18:13:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.retailpro.com\/News\/blog\/?p=1675047"},"modified":"2020-05-27T11:13:47","modified_gmt":"2020-05-27T18:13:47","slug":"3-ways-to-track-your-inventory-for-better-sell-through","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.retailpro.com\/News\/blog\/index.php\/2020\/05\/27\/3-ways-to-track-your-inventory-for-better-sell-through\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Ways to track your inventory for better sell-through"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Retailers more than ever before are faced with critically evaluating their inventory to curate a selection of products that will sell quickly and reduce their inventory costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The longer products sit on a shelf or in a warehouse, the faster their value decreases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carrying costs can be between 20 and 30 percent of inventory value, which indicates too much stock is simply taking up room and not providing revenue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Capital costs are the largest portion and perhaps the greatest burden of carrying inventory; they include the investment made in acquiring goods and the interest lost when cash becomes inventory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are also storage costs and service costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And of course, there are risks with carrying inventory, primarily that the real value of the items will decrease while in storage, waiting to be sold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1. Watch shopper demand<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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To streamline offerings, companies routinely weed out what’s not moving, and focus on products \u2014 and related items \u2014 that are popular.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the most efficient ways to determine exactly what customers are buying is by monitoring your inventory and sales data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That provides the data necessary to determine what customers really want.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It can also help determine what they’ll want a few months down the road; investing in an analytics expert can be a cost-effective way of understanding and acting upon the information gathered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Retailers tend to look at revenue as the primary metric of success or failure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But knowing what drives those sales is equally important, because that information can help formulate a strategy for growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The additional analytics provide a more complete picture of a retailer’s health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2. Audit store inventory<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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A complete audit includes more than an inventory count of both product on shelves and back stock, as it also can include a count of damaged products; assessments of in-store displays; planogram compliance (shelf location, number of SKUs, missing or inaccurate shelf tags).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some retailers include a summary of competitors’ strategy as well as a look of their own roadmap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many retailers use point of sale software like Retail Pro to track current inventory, which is crucial in determining the right balance of products to carry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

POS software provides real-time inventory visibility and helps ensure the items are available in-store or for fulfillment of online orders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s also important to confirm that data visually to have an exact idea of current stock.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While it may seem old-fashioned \u2014 and certainly not a replacement for today’s technology \u2014 performing a visual inspection could find an underlying reason for the slow sales, such as poor product placement on the retail floor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Technology like RFID can help a retailer conduct physical inventory counts in hours rather than days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Similarly, POS software can also help retailers identify product shrinkage, which may be easily remedied by physically relocating the item or by changing loss-prevention techniques.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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3.Manage turnover ratio<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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By effectively managing the inventory turnover ratio, cash flow is optimized.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It provides feedback that the retailer is meeting customers\u2019 needs, and results in maximized profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even and especially the largest retailers need to be aware of their inventory situations and make their stock work for them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not only does that result in healthier revenue, but it also ensures more satisfied customers who know that what they come for is in stock.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Retailers more than ever before are faced with critically evaluating their inventory to curate a selection of products that will sell quickly and reduce their inventory costs. The longer products sit on a shelf or in a warehouse, the faster … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":1675049,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[44,50,48,47],"tags":[197,80,71],"class_list":["post-1675047","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-specialty-retail-management-and-operations","category-retail-merchandising-and-marketing","category-point-of-sale-software-systems","category-retail-technology-and-security","tag-inventory-management","tag-pos","tag-rfid"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t