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Open source Inventory Management Software
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• Inventory management and control are integral
  components of your companys
• success, so you must evaluate them on a regular
  basis to ensure youre on the right
• track. Hows your stock working out for you? Do
  you often run out of your best-selling
• items? Do you occasionally lose money on excess
  stock that you have to mark down or
• that spoils? All of these are important inventory
  management questions to ask yourself.

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The Basics of Inventory Management Where to Focus

• To properly manage your inventory, you must track
  your stock in real-time to ensure that you have
  the right products in the right quantities at the
  right times. Managing your inventory correctly
  ensures that you maximize sales and avoid tying
  up funds in excess stock In other words, both
  too much and too little inventory can make or
  break your business. It all comes down to demand
  and trends. Here are some more things to consider

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• Order Points Calculating the right amount of
  inventory to keep on hand at all times is
  critical. If you run out of stock, youll lose
  customers. If you buy too much, youll waste
  money and risk the items becoming obsolete, which
  could require you to eventually sell at deep
  discounts.Find a good forecasting software and
  use your historical data for an accurate picture
  of how much you need to stock.

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• Pricing Pricing depends on many factors that
  overlap. For example, while you may get a break
  from a supplier when you order in large
  quantities, it may require more upfront cash, and
  you may end up with too much stock on hand. The
  Economic Order Quantity is the formula that small
  and large businesses should use to manage
  pricing. The formula uses the total inventory
  management costs order costs, holding costs,
  and shortage costs, for example to help you
  develop the correct pricing.

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• Reorder Points Knowing when to reorder is
  another basic inventory management factor to
  consider. Things like the time it takes to pack
  and ship and other quantifying data will help you
  determine your reorder points. There are easy
  formulas that managers can use to calculate
  reorder points.

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Inventory Best Practices for Small Businesses

• Use FIFO (First-In, First Out) Most goods
  should be sold in the order they were purchased.
  This is especially important for perishable
  products or those with an expiration date. Teach
  your employees about stock turnover and to place
  newer items on the back of the warehouse shelf,
  so older items are in the front. Using the FIFO
  system for inventory control means less spoilage
  and out-of-date merchandise.

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Invest in Yourself and Your Business with
Accurate Forecasting

• Look ahead, but not too broadly. Divide the
  inventory into smaller chunks and examine them
  for historical data. Compare what you find to
  what your employee(s) have found. Brainstorm with
  them, identify issues, such as poorly checked-in
  shipments and make a plan to fix them. Examine
  your marketing efforts, predicted growth
  opportunities, and market trends.Your forecasting
  should be as accurate as possible to reflect a
  realistic bottom line.

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Complete a Stock Audit

• Manually count your inventory to make sure your
  stock matches your records. This will help to
  track pilferage and spoilage while doubling-down
  against human error. Manual audits are usually
  conducted annually, but if you have inventory
  issues or high-value items, you may want to
  perform audits more frequently or even conduct
  unannounced spot checks.
• Identify Stock That Isnt Selling
• If something isnt selling, move it to the
  discount rack or shelf. Unsold stock takes up
  valuable space and ties up your funds.

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Use Modern Apps

• Using bar coding either on your product or the
  packaging can save countless hours sorting
  inventory. Also, human inventory control is
  inefficient as there is a higher chance for human
  error to occur. Numerous studies show that humans
  counting inventory mentally zone out from boredom
  and make mistakes.Look over Stockpile, a free app
  by Canvas. Consider other apps like Wasp Barcode
  Technologies, JumpTech, Goods Order Inventory
  System (GOIS) Pro, Stock Control, and Bottom
  Line. One of these might be a good solution for
  your inventory challenges.

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Upgrade Your Software

• A good software program should be accessible from
  your point-of-sale system. It helps you to track
  inventory in real time, allows you to analyze
  stock, assists in forecasting, improves cash
  flow, and it can boost your bottom line.
• Pay Attention to Warehouse or Stockroom Design
• he design of your warehouse can make a major
  difference in providing the best and most
  cost-effective service to your customers.

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• Details such as what pallet racking system and
  what type of pallets you use, for example,
  directly affect efficiency. Using the right
  pallet racking system will minimize damage and
  provide you with a quicker method of identifying
  reorder points. Use a logical layout and group
  like items together for better inventory control.
  Leave room for your forklifts or utility carts in
  your design to make it easier and quicker for
  your staff to move the inventory from point A to
  point B.

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Use The Right Labeling Protocols System

• Barcoding helps keep your inventory organized.
  You can use barcodes on the location in your
  warehouse and on the item, itself. Item barcodes
  usually have the actual part number on them as
  well. Decide whether to label each item or each
  box or case of items. Make sure to use compatible
  barcode schemes. If you have different
  manufacturers that use different schemes, invest
  in a barcode reader that can read the different
  types. Your inventory management software should
  be able to cross-reference your internal
  barcoding system with the manufacturers system.

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Use the Correct Adhesives

• Using the right adhesives, especially if you have
  a lot of different labels for different products,
  is important if you want to keep your inventory
  under control. For example, if you store
  inventory in a non-climate-controlled warehouse
  and the climate at the location is humid, you
  want to purchase the right adhesives to ensure
  your labels stick to whatever substrate the
  pallets or shelving is made of.Labels that dont
  adhere correctly can cost you valuable time when
  locating inventory and prices, and can even
  result in misplaced stock.

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• Final Word
• Inventory control has a major impact on the
  health of your small business. The more you can
  improve upon it, the more profit you can expect
  to bring in.
• Source Ways to improve inventory control for
  small businesses
• Tag Inventory management software, Small
  Business Inventory Management, Inventory Control,