Chapter 3 Amazon Inventory, Orders & Warehousing Directory

Amazon Inventory & Order Management Solutions

If you are a multi-channel seller, keeping track of your overall inventory levels can get tricky. If you oversell inventory, you upset customers and are on the fast track to getting your Amazon account suspended. And if you undersell, you have lost out on sales. You need to have real-time inventory numbers to manage inventory by channel, giving you the ability to replenish FBA quickly (if required) or place new product orders with your suppliers if you are running out on critical selection.

Key Issues to Consider

There is quite a bit of variation across inventory and order management companies. Some charge a percentage of sales, while others charge by the number of orders processed. Some incorporate sophisticated analytics and purchase order management tools, while others incorporate some listing functionality, repricers, accounting software integration and shipping rate optimization tools. Also, not all marketplaces can be handled by each inventory and order management tool today. Careful due diligence on such centrally critical software is necessary for the individual business owner.

Ask each company:

• What’s included and what’s not?
• How much automation of which steps can the software do?
• How much flexibility do you have to roll into or out of the software? How long is the on-boarding process, and what “house-in-order” steps are required of you to get started?

Multichannel Selling Solutions

For a seller looking to build and house its listing data in one place, as well as to coordinate inventory across multiple marketplaces, the multichannel sales providers offer a suitable solution.

Key Issues to Consider

While the combined use of a listing solution and an inventory and order management solution may be appropriate for some sellers, other sellers solve the listing-inventory-order issue using a single solution. For sellers using this second option, the companies below offer support to multi-channel sellers, getting their listings and inventory organized and pushed out to various sales channels.

Amazon Shipping Solutions

While many Amazon sellers are 100% FBA sellers, using Amazon’s UPS Ground program for inbound shipping to Amazon’s fulfillment centers, anything beyond that model will require shopping for shipping solutions.

Key Issues to Consider

Many Amazon sellers are 100% FBA sellers and use Amazon’s UPS Ground program for inbound shipping to Amazon’s fulfillment centers. If you want to use anything beyond that, it will require shopping for shipping solutions.

Amazon Third-Party Logistics (3PL) Solutions

Do you pride yourself on moving into bigger warehouses every couple of years, all because your business keeps growing? Are you spending more and more of your time managing your warehouse (staff, equipment, operations), rather than building your business? You probably didn’t become an entrepreneur to become an expert on the intricacies of managing a warehouse.

Key Issues to Consider

While competitively-priced 3PLs can be more expensive than the out-of-pocket costs of running your own warehouse, your most precious asset is your time to spend on building your business. Be prepared to spend a little more on warehousing through a 3PL in order to free yourself up from all of the headaches a warehouse often brings a small business owner.

Not all 3PLs are equally experienced at FBA prep, poly bagging, bundling and kitting. Do your research carefully, and talk with case study clients that the 3PL provides. Also, expect some transition period up front as you train the 3PL employees on exactly the process you want for your order processing.