Running a business requires a lot of coordination between different departments, such as sales, marketing, accounting, customer services, and logistics. Each team has to perform its designated tasks efficiently and correctly. If any of these entities make a mistake, it can have a ripple effect that may cost the company dearly. This is especially true for enterprises dealing with extensive inventories and complex supply chains.
According to research published by Towards Data Science, companies can lose up to 30% of their annual revenues due to inefficiencies. If this happens, it could lower your revenues, jeopardizing your business’s profits, stability, and future. The data shows how crucial it is for your business to have a solid system that can minimize errors and maximize efficiency. This is where a warehouse management system (WMS) can be your best solution.
What is WMS?
A warehouse management system is an innovative software that helps businesses automate and streamline their operations. WMS software is widely used in different industries, including:
- Retail
- e-commerce
- Manufacturing
- Pharmaceutical
- Food and beverage
- Third-party logistics
- Wholesale distributors
This technology is now seen as a must-have for companies to improve their overall performance. In fact, the global warehouse management system market is forecasted to reach from USD$2.74 billion in 2024 to USD$4.83 billion in 2026 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15.15% during the analysis period. This growing demand is attributed to the various benefits that WMS software offers, which you’ll learn more about below.
How WMS software can help your business grow
Exploring how WMS can help your business grow can give you a better understanding of its true value. Here are some of the ways this technology can benefit your enterprise:
Optimizing inventory management
Did you know that 80% of your business’s profits should come from 20% of your inventory? The practice is known as the Pareto principle or the 80-20 rule. However, some businesses may struggle to achieve this goal if they don’t have an efficient system to manage their inventory. As a consequence, stock-outs, overstocking, and other problems affect your bottom line. You can avoid such issues by implementing WMS technology to optimize your inventory management.
WMS solution can give you real-time visibility into your inventory, which is crucial for making a sound decision. For example, the system can automatically count or monitor your inventory levels and send alerts when stock is running low. This information lets you know when to reorder, prevent stock-outs, and keep your shelves stocked with the right products.
Improving order fulfillment
Fulfillment is one of the cores of your business operation. If you can’t get orders out of doors on time, it’ll significantly impact your customer retention and satisfaction rate. After all, no one wants to wait weeks or months to receive their purchase. In other words, fulfilling orders quickly and efficiently is vital for keeping customers happy and satisfied.
Research shows that around 41% of consumers will likely blame the seller for late deliveries. This will negatively affect your reputation and may even lead to customers switching to your competitors. Of course, you don’t want that to happen. Investing in WMS software can be your best option.
As mentioned earlier, WMS technology can automate and streamline your operations, including your fulfillment process. The system can generate pick tickets, track shipments, and provide real-time updates on order status. Having this information at your fingertips will help you avoid mix-ups and ensure that customer orders are delivered correctly and on time.
Providing better space utilization
It’s easy for your facility to become cluttered and disorganized over time due to the constant incoming and outgoing products. This may lead to problems, such as difficulty finding items and decreased productivity.
You may implement a pallet racking system to keep your products organized, but you can take it a step further by using WMS software. This system can optimize your warehouse layout by analyzing the best utilization of your storage space. Based on the information, it can suggest ways to arrange your facility for maximum efficiency. It can also help for future expansion by considering the necessary changes to your current layout.
Additionally, the WMS solution can maintain product rotation whether you’re practicing the following method:
First in, first out (FIFO)
First expiry, first out (FEFO)
Last in, first out (LIFO)
Product rotation is important to guaranteeing the quality and freshness of your stocks. With WMS software, you can automatically keep track of your product’s shelf life and see to it that they’re always placed in the appropriate locations.
Ensuring compliance
There are many rules and regulations that businesses in certain industries must follow. Non-compliance could lead to hefty fines and other penalties. For example, the food and beverage industry is subject to the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). This law requires businesses to implement strict food safety procedures throughout the supply chain.
WMS technology can take the guesswork out of compliance by providing features, such as tracking and tracing products, monitoring temperatures, and managing recalls. The data it offers can help you identify and correct issues before they become major problems.
Moreover, WMS can generate reports that show your compliance status. These documents can be used as evidence in case of an audit.
Boosting security
Your company contains high-value data assets that you must protect from cyber threats, including your customer’s personal information, financial data, and proprietary business details. A study found that cyber-attacks happen every 39 seconds, and 30,000 websites are hacked daily. If you’re not careful, your business could be the next target.
WMS software can strengthen your warehouse data security in several ways. For example, the system can encrypt data, restrict access to certain users, and create activity logs.
- Data encryption scrambles data to make it unreadable by unauthorized users.
- User authentication requires users to provide credentials, such as a username and password, before accessing the system.
- Activity logs track every user action, making it easy to spot suspicious behavior.
As you can see, WMS software provides several layers of security to protect your data. By implementing this technology, you can rest assured that your information is safe from cybercrimes.
Conclusion
Investing in WMS software is a wise decision for any business, small or large. This technology can be your best option to increase profits and grow your business while maintaining high customer satisfaction.
Now that you know the advantages of WMS software, it’s time to assess your needs and whether this technology is right for your company. If it is, the next step is to find a reputable provider that can offer you a solution that meets your specific requirements. Give your business a competitive edge with the right WMS solution.
