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Is it Time for a WMS?

Advice from true warehouse experts

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Here are a few other questions to explore: Do your workers waste time looking for inventory? A WMS will track every single item to speed picking and reduce errors that occur with paper-based inventory programs. Product will never be lost again. A WMS will also save money by eliminating manual labor involved when tracking things like expiration dates or bin movements in a spreadsheet. How many inventory turns are you getting and how does that compare to your competitors? Since you're likely using paper-based data at this point, to understand annual turn rate, simply take your average cost of goods sold divided by your ending inventory. To find out how your organization compares to competitors, do a little digging on the internet or go to industry associations such as the Warehousing Education and Research Council (WERC) for help. 3) What do your customers say about you? You think your customers are happy, but how do you know? If your customers tell you your service is poor, or they simply disappear, perhaps it's time for a WMS. Maximizing customer satisfaction leads to increased profitability, increased customer loyalty and repeat sales. Satisfied customers also recommend your business or services to other potential customers. An average business loses 10 percent of its customers annually, according to DestinationCRM.com. Cutting that number in half could significantly boost profits, in part because of the expense required to acquire a new customer. A WMS can help identify those areas in the warehouse impeding exceptional customer service and establish the controls necessary to turn that around. By offering better organization and streamlining warehouse processes, it can enable the business to ship and deliver every order on time (one of the biggest customer complaints). And in this day and age, a customer who isn't receiving notifications regarding the progress of his or her order will be left with a less than stellar impression of your business. There are other questions that could be asked to further define whether or not your organization needs a WMS, particularly ones that relate to company growth and image. For example, here's one that is often overlooked: do your customers and suppliers need to see a well-managed warehouse in order to maintain confidence in your business? For almost every company, the answer is a definite yes. P a t h G u i d e T e c h n o l o g i e s 8 8 8 . 6 2 7 . 9 7 9 7 c l i e n t s e r v i c e s @ p a t h g u i d e . c o m About the Author Eric Allais, President and CEO of Washington-based PathGuide Technologies, Inc., has over 30 years of experience in marketing, product management and sector analysis in the automated data collection industry, including warehouse management practices in wholesale distribution. Contact Eric at eric@pathguide.com.

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