Why is it the Right Time to Build a Smart Inventory with Microsoft Dynamics 365 Inventory Management Application?

The present-day demands are changing continuously creating immense pressure on retailers. The consumers have become more aware of the product prices and they don’t shy away from trying out the ecommerce mode of shopping over visiting the physical store. The COVID19 situation has forced people to switch to the online mode of shopping which again pressurises the traditional supply chain management systems. Quality products, shorter delivery times and user convenience have become synonymous to delightful customer experience.

In this time, retailers can benefit from the technology solutions such as Microsoft Dynamics 365 inventory management application to digitise their current processes and reel in profit. With the requirement of quick delivery, the customers are looking for personalised services. For meeting these specific needs, you need to deploy two components which are CRM and ERP. CRM will help you retain the element of personalisation and with ERP you can imbibe agility in the processes and can ensure quick delivery of quality products. In this post, I will shed some light on how Microsoft Dynamics is the product you need to invest in to cater to this complex requirement. But before that, let’s understand the challenges

Challenges the Retail Sector is Faced With

Many trends are shaking up the retail and supply chain landscape other than the one mentioned above. I have mentioned the most important ones –

• The customer is powerful

The shopping patterns are revolutionised to a great extent. The consumer now governs the entire purchasing scenario which paints quite a different picture when compared with the initial times. The major change here is that the customer can now directly contact the manufacturer for any product/service leaving the product distributors behind. Also, consumers have become vocal about any product/service on social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. They absorb information about different products from numerous channels and base their purchasing decision on the same.

• The inventory management has become trickier

Manufacturers prefer to have separate inventories for their online stores and physical stores. This approach results into many challenges. Also, there are many products such as edibles or clothes which have shorter shelf lives. These last mainly for a single season and consumers lose interest in them very quickly. The inventory management of products with shorter life cycle is a tricky endeavour.

Respond to these Trends Quickly to Strengthen your Position in the Market

The secret to overcome the challenges mentioned is the sheer adaptability. The foundation of flexibility remains in utilising the power of IT. Making the business models digital ready by investing in products which are a combination of CRM and ERP empowers you to survive and thrive. With ERP, you can ace the internal aspects of a supply chain such as accounting, finances, logistic processes and inventory management. CRM enables you to establish fruitful and long-lasting relationships with the clients.

With Microsoft Dynamics 365 for inventory management, you can build a smart inventory. Using this application, you have a complete overview of the entire purchasing process. And, therefore, you immediately come to know whenever any product from your physical store’s inventory or online store’s inventory will become out of stock. If the product for which the online order is placed is present in a physical store’s inventory, then the inventory can be quickly assigned to an online channel.

With this inventory management solution, you can ensure that the employees managing the inventory for physical as well as the online stores have full information about the stock in both places. With this, you know optimal levels for your inventory and the correct time to replenish it. There are still many companies that manage their inventory over an Excel spreadsheet and by doing this they double up their work and minus the efficiency.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 for inventory management allows you to constantly monitor the check-in and storage volumes in the e-commerce inventory or any physical store’s warehouse. With this visibility, you can easily decide if any inventory item needs to be discarded or sold at discount prices. Furthermore, this feature makes your position strong in the market, because you will never have to say NO to any of your customers’ demands.

The Ending Note

The whole world is changing at a quick pace. Where it previously seemed impossible for the traditional retailers to maintain footfall in their stores, it has not remained that difficult. With the correct business applications and infrastructure at place, you can utilise it to attract customers and build long lasting relationships with them.

The whole suite of Microsoft Dynamics modules enables you to gain a competitive business edge. To gain further understanding of each of these and identify which will automate your regular business processes, get in touch with US! Reach us on 1300 EXIGOTECH (394 468) or email us at . Let’s gear up for a better technologically enabled tomorrow!

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