Inventory Management
/ By Karan Mudliar / Blog • Uncategorized/ • • • / 0 Comments

The Basics of Inventory Management: Warehousing, Picking, Packing and Shipping

Small businesses need to understand a simple strategy that concerns establishing coherence between customer demands and the existing supplies. More often than not, startups and even medium-sized enterprises fall short of resources— which in turn sabotages their credibility. While manufacturing is never really an issue with technological innovations at the helm, it is the product distribution that takes a beating.

 

Major issues include inadequacies related to product picking, packing and shipping. In addition to that, certain businesses also find it hard to store their products in an efficient manner. However, if businesses continue worrying about these aspects of inventory management, it becomes hard for them to grow and even outrun the competition. Moreover, delayed shipments can easily kill off the customer satisfaction levels with companies failing to deliver products on time.

 

There are several firms which readily outsource the pick and pack services— in order to save time and even overhead costs. Pick and Pack warehousing is a comparatively newer aspect that combines the essentials of product storage with excellent shipping services. Companies that worry about storing their products in a secured environment are better off hiring 3PL service providers which emphasize on Pick and Pack warehousing. While it easily mitigates the storage constraints, a host of other benefits are also available for businesses to leverage.

 

Meeting Customer Demands

 

Having specialized warehousing services at the helm can help enterprises meet varied customer requirements. Once a business starts blossoming and growing rapidly, it becomes important to stay on track with the persistent user preferences. This is where outsourcing comes in handy, especially by offering excellent Pick and Pack storage and distribution services to the concerned organizations.

 

Fulfilling the Storage Requirements

 

Before we delve any deeper into the basics of Pick and Pack services, it is important to understand the influence of outsourcing in regards to handling the storage needs. Manufacturing industries usually need to ship extensively and having a restricted storage space can actually slow them down. While it is always possible to hire specialized warehousing services, most companies look for cohesive options that can cover multiple bases. Having one logistics company handle the basics of storage, picking, packing and shipping can be the best possible option when the manufacturer is looking to minimize the costs.

 

Efficient, off-site warehousing is one aspect of this cohesive program that allows an enterprise to manage inventory without opting for contract or distribution warehouses. Online warehouse management is also possible. Unlike other warehouses that solely offer storage options, facilities synonymous to the Pick and Pack management believe in dispatching the products, almost instantly. To be exact, enterprises can enjoy the benefits of a dynamic storage system where products aren’t dumped for an eternity but are expedited immediately.

 

Understanding Picking and Packing Better

 

Unlike conventional warehouses that offer storage facilities, managerial flexibilities and a host of other features, enterprises relying on Pick and Pack services are best served when it comes to the holistic catalogue of services. These include a variety of Inbound and Outbound services, dedicated towards amplifying the revenues and serving the customers better.

The best part about using Pick and Pack Distribution is that a shared warehouse can serve the purpose for multiple organizations. The products are then immediately packed and distributed to the concerned customer base. As we could already infer from the discussion, this form of inventory management is affordable and exceedingly cost-effective. With small businesses using Pick and Pack services rather extensively, the popularity seems to be validated.

 

In addition to that, outsourced pick and pack services also assist manufacturers with their inventory solutions. Firstly, the designed warehouses managed by these specialized 3PL service providers are organized and extremely efficient. Apart from that, they offer advanced inventory management solutions like stock replenishment and necessary intimations. As the part of a holistic cycle, these solutions also involve picking up manufactured products from the companies, storing them in bespoke warehouses, packing them accordingly and finally, shipping them across multiple channels.

 

Bottom-Line

 

An inventory-specific business model requires higher levels of cohesion between warehousing, packaging and distribution. While hiring a 3rd party fulfillment service for the specifics is a good option, pick and pack service providers are actually best suited for a retail-specific business. This form of inventory management works wonders for small to medium business owners, thereby helping them save additional costs and efforts.

 

 

Co-packing
/ By Karan Mudliar / Blog • Uncategorized/ • • • / 10 Comments

Essentials of Packaging Design

You have created a superb product. No doubt it will serve the needs of the customer well but it still needs to reach the customer and it must reach him/her in top condition until it is time to use it. This is the primary function of packaging: To keep the product safe and intact until it is time for the customer to use it. However, it is just one of the functions that packaging serves. An effective packing should do a lot more than just keep the product safe. It plays the following roles to name a few.

 

Function – Packaging should be able to protect your product and keep it safe right from the point of manufacturing, throughout the transit, to your customer’s premises until he is ready to use the product.

Attraction – Packaging should be able to attract your potential customers into purchasing your product. The customer should be enticed to pick your product amongst the available options.

Promotion – The packaging should tell what is being offered and exactly what’s inside. Any information that will help the customer to make his purchase decision should be displayed clearly on the packaging.

Differentiation – The packaging should be unique amongst the comparable or similar products. It should be easily differentiable from the other competitive products.

 

Let’s look at some key points to bear in mind while designing the packaging.

 

Keep it Simple: The packaging should make the decision-making process of the customer easier and simple. The customer should be able to identify your product quickly and easily. If you are launching a new product, then the name, brand, description and other vital information should be easy to read and help in attracting customers.

 

Stand out from competition: You need to attract customers. For that your packaging should be different from your competitors. Scour the market and see how your competitor is packing its products. Figure out what innovation can you use in your packaging. The shape, colour, texture, anything can be used to differentiate your packaging from your competitor’s packaging.

 

Use good quality material: Show that you mean business when it comes to caring for your product. Good quality material conveys a premium image. It says that the product is so good that it deserves high quality packing. Besides this, a high quality material ensures that your product is not spoilt during transit or storage.

 

Enhance user convenience: Will it be better in a bottle or a plastic pouch? Hardcover or soft cover? Think from customer’s perspective. What would be easy for him. For example, if it’s ketchup that you are selling, should it be in glass bottle or plastic squeeze bottle? Remember Harpic? The nozzle design helps in reaching under the bowl’s rim. That’s a great design.

 

Describe the product use and abilities: But do not exaggerate. Never overstate the abilities of your product. If the product does not meet it stated capabilities, it will not only turn away existing customers, but will also turn away future customers. Just state the facts and promise the attainable results. If your product is good the word of mouth publicity will do its work and increase your sales.

 

The text should be legible: The text on the packaging should be large enough to be read clearly. It should be printed in contrast so that it’s easy on the eye. Choose the font, size, colour wisely. These not only help pass the information, but can be used to build a brand image. For food and medical products, the ingredients and expiry dates should be very easily locatable and clearly readable. If your product is packaged in a transparent packing and the product itself is carrying this information, the make sure the product is oriented properly so that the information in clearly visible.

 

Be target specific: Identify who is your customer. Who are you selling to? If your answer is everybody, then you need to do more research. Identify the segment of the market that is your target audience. Design the packaging keep that audience in mind. Just as one product does not work for every segment, same packaging will not work for every segment. It could be the material of packaging, the design, or even as simple as colour combination. So, identify your core audience and design your packaging for them.

 

Provide different packaging sizes: Some like to buy in bulk, others like to buy smaller quantities, because they won’t use it regularly, or like to shop frequently. Perhaps they are travelling and prefer carrying smaller packaging. Others don’t like to shop frequently or are cost conscious and like to buy large quantities. Provide various options of packing sizes to your customers. For example, in shampoos it’s always good idea to provide small 10-20 ml bottles up to 200 ml bottles, so that new customers can try your product and the regulars buy larger bottles.

 

Freshen up your packaging: There is no product that will continue to sell forever with same packaging. Customers are finicky. They get bored quickly. They like to see new things. Keep freshening up your product presentation. Use contemporary shapes, designs and colours. Try to freshen up your brand.

 

Packaging is the first touchpoint your customer has with your product or your brand. While its primary purpose is to protect the main product, it is also a great medium of marketing. There is no reason why you can’t be creative and entice the customer with your packaging. You just need to be creative and know what your customers like to see.