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The Key Features That Every Warehouse Management System Should Have
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On June 20, 2023 by Josh Arrowsmith
Explore more: Experiences & Industry Insights | Case Studies | Testimonials
Whether you’re a managing your eCommerce business in-house or are seeking to outsource your fulfilment for the first time and are in the process of evaluating potential 3PL operations, it’s crucial you have the right Warehouse Management System (WMS) to provide you with the key insights to help manage and scale your business operations.
A WMS is not just a software tool, it’s the backbone of an efficient and effective logistics operation, and what organisations depend on when it comes to tracking and measuring key aspects and activities of a warehouse operation, ensuring data-driven decision making.
In this article, we discuss the key features that a fully functional WMS should have and suggest useful questions to ask when evaluating a WMS system or 3PL operation.
Having 24/7 access to your WMS on either mobile, tablet or desktop provides you with unprecedented control to every aspect of your inventory management. A fully functional WMS should provide you with live tracking updates, ensuring you always know about current stock levels, goods in confirmation, pick bay updates, and long-term storage. Creating stock level alerts ensures you’ll always be aware when your most popular items are in low supply, and you can even reserve stock in preparation for its destruction.
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An optimal WMS should integrate with all the key online selling platforms such as Amazon, Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, and Wix, ensuring smooth integration and extracting all order information from your platform giving you full visibility of your entire order fulfilment process.
A WMS should also be connected to the key carriers for both domestic and international fulfilment, streamlining the entire shipping process. Being able to manage all your online store information centrally within one platform will save you time and effort.
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A WMS should have the functionality that allows for the automatic logging of orders placed within the system, allowing for the smooth management, tracking, and real-time status updates. You gain the ability to accept, hold, amend, track, and/or remove orders in just a few clicks.
Adjustments like prioritising certain orders or adding personalised messages for delivery become straight forward, plus with a complete order history, you have a bird’s-eye view of all previous and existing orders, helping you monitor performance and identify areas for improvement.
Keeping orders organised and ensuring timely delivery are critical factors as you bid to gain a customer’s satisfaction.
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*Never trust a 3PL that says 99.9% and has no data to back this up. It is nonsense.*
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Returns. The inevitability no eCommerce business can shy away from. And nor they should. Handling them effectively is vital for customer satisfaction and cost management. A reliable WMS should simplify the process by immediately logging, managing, and processing returns in real-time. From notifying the initial return request to receiving the return at the warehouse and determining whether the item should be refunded, exchanged, or destroyed, the returns portal ensures a seamless flow. Moreover, from reviewing the data and reporting on returns you gain valuable intel and spot trends that will support future product decisions, allowing for the continuous optimisation of your product management.
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Tenevo is Finishing Line’s purpose-built, cloud-based WMS. Our Team of developers have ensured that Tenevo offers all the conventional aspects of a WMS and more. From providing real-time visibility into orders and returns to allowing hands-on inventory management, Tenevo empowers our customers and allows them to make informed decisions.
Tenevo’s store management features, including easy returns, customer profiles, product control, and resolution centre capabilities, make managing your eCommerce fulfilment requirements as pain-free as possible.
When it comes to scaling up your fulfilment operations and meeting the challenges of the eCommerce sector, a comprehensive warehouse management system like Tenevo is indispensable. From inventory tracking and management to seamless integrations, order management, returns portal tracking, and more, the right WMS will provide you with the foundations for a successful enterprise. With the right system in place, you’ll unlock new levels of efficiency, accuracy, and customer satisfaction in your supply chain operations.
At Finishing Line, our aim is to provide key information on all developments that occur within the supply chain and logistics industry, keeping you up to date on all advancements surrounding the market, how your eCommerce business could benefit from outsourcing 3PL supply chain solutions, and everything else you should be aware of in this competitive climate.
Speak to us today to gain insights on how we can help support your eCommerce operation.
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Here at Finishing Line, our ambition is to inform and educate eCommerce businesses about the countless benefits that a Warehouse Management System can provide for your company’s fulfilment operations. By using Tenevo, Finishing Line’s purpose-built, cloud-based WMS, our platform can seamlessly integrate with your online store, and handle all aspects of your supply chain with ease.
If this article has been a useful read on how Finishing Line can offer these solutions for your business, sign up to our email newsletter below to gain more industry insights that we at Finishing Line can provide you, with 35+ years of experience. Check out our services; Amazon FBA, Contract Packing UK, ecommerce Fulfilment Solutions, Pick & Pack Services, Returns Handling, or Warehousing & Logistics.
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Head of Commercial & Innovation