What Is The Best Method For Physically Counting Inventory?

Is counting inventory a disruption to your business? Does it always take you longer than expected? If so, let’s take a look below at the best method of physically counting inventory.

As a business owner, it is critical to monitor stock movement. However, it is not just enough to monitor stock. It has to be done accurately and with purpose.

This is why you are probably looking for the best method for physical inventory counting. Unfortunately, there is no single answer.

In order to come up with the best method, several factors have to be taken into consideration. They include:

  • Type of physical inventory
  • Approach
  • Count strategy
  • Separation
  • Discrepancies

Consider The Type Of Physical Inventory

The nature of the physical inventory definitely influences what the perfect counting method is going to be. For example, counting bulk warehouse material is not like counting lines in a retail store.

Even though precision counting is necessary for both, it will present different challenges. As the business owner, you want to look for counting methods that best fit your business model.

Which is also why there is no single answer to the question of what the best inventory counting strategy will be.

Use An Organised Approach

A big part of a successful stock or inventory count is using an organised approach. This means taking into account factors like the timeline, the number of people involved, and what needs to be recorded with the physical count.

For example, should additional information like expiration dates be recorded as well? When a physical inventory count is not organised from the start, you can expect several issues to surface and complicate the process.

Hence the reason for proper preparation and management before attempting counts. In fact, it is recommended to implement small and more manageable count cycles in between big financial stocktakes.

Use Accurate Counting Tactics

There are several ways to document the counts, but the more convenient and accurate the better. You want tactics that can easily adapt to the situation, like using scanners and other inventory counting technology.

These make it much easier to maintain accuracy, as well as more control. More importantly, the right technology makes processing and recording the counts more user-friendly.

This saves time, energy, and it leads to a more accurate count. It is amazing what the right tools can do, especially when the business model offers an extensive range of products.

Keep Inventory Separate

For some business models, physical inventory counts can present some big challenges. For instance, grocery retailers stock such an extensive variety of products, keeping track of everything can be complex enough.

Add the finer details like perishable and non-perishable sections, and the situation only gets more complicated. This is why inventory should be sorted and separated accordingly.

This involves staying on top of inventory that moves during business hours and accounting for how sales influence the overall count at the end of the day.

Address Any Discrepancies As Quickly As Possible

When you are pressured to get through the physical inventory count, it is easy to leave discrepancies for later. For instance, when physical counts do not match the numbers on the system, address it as quickly as possible.

Be as meticulous as possible in terms of getting accurate counts from the start, instead of getting results that are bound to put a dent in the finances of the business.

In Conclusion

Whether business owners want to admit it or not, physical inventory counts will only serve a positive purpose. Yes, they can be tedious and time-consuming.

However, in addition to establishing whether the business is indeed profitable, it provides a lot of other useful information. It is just a matter of going into the counting process prepared with the right tactics and tools.

Inventory control systems come with many benefits for your e-commerce and retail businesses. With a host of inventory control software solutions on the market, choosing the best product isn’t easy.

If you would like to know more about the best stocktaking solutions and how the right set of software and point of sale systems could help you, give us a call.

Our team would be happy to discuss your needs and to help you build new, more efficient workflows that will support the best operation of your warehouse or store.

We have the right tools for companies of all sizes and will work to accommodate your business, supplying you with technologies that are tailored to suit your business to help improve your efficiency and accountability.

We are the market leader when it comes to the development of customised and packaged solutions.

This includes Inventory Management, Portable Barcode Readers, Supply Chain Management, Time and Attendance and Asset Tracking to name but a few.

Please call us today on 03 9578 7600 or 1800 061 642 or contact us through our website.