Amazon’s Manage Inventory page is where you’ll be able to search, view, and update inventory records of products you sell on Amazon. To access the Manage Inventory page, once you’re logged in to Seller Central, open the Inventory menu then select Manage Inventory.
Within the Manage Inventory page you’ll be able to do the following:
Search for a product: To do this, click the Search box then enter the product’s SKU, title, or other attributes and then click the Search button.
Inventory Filter: You may use the options above the table to either view all products within the inventory, or you may select specific parameters to filter the products you wish only to view.
Sort Inventory: Sort product listings according to the attribute that you will be selecting on top of the inventory table.
Inventory Table Customisation: The Preferences button on the top right of the inventory table is what you need to click should you wish to select the columns you want included, as well as other display options, then press the Save Changes button once you’re happy with the selection.
Update the quantity available: Enter the current quantity within the Qty field next to a product then press Save.
Price change: Likewise, should you wish to change an item’s price, within the Price field next to it, just enter the price and click Save.
Product edit: To the right of a product listing, click the Edit drop-down menu to access additional actions. This includes the product’s image, matching to the lowest price, or closing or deleting the product listing.
Stock Maintenance
So long as you have an active product listing, you should never run out of stock for it. You need to have a process in place to replenish inventory before you’re at the stage where you’re no longer able to fulfill orders.
Maintaining stock inventory depends on how well you forecast your sales at a given period. After which, you will place an order to replenish the inventory so your supplier can deliver the goods before your stock runs out.
Additionally, you can hire a superstar VA who can do this task in your stead. This is a recurring task which is not really an arduous but can be time-consuming. You can use the time this task consumes to focus on more high-valued tasks. Hence, hiring a VA is the smarter thing to do.
Factor in Turn-Around Time
As much as you want your replenishments to come in right away, you have to understand that suppliers need time to process the goods first. To process the goods means to manufacture, pack, and ship them. Because of this, you have to ensure that you factor the turn-around time when ordering replenishments from your suppliers.
It is highly suggested that you order goods earlier enough so the products arrive at your place or at an Amazon Fulfillment Centre before your stock runs out.
Here are factors you need to consider regarding replenishment orders’ turn-around time:
Holidays: There are two ways that holidays can impact your goods’ delivery time. First, during holidays, we see a number of staff taking holiday time offs which could impact the processing of ordered goods. Second, holidays also mean that suppliers get busy with an increased number of orders, which in turn would require them more time than normal to fulfill orders.
Size of Orders: You also have to consider, whether it’s the holidays or just normal days, your order size. Naturally, small sized orders can be fulfilled easier compared to large quantity orders.
Delivery: The supplier’s location should also be factored in when ordering your replenishments. The farther the supplier’s location, the longer the delivery time for your goods.
Customs: If your goods will be coming from another country, then you can be sure that additional time will be added to its delivery from your country’s customs inspection.
FBA Inventory Replenishment
If you are enrolled within the Fulfilment By Amazon (FBA) program, then you can start the replenishment of your inventory within Amazon’s Manage Inventory Page. Here are the steps to do that:
Within the Inventory menu on Seller Central, select Manage Inventory.
Scroll through the product list and search for the product you wish to replenish and tick the checkbox to the left of the product.
Then, open Actions and select Send/Replenish Inventory.
Finally, follow the onscreen instructions to complete the process.
Replenishment Alerts
Replenishment alerts are email notifications when a product within your inventory goes beyond a limit you have specified. The good thing about replenishment alerts is that you do not have to check your inventory every now and then. All you have to do is to set up an alert and then take action whenever you receive the replenishment notification.
Replenishment alerts can be set either through limits on your product units or weeks-of-cover. Here are the steps you need to follow when setting up replenishment alerts:
Within the Inventory menu on Seller Central, select Manage Inventory.
Once the Manage Inventory page appears, check the box of each product you want to set a replenishment alert within the inventory table.
Then, open the Action menu, choose Set Replenishment Alerts, and click Go.
Within the When do you want to be alerted column, expand the Apply to All list and select either When Fulfillable Quantity Reaches (Units) or When Weeks-of-Cover Reaches (Weeks) to set the same replenishment level for all products listed, or you may select the desired unit for each individual product.
Input your preferred alert limit quantity in the Alert Threshold box on top of the column to use the same limit for all items in the list, or enter the desired quantity in the Alert Threshold box for each product individually.
Once you’re happy with your selections, click Save.
Summary
In summary, it is a wise decision to replenish your stocks even before you get to the point when you are no longer able to fully fulfill orders. This is especially important towards Q4 when there is an expected increase in order volume, both from you as a seller, as well as from your suppliers.
As mentioned above, this is not totally a taxing task within your business, but can be quite time-consuming. This is also one of those recurring tasks, hence, a lot of Amazon business owners opt to hire a Virtual Assistant instead to do tasks like this for them.
If you’re keen to learn more, you may visit Global VA Solutions’ website to learn more. They provide top notch service by sourcing, hiring, and training your potential superstar VA.
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