FBA Inventory VA

Fulfillment by Amazon, or FBA, can be a great tool for growing your Amazon business. After all, it integrates your sales into Amazon’s top-tier fulfillment process, which can help lighten your load while optimizing operational efficiency at the same time. However, in order to truly maximize the benefits of FBA, you will have to give it proper attention. The problem is that FBA and dropship management, which may be more familiar to you, is very different. An FBA inventory management virtual assistant can give you the specialized help you need for maximizing what you can get out of FBA.

An FBA inventory virtual assistant can make sure that your product stocks with Amazon are at a healthy level. This includes noting down any discrepancies between your listed outbound products versus the products Amazon acknowledged receipt of. They can also make sure that your store is always compliant with all of FBA’s requirements for inbound products in order to minimize any issues.

Any FBA inventory management specialist can help you with this, whether it be a local employee or a virtual assistant (VA). A VA, however, is a more bang-for-buck solution, as they do all the same things with lower associated costs. You won’t need to pay for things like office equipment or insurance, for example, when you hire a VA. Not only that but hiring a VA will also give you access to a wider pool of talent, as you won’t be geographically restrained to a small area.

While it may seem that an FBA inventory virtual assistant will only need to be on top of a few things, they actually have to oversee many different tasks, such as:

Complying with FBA product preparation requirements

To continue functioning efficiently, Amazon needs accurate information from FBA sellers and implements extensive guidelines for merchants to get this. Your FBA inventory VA can take care of interpreting these guidelines, keeping track of any changes, and, of course, ensuring compliance. From inputting details on your FBA account to packaging to creating proper labels, your FBA inventory VA can take care of all of these.

Noting down and flagging any discrepancies between outbound forms and Amazon’s inbound acknowledgment

While Amazon will take care of the nitty-gritty of order fulfillment for you if you’re on the FBA program, getting your products to Amazon and making sure they actually get them is still up to you. Your FBA VA can keep track of your outbound inventory and make sure that Amazon gets everything. If ever there’s a discrepancy, they can also investigate the cause for you.

Tracking and replenishing stock levels

Amazon has some pretty handy inventory management tools in seller central, but they will never be able to give you a complete picture of your entire inventory process. Your supplier info, for example, as well as restock timing, are all under your power. An FBA VA can keep track of these important data for you and notify you when stocks are low.

Preparing inventory movement reports

Product movements will tend to create patterns. Unfortunately, these patterns can be hard to figure out if you don’t keep a close eye on your inventory reports. Your FBA VA can help you monitor and make sense of these patterns by organizing your inventory data for you. If you hire a seasoned FBA VA, they can even help you analyze this data to create your forecast.

These are just some of the qualities you have to look for in an FBA VA:

Organized

An FBA inventory VA may have to manage information across many different spreadsheets, systems, or platforms. They must have a way to keep all these files and data points organized in a clear, understandable manner.

Analytical

Identifying trends is extremely important in stock management. Doing this allows you to mitigate any issues and keep abreast of your stock levels. Your FBA inventory VA should have a good eye for catching trends and patterns so that they can always keep your inventory healthy.

Strong communicator

Your FBA VA will have to work with you and the rest of your team, as well as interact with Amazon, to do their job well. This is why they need to be able to write and speak well.

Hiring an FBA inventory virtual assistant can free up so much of your time and mind space so you can concentrate on growing your business. However, the idea of going out to the vast sea of the internet to look for a single VA can feel daunting. Luckily, companies like 20four7VA exist to help you out.

VA companies like 20four7VA can help you identify your needs, and will handle sifting through candidates for you. All you’ll have to do is interview a shortlist of qualified applicants, and then you can go on and pick the best VA for you. 20four7VA can even help you onboard your VA and monitor them so that you’re never left floundering. To start, all you have to do is schedule an informative Business Growth Session.