Inventory Management VA

Managing your store’s inventory can be a pain. Even if you have a simple order fulfillment system, keeping track of your products is still time-consuming. Plus, if you have hundreds or even thousands of products, having no solid process makes your business prone to things being overlooked. This becomes even more problematic if you’re using complex systems involving dropshipping and multiple warehousing. Because of all the work involved in managing an online retail business, hiring an inventory management specialist is such a crucial part of managing a growing eCommerce store.

An inventory specialist can keep track and make sense of your entire product-keeping system so that you don’t lose out on sales by having products out of stock. They are basically your inventory control manager; they not only keep track of the numbers, but they also think of ways to make your product movement and inventory tracking much more efficient.

You don’t need to hire a physical employee to take care of this for you. After all, physical employees mean more office overheads and a talent pool limited to your geographical area. What you can do is look for an inventory control virtual assistant (VA) instead. Not only can a VA do all of the usual inventory specialist tasks for you with less associated costs, but you can also search from a much wider pool of candidates. This gives you better odds of finding the perfect fit.

Your inventory management virtual assistant can handle all tasks related to keeping your stocks at a healthy level. These tasks include:

• Tracking lead time

Inventory management VAs keep track of the time it takes from ordering the products to when they can be available in your store. This minimizes warehouse costs because you will no longer make the mistake of overstocking. Plus, it also ensures that your fast-moving products don’t go out of stock.

• Forecasting sales velocity

Your VA can help you forecast how fast your products are going to sell so that they can order an adequate amount to refill stocks before they run out.

• Checking inbound inventory

An inventory management VA doesn’t just keep track of products in the warehouse, they also check whatever’s on the way, so that your company doesn’t accumulate too many products.

• Making sure stocks listed on the page match reality

Inventory management VAs can keep track of the stocks listed on your eCommerce pages, and make sure that everything is accurate. This helps you ensure that your customers aren’t nastily surprised by sudden out-of-stocks. It also makes it easier for you to keep track of your stock, as now you won’t have to worry about wondering which data is correct.

• Handling stock ordering

Your inventory management VA can handle ordering products from vendors for you, including negotiating prices.

• Maintaining safety stock

There are times when sales velocity is too unpredictable. Your VA can mitigate this by maintaining a level of safety stock, which helps prevent stocks from zeroing out.

• Creating and submitting regular inventory reports

Since they handle such a central part of your business, inventory management VAs must be able to create regular reports for transparency and possible additional analysis.

Your inventory management virtual assistant must be sharp and have the necessary skills to do their job. When hiring an inventory management VA, look for skills such as:

• Excellent written oral and interpersonal communication skills 

Your inventory management VA often acts as your company’s representative to suppliers. They do the ordering and price negotiation, so they should be able to maintain a good working relationship with them. They should also be able to communicate clearly with the rest of your team. Therefore, it is essential that they have outstanding communication skills.

• Strong in mathematics

Your inventory management VA basically looks at numbers all day, so they should be quite comfortable working with numbers. If they have strong mathematical skills, they can work faster and with less error.

• Organized and detailed

Since they have to deal with a lot of records, inventory management VAs must be highly meticulous and able to file data in a systematic manner that can be easily understood by the rest of the team.

There are many benefits to hiring an inventory management virtual assistant, but sometimes it can feel a little daunting to start the hiring process especially if you have zero experience with remote staffing. The benefit of a wider talent pool also means having to go through more resumes. If you have mostly hired physical employees, hiring your first VA may be a bit confusing. VA companies like 20four7VA can help you with this.

After getting into a no-obligation Business Growth Session with one of 20four7VA’s Growth Specialists, the company can look for the most qualified applicants for the job. All you have to do is interview the shortlisted candidates for the best fit for you. After that, 20four7VA will also help you onboard and monitor your VA’s performance, so that you’re always sure that you’re getting the best service.