E-commerce warehouse management has become the new buzzword in the logistics industry, and for a good reason – it’s the next logical step in e-commerce fulfillment. That’s where this guide comes in, laying out an A to Z list of everything you need to know to get your e-commerce warehouse management working smoothly.

E-commerce and Warehousing

Before beginning any discussion about what an e-commerce warehouse should look like or where it should be located, keep in mind that there is no one-size-fits-all solution. You and your business are unique, so your warehouse layout and location will vary depending on several factors. Some companies (like large, high-volume retailers) benefit from warehouse locations right outside major metropolitan areas.

Smaller sellers may find more success locating their warehouses in smaller towns away from city centers. Whichever you choose, here are some considerations to think about when planning out your e-commerce warehousing strategy

What is E-commerce Warehouse Management?

This is where order picking and packing happen. If you’re selling products through an e-commerce store, setting up a warehouse management system (WMS) is essential. These are designed specifically for e-tailers, so they can track orders, manage inventory and help you coordinate your fulfillment process.

This will save you time and money by streamlining your operation and ensuring that your supply chain runs as smoothly as possible. Here’s a closer look at how a WMS works in real life.

Benefits of E-commerce Warehouse Management

• Better Inventory Management
• Reduced Costs
• Better Order Accuracy
• Improved space utilization and lower operating costs
• Inventory Visibility
• Effective Labor
• Traceable Materials
• Optimized Supply Chain
• Internal Automation Benefit
• Ongoing Improvement

Better Inventory Management

The size and scope of an e-commerce warehouse depend on several factors, including Whether or not inventory is stored in multiple locations;

Reduced Costs

One of the significant advantages of using a warehouse for e-commerce is that you won’t be paying for retail store space. Since warehouse stores typically have a higher volume of products and lower cost per square foot, you’ll be able to save quite a bit by using such spaces as opposed to retail stores.

It’s also easy to cut costs when shipping using common sense methods such as working directly with UPS or choosing less expensive shipping companies like FedEx.

Better Order Accuracy

Emphasize pick accuracy. If a customer places an order, they expect it to show up quickly and without mistakes. With better pick accuracy, you’ll have fewer returns and cancellations, fewer frustrated customers—and more repeat business. Here’s what you can do to achieve higher-order accuracy

Optimized Space and Lower Operating Expenses

Having a proper warehouse layout allows you to store and optimize every square inch of space in your e-commerce warehouse. Items will be kept closest to the point where they are needed for the fastest pick-up or delivery. You can lower your operating expenses by saving on labor, rent, and equipment.

Your optimized storage system will also allow you more control over inventory management throughout the supply chain. Reduce cost and make life easier with one customized design!

Inventory Visibility

Easy access to inventory will reduce needless stress and wasted time by allowing you to make well-informed decisions. Ensuring your e-commerce warehouse layout has good visibility throughout makes your job easier and can increase throughput, productivity, and efficiency.

Everyone in your organization must understand how picking works and who is responsible for it. Ensuring everyone knows what product needs picking when it needs selection, what products have already been determined, and where they are located will go a long way toward increasing efficiency.

Effective Labor

Space is limited in an e-commerce warehouse, and effective labor is critical. Think about where you want your employees to perform which tasks. Provide workers with adequate tools and materials in every area.

Traceable Materials

The E-commerce warehouse layout ensures everything is in place and nothing goes missing or wrong. This includes tracking down every product in stock, ensuring that it has been manufactured according to your standards, and performing quality checks at every step of production.

Optimized Supply Chain

An optimized supply chain is a long-term investment that can help your business flourish. It’s also one of those things where the benefits are easy to see but difficult to accomplish. Here, we’ll go over how you can get started with an optimized supply chain and what steps you need to take for it to become an integral part of your business. This is going to be a long guide.

Internal Automation Benefit

The most significant cost savings are eliminating manual tasks, such as picking and packaging. Automation will also ensure consistent delivery times; you’ll be able to guarantee next-day shipping in 90 percent of cases, for example. Shippingwire or Courier One are examples of third-party logistics companies that can help you achieve this.

Ongoing Improvement

Change is a constant in today’s business world. Adapting and developing warehouse processes and procedures in response to change are critical factors in creating an efficient, productive workplace. Ongoing improvement is often regarded as one of three main aspects of lean manufacturing (alongside ‘value stream mapping’ and ‘building a culture of improvement’). As such, it enables organizations to constantly monitor their progress towards continuous improvement by reviewing performance data.

How to Implement E-commerce Warehouse Management with the Right Approach

Running an e-commerce business involves several different factors and considerations, including, but not limited to, customer service and inventory. For example, your customers must have a fast and convenient shopping experience. To do so, you will need both a central warehouse and local warehouses in each region that offer shipping methods and delivery times. With over 1 billion people shopping online yearly, your customer base will continue to grow.

Method of using the E-commerce Warehouse Management System

As an entrepreneur, you have limited time and money. Spend your resources wisely. Regarding warehouse management systems, don’t spend $100 on a video game; spend $500 on an e-commerce warehouse management system that can generate a return on investment far exceeding your initial expenditure. The keys are knowing how and where to invest.

Best Practices for Efficient E-commerce Warehouse Management

Now that you’ve designed your warehouse for e-commerce operation, it’s time to create a list of best practices for its proper management. Create a checklist for store inventory, picking and packaging activities, and merchandise presentation.

This to-do list will enable you to monitor your warehouse performance and ensure that everyone working there follows proper procedures.

Managing Multiple Warehouses

Maintaining your e-commerce warehouse can be difficult and take time out of your schedule. It’s hard to keep everything organized when working with hundreds of products simultaneously.

It’s easy for things to get mixed up and for mistakes and delays to appear, but there are a few ways you can manage multiple warehouses more efficiently.

Easy Warehouse Management for E-commerce Sellers

It’s surprising how many e-commerce sellers have difficulty managing their warehouses. Most of them don’t know where they are heading or what they need to do to manage their warehouses effectively.

As a result, they make wrong decisions, negatively affecting their bottom lines. To help you out, here is an A-Z guide on managing an e-commerce warehouse efficiently.

FAQs

What facilities do I need to maximize efficiency?

Start with an e-commerce warehouse layout strategically placed close to your customers and away from large cities. Having your warehouse located close by will minimize costs since you won’t have to pay for the transportation of goods and products. But be careful: too close of proximity can make things more expensive for you due to staffing needs. Choose a location with enough space; underutilized warehouse facilities lead to increased costs.

What kind of workplace layout will work best for me?

Decide what kind of workplace layout will work best for you. Will you have a physical warehouse, or do you plan on using shipping carriers like UPS and FedEx? Do you need your workers based out of one location, or can they be distributed across multiple areas? If you’re using shipping carriers, your warehouse must be located as close as possible to their hubs. How about employees?

How should I optimize my warehouse for e-commerce operations?

The first things that come to mind are probably labor costs, picking and packing efficiency, and loading dock locations. But let’s look at some of these factors and how they can impact your bottom line.

How much storage do I need?

Sometimes, an e-commerce business’s warehouse can be one of its most valuable assets. Without a warehouse, it would be impossible for merchants to receive and process orders on time. Warehousing is an essential part of any successful e-commerce business model – but how much storage do you need? Determining how much space you need depends on several factors, including

Conclusion

When running a business, no matter what industry, ensuring your warehouse is set up correctly is essential. Your warehouse layout will significantly impact how efficient your business is and if it can keep up with demand as time goes on. Take these tips into account when setting up an e-commerce site, and you should be able to run an effective business quickly and easily.