The holiday season is fast approaching. This means more shoppers and higher inventory turnover. Inventory turnover is the number of times you replenish your stock throughout the year. For instance, if you replenish your inventory 10 times in a year, your turnover rate is approximately 37 days. The average Amazon store turnover rate is 1-2 months. In order to keep enough for Q4 and the holiday season, here are seven ways to manage your inventory turnover.

1. Assess and Fine Tune Your Data in Amazon

Use inventory forecasting to assess how much stock you need, and when you should order more stock. Look at the data for slow selling items and overstock. Your forecast should include historical sales data, anticipated demand, stockouts, sales spikes and marketing plans.

2. Set Aside Buffer Stock

This doesn’t mean over order; it just means have extra stock set aside in case you sell more than projected. Q4 often comes with shipping delays and fierce competition. Keep a 30-45 day buffer just in case. Don’t wait until your buffer runs out before restocking.

3. Automation

There are a lot of processes that can be automated for your business and can help it run smoother over time as well. Automate repetitive processes such as ordering, inventory tracking and forecasting. There are spreadsheets and software available for these tasks. Inventory management software will help you standardize purchase order templates and reduce manual processes.

4. Inventory Minded Marketing

When inventory and marketing teams don’t communicate, problems happen. Adjust your strategies so these two teams work together to sell off inventory. This could look like inventory reports being sent to marketing before they create ads. Having this communication allows the two teams to work together to sell overstocked and slow selling merchandise.

5. Optimize Listings and Ads

Optimize your product listings for this time of year. It is a popular holiday for shopping so be sure to include holiday themed photos and keywords. Using SEO to optimize your listings is a great way for search engines to find you. Get your promo ads out early to ensure your products rank before everyone else’s.

6. Move Slow Selling Inventory

A lot of times retail stores tend to overstock.  Handle this inventory through sales and promotional offers to get it moving. This could be done a variety of ways. Bundle slow sellers with top sellers and offer discounts. Try selling on another e-commerce platform. Liquidate inventory that is no longer worth time and effort to store.

7. Don’t Put All Your Eggs in One Basket

Basically, this means don’t have everything shipped in the same container or format. Remember the 2021 Suez Canal fiasco? A lot of businesses were affected by delayed merchandise.  Be sure to have some items arrive by plane or ground, as well as by ship.

Implementing these strategies to manage year-end inventory turnover through the holiday season will save you money and time. Checking data, optimizing listings and automating certain tasks will help you control your inventory. Learn more tips about selling online at Wizards of Ecom.