Digitalization and automation are more than ever a prerequisite for success within SMEs. In fact, medium and small trading companies cannot do without an optimal approach to, among other things, the flow of goods and inventory management. Solution Marketer Chris Spaander from Exact for Trade explains why, partly based on the results of the Exact Barometer 2023.
The Exact SME Barometer. Sounds interesting, but what exactly is it? Spaander explains: “It is a study that we at Exact have carried out every two years by an independent research agency. This involves looking at the state of SMEs in general, but also at various sectors individually, such as trade, business services and construction/production. You should see it as the thermometer for SMEs in which issues are discussed such as ‘how are wholesalers and e-commerce companies doing, what do entrepreneurs dream of and what keeps them awake at night?’ For us at Exact, it is of course very important and valuable to know what is going on in the market so that we can provide great solutions with our software.”
No surprise
Or Spaander had expected that the 2023 SME Barometer would show that as many as 41% of trading companies in the Netherlands are struggling to meet rising customer expectations? “Well, what you see is that more and more smaller orders are coming in from consumers, but smaller orders are also being placed in B-to-B traffic. Customers therefore place more frequent, but smaller orders. If you are not careful, your company will have to work even harder for the same turnover. The motto is therefore to work smarter instead of harder. This can be done by digitizing and automating the processes in the warehouse, during delivery, during sales and so on. It is advisable to stop unnecessary manual work and focus on exceptions.” Exact focuses on this with Exact Online Trade. Process automation was recently launched in the new Premium edition. Spaander: “Customer expectations are high these days anyway. ‘Next-day delivery’ is often expected and as a company you must respond to this, both in the consumer and business markets. That is a trend that has already started and in that respect the figure of 41 percent does not surprise me.”
Tight margins
The most striking shift in the SME barometer is the rapidly growing challenge in the field of efficient inventory management. In 2021, this was a top-3 challenge for 19%. Now that figure has more than doubled to 42%. Spaander has an explanation for this: “The previous research was conducted in 2021, at the beginning of the corona crisis. There were already supply problems at that time. People have therefore become aware of the fact that there is a weakness there and that they need to be more aware and smarter about efficient inventory management. That subject simply moved up the list.”
To improve margins, the sector (39%) mainly focuses on negotiating with suppliers. As a Solution Marketer, Spaander also has a view on this: “Negotiation will always exist and you should definitely do it. But when you want to improve your margin, you can also look at your own processes. If your webshop and warehouse are not properly digitized, your margin will come under pressure. If you work with a warehouse management system or an inventory management app, you have much more control. This is because you can set all kinds of things, for example a logical route through the warehouse and pick multiple orders at the same time. This way you can make your process more efficient, you will spend less time per order and your margin will therefore be higher.”
Smart ERP package
Whether it concerns challenges in the field of efficient inventory management or dealing with demanding customers: according to Spaander, these are all issues that can easily be overcome if you work with a smart ERP package from Exact: “For example, if you want to tackle your inventory management We have very nice apps for this to further automate this and ensure that you always know what you have in stock, so that when an order comes in you can be sure that it can actually be delivered. Especially when it comes to a promised ‘next day delivery’.”
Exact believes it is important that the software grows with customers. For example, the Premium edition of Exact Online Handel makes it possible to work with built-in, customizable Power BI dashboards. This allows you to see exactly how much turnover has been generated per item or which customers purchase the most. ‘This means even more and better insight into the business.’
Because that is of course what you want: optimal insight, so that you always have the right quantities in stock. And you can deliver on time. Exactly as expected and even better: exceeding that expectation. And also having exactly the right quantities in stock, at the right time. And certainly not too much stock because this costs you money and also not too little stock because this costs your customers. You also want to know exactly what stock you have. You want to have the correct quantities on your site or portal and the sales department (internal and external) must be sure of the stock and must therefore be able to rely on the system. This way you want to answer the customer question with certainty. Some people say, ‘yeah, the screen says we have this, but I’m not sure.’ That sounds uncertain. You want a system with which you can simply say: ‘we have what you are looking for in stock’. Then you speak with confidence. That is commercially attractive. It gives the seller self-confidence. And don’t forget: the seller – and also your site – are your business card!
This article was produced in collaboration with Exact
Text: BBP Media | Image: Exact