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How electronic inventory tracking can help you manage your business more effectively

To successfully manage your business you need to be in control of it , and to be in control you need to know exactly what’s happening. It’s not enough to have a vague sense of what works or doesn't work.

Tracking your inventory electronically can provide you with the statistics you need to make informed decisions about how to manage your store and how to measure the results of those decisions.

Your software, whether you’re using a full practice management software or inventory specific software, comes with a set of reports built in to give you this information.

Track --> Test --> Implement

If you have software that is tracking frame sales, you should be able to test out a new strategy for a specific period of time, evaluate the results of that test at the end of the test period by asking questions like: Did that promotion result in more sales than the month before?  Did those extra sales equal better profit than a similar period of time?

After you have evaluated the results of the test, use the statistics to decide if the strategy is a good one that you will implement in your dispensary for a longer period of time.

This process by which you can use statistics to evaluate and make decisions about your business is something we refer to as Track, Test & Implement.

If you aren’t sure what reports are available to you, call your software vendor and ask them to walk you through their standard reporting package. Some of the questions you should be able to answer include:

• What brands result in the best profit?
• What overall mix of frames will result in the most profit?
• Does merchandising and placement affect my sales?
• How do sales and promotions affect my profit?
• Can I look at frames sales over time?
• Who is my most successful salesperson?

Again, your software should provide some if not all of these reporting options.  Be sure to contact your provider to find out how they suggest you Track, Test and Implement selling strategies using their built in standard reports.