When your business needs a new warehouse management vendor, there are certain qualities that you’ll want to look for to ensure their system will be a great fit for your needs. But how do you know how to pick the right vendor? Consider asking these four important questions before partnering up with a new warehouse management provider.
1. What Kind of Experience Does the Vendor Have With Similar Businesses?
You’ll want to ask potential vendors what kind of experience they have. Have they ever worked with a business in the same industry as yours? Do they understand the specific needs and demands of your particular product?
It’s a good idea to ask about the team that will be assigned to your account, as well. Choosing a vendor that understands the requirements of your industry is important, but you also need to have an idea of how experienced the individual people are that you’ll be working with most.
2. What Can You Expect to Pay for Upgrades and Changes?
Technology advances an exponential pace. Hopefully, your business will grow and expand over time, as well. Growth and development are good things, but it means your warehouse management system will need to grow and develop with you.
This means upfront costs are not the only expenses to consider. Will the vendor require you to pay fees each and every time you need a minor service or update to the system? Will your team have the ability to make any changes, or will everything need to go through the vendor? Understanding fees for these types of actions will allow you to form a more accurate picture of how much a vendor’s system will cost over time.
3. Does the Vendor Offer Various Products to Meet New Needs?
Depending on the direction your business grows in, minor upgrades to existing systems may not be sufficient. How flexible will the vendor be if you company’s needs change? Do they have different tiers of service and support?
Your business may be small and local right now – but in five years, when it’s a large enterprise that handles accounts nationwide, will your warehouse management vendor be capable of scaling up your new needs? How will these types of possible changes affect the cost of your service?
4. Are the Vendor’s Systems Relatively Intuitive and Easy to Understand?
It seems like a small thing, but having a warehouse management system that is straightforward and easy to use is critical. You don’t want to have employees wasting hours of time learning how to use a complicated and confusing system. Ask any potential vendors if their systems include help sections or live chats for support. Are tools easy to find and well-marked? Can you easily analyze data from the system? Keeping things simple will save time and effort.
Following these best practices when looking for a warehouse management vendor can make your life infinitely easier in the future. Making sure your vendor is the right fit for you from the get go will alleviate any undo stress that could come with miscommunication that these steps will help you avoid.
