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Optimizing Ecommerce Inventory and Performance in 2024

As technology continues to improve, more and more businesses are turning to automated solutions to manage their inventory. In our latest report, we partnered with Worldwide Business Research, collecting data from 100 SMB Shopify merchants to understand their key challenges and how they plan to implement inventory software and AI to overcome them.

Download the report

Summary

This report uses proprietary data collected via surveys conducted by the WBR Insights research team, comprising 100 ecommerce leaders in the US and Canada. These respondents are exclusively Shopify sellers who handle physical inventory and do not participate in dropshipping.

According to the analysis, adopting user-friendly inventory management systems and integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into business operations will be pivotal strategies for ecommerce businesses in 2024.

About the report

Key trends and observations from the report

According to our research, 83% of SMB Shopify merchants struggle with maintaining synchronized inventory, manufacturing, and accounting data due to operational obstacles. Download the report to learn how embracing user-friendly inventory management systems and incorporating AI into business processes will be essential strategies for ecommerce enterprises in 2024.

How SMBs mitigated rising costs from external factors

Prices have skyrocketed due to inflation, supply chain disruptions, and other events. 73% of businesses are using technology to ease financial pressures. This reflects the significance of digital tools in modern inventory management and signals a rising preference for innovative, tech-driven solutions to tackle conventional business obstacles.

Businesses planning to implement AI into their operations in 2024

Almost all ecommerce merchants are adopting AI to enhance operations. They use AI for customer service, inventory management, marketing, and productivity tracking. AI will break customer communication barriers, improve immediacy, and drive data-driven decision-making while optimizing processes.

Katana Cloud Inventory Software

Getting your products to customers faster

Katana supports your workflows no matter your industry with the features and seamless integrations you need to manage your business how you want.

Inventory management

Get real-time inventory insights of all your items and optimize your inventory levels based on demand.

  • Inventory management
  • Reorder points
  • End-to-end traceability
  • Multilocation support
  • Multichannel inventory
  • Product availability

Purchase management

Issue purchase orders for supplies and materials in Katana that are delivered directly to your warehouse or contract manufacturer.

  • Order management
  • Reorder points
  • Contract manufacturing
  • Flexible unit purchasing
  • Multicurrency
  • Purchasing insights

Sales order management

Consolidate all your online and offline sales channels and data into a single view for total omnichannel support.

  • Sales order management
  • Traceability
  • Partial shipping and invoicing
  • Sales insights
  • Multicurrency
  • E-commerce integrations

Planning and forecasting

Make better data-driven decisions as Katana automates your inventory planning — using historical data to predict future demand.

  • Demand planning and forecasting
  • Flexible inventory control
  • Smart replenishment planning

Production management

Optimize your production and decrease lead times based on your bill of materials and operations data.

  • Real-time planning
  • Shop Floor App
  • Manufacturing costs
  • MTS and MTO workflows
  • BOM and subassemblies
  • Ingredient availability

Cloud accounting

Get your inventory and accounting data in sync to better understand your business’s finances.

  • Accounting integrations
  • Accurate costing
  • Sales order management
  • Katana Insights
  • Inventory management
  • Purchase order management

Warehouse management

Katana’s Warehouse add-on gives you all the information you need to optimize workflows and improve picking routes.

  • Bin locations
  • Traceability
  • Label printing
  • Barcode scanning
  • Stocktake
  • Warehouse app

Get visibility over your sales and stock

Wave goodbye to uncertainty by using Katana Cloud Inventory for total inventory control