Let’s get one thing straight: You don’t need to flood your network with more stock.
If you're frequently battling stockouts in some locations and overstocks in others, or losing sales because inventory data is outdated or misleading, the issue isn’t your inventory volume. It’s how well you’re doing inventory optimization.
Leading omnichannel retailers are addressing this by improving inventory visibility, making smarter fulfillment decisions, and leveraging advanced order management. The result? Better inventory optimization and more value extracted from every SKU they already own.
Your Go-To Guide for Smarter Inventory Optimization Strategies
1. Timely Cycle Counts for Accurate Inventory, Always
If your eCommerce says a product is not in stock, but it’s actually on the shelf, or vice versa, you can’t fulfill accurately, and you can’t sell confidently.
The result? Lost sales, delayed orders, and missed chances to use inventory that’s already in your network.
Here’s how to use cycle counts to unlock more sellable stock:
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Find Inventory You Didn’t Know You Had
Cycle counts often uncover products sitting on shelves but marked unavailable online. By correcting these mismatches, you instantly increase available-to-sell inventory, no new stock required.
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Detect and Correct Inventory Discrepancies Early
Regular, store-level cycle counts help you spot inaccuracies before they impact sales. By knowing exactly what’s available at every location, you can fulfill more orders from existing stock without fear of overselling.
Think of cycle counts not as a compliance task, but as a revenue unlock. When your inventory data reflects reality, you sell more, just by knowing what’s truly on the shelf.
Smarter use of your existing stock = Better inventory optimization.
2. Make Your Product Pages Work Like Your Best Sales Associate
If your website is your storefront, your Product Detail Pages (PDPs) are your frontline salespeople. The question is: are they helping customers convert, or making them bounce?
Most PDPs fall short. They show product images and prices, but not what customers actually need to buy with confidence.
Here’s how to turn PDPs into drivers of both conversion and inventory optimization:
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Display Real-Time Inventory Availability
Show what's actually in stock in real-time. Selling stale data leads to lost sales.
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Enable Pickup Options
Can this item be picked up from a store today? Let customers know. List nearby stores based on proximity, inventory availability, and operating hours for added convenience. More clarity = faster decisions = more sales.
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Display Estimated Delivery Dates
Skip vague timelines. A clear “Arrives by 25th May” builds confidence and increases checkout rates.
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Add Smart Recommendations
Suggest relevant products based on what the customer is viewing, not just what’s popular.
The goal isn’t just to inform customers. It’s to convert. The better your PDP anticipates buyer needs and shows fulfillment options, the faster your inventory moves. And with that, you improve conversion and inventory optimization, without depending on markdowns.
3. Don’t Cancel, Backorder
Customers are more forgiving of delays than disappointments. But too often, they click “Buy Now” only to get a refund email because the item is out of stock. That’s a relationship killer.
If you have visibility into incoming inventory, enable backorders instead of cancelling orders.
Here’s how to make backorders a customer win, not a frustration:
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Monetize Inbound Inventory
If stock is en route, sell against it. Use purchase order data to promise availability before it hits your shelves. Doing so expands what’s considered sellable stock and supports inventory optimization.
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Set Clear Expectations and Increase Sales
Promise specific delivery dates, not “soon.” Transparency earns trust, and trust earns sales.
Backorders turn “not in stock” into “not a problem.” When done right, they let you sell more, smooth out demand spikes, and boost customer trust, no extra inventory needed.
4. Let Stores Do More: Ship From Store and Enable BOPIS
Your stores already hold valuable inventory, why not make every unit count? By turning physical stores into fulfillment hubs, you can move more product without bringing in more stock.
Whether it's fulfilling online orders or offering instant pickup, using your store network strategically lets you get more value from inventory that’s already on the shelf.
Here’s how to do it right:
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Ship From Store: Reach Customers Faster, Sell Inventory Smarter
• Ship Otherwise Idle Stock
Some inventory sells slowly in-store but could be a hot seller online. Instead of waiting for the markdown season, use Ship From Store to fulfill eCommerce orders with this idle inventory.
• Rebalance Inventory Through Fulfillment
With intelligent routing logic, automatically fulfill online orders from stores with the most stock, easing pressure on high-demand locations and improving overall inventory turn.
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Enable BOPIS: Give Customers More Control
• Convert Online Traffic into Store Visits
Let customers buy online and pick up in store, even within hours. You're not just offering convenience; you're selling what you already have in-store
• Boost In-Store Engagement and Upsells
Every pickup is an opportunity. BOPIS doesn’t just fulfill, it brings foot traffic, and with it, chances to upsell or deepen customer engagement
By making the most of what’s already on your shelves, whether through faster shipping or instant pickup, Ship From Store and BOPIS help you sell more, turn inventory faster, and reduce the need to overstock. Result? Balanced stock levels and smarter inventory optimization.
5. Route Orders to the Most Ideal Location, Not the Closest
Defaulting to the nearest store or the main warehouse for fulfillment is fast, but not always smart. It may reduce delivery time for one order while creating out-of-stocks, overstock, or shipping cost bloat across the network.
Instead of defaulting to the nearest store or first available warehouse, use intelligent order routing that supports omnichannel inventory optimization by considering:
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Optimize for Sell-Through
Don’t just route based on availability, route based on who actually needs the inventory less. Ship from stores with slow-moving SKUs, preserve inventory in high-performing stores for foot traffic, and achieve overall inventory optimization.
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Turn Off Order Limits When It Drives Value
During high-volume periods, like seasonal peaks, some stores can do more. Temporarily lifting order throttles ensures you're not holding back from using available stock just because a static rule says “stop.” It lets you say yes to more orders, without adding inventory.
Smarter routing isn't only about shaving off a few delivery miles, it’s about squeezing every last dollar out of the inventory already in your ecosystem. Sell what you have, where it makes the most sense, and keep your stock working harder for your bottom line.
6. Automate Rejection Handling and Save the Sale
Inventory that’s already in your network should be selling, not getting stranded due to fulfillment rejections.
When a store or warehouse rejects an order because of an operational issue, damaged goods, or bad data, that’s not just a failed delivery, it’s a missed opportunity to sell inventory you already own.
Here’s how to prevent that:
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Auto-Reroute Orders Without Losing the Sale
The moment an order gets rejected, reroute it automatically to another store or warehouse with available inventory. This prevents unnecessary cancellations and keeps stock flowing out, not sitting stagnant - a key tactic in real-time inventory optimization.
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Trigger Stock Checks and Cycle Counts on Rejections
If a location repeatedly rejects orders, it’s a red flag. Trigger a cycle count or stock check to maintain inventory accuracy. This simple step helps recover sellable inventory and prevent future fulfillment failures, no extra inventory needed.
Rejections don’t have to lead to lost revenue. With automated rerouting and smarter rejection handling, you can recover sales, move more inventory, and maintain customer trust.
7. Use Inventory Transfers to Rebalance Strategically
Running out of stock in one store while the same product gathers dust in another isn’t a supply issue, it’s a visibility issue. And an expensive one.
Too many retailers let inventory sit idle in low-performing regions while scrambling to restock stores with higher demand. With intelligent inventory transfers, you can solve both problems, profitably.
Here’s how to rebalance and improve inventory optimization:
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Leverage All Transfer Pathways
Use store-to-store, store-to-warehouse, and warehouse-to-store transfers to fluidly reallocate stock and match it with demand.
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Use Sell-Through Data to Guide Redistribution
Identify which SKUs are underperforming in one location but flying off the shelves elsewhere. A slow mover in Store A might be a bestseller just 20 miles away.
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Pre-Position Inventory Ahead of Promotions and Events
Don’t wait for stockouts. Shift inventory in advance to stores near local events, seasonal surges, or targeted campaigns where demand is expected to spike.
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Automate Transfers Based on Performance and Thresholds
Set rules to flag when stock needs to move, for example, automate inventory transfer recommendations if a product falls below its safety stock level or sits unsold for a certain number of days.
Strategic transfers help you sell more at full price, reduce overstock risk, and keep inventory moving, not aging.
Your Inventory Is Already Powerful, Make It Profitable
You don’t need more stock. You need more clarity. More flexibility. More intelligence in how you move, sell, and fulfill from the inventory you already have.
From accurate cycle counts to backorders, intelligent routing and store-based fulfillment, every piece of inventory you already own has untapped potential. The key lies in how you see it, present it, route it, and move it.
At HotWax Commerce, we help modern retailers unlock inventory optimization through real-time inventory visibility on PDPs, Backorder management, intelligent-configurable order routing, intuitive store fulfillment, and store inventory management tools.
If you're ready to do more with what you already have, we’re here to help you make every unit count.
