Looking for a way to give your business revenues a boost? Your inventory may hold the answer.
If excess inventory is collecting dust on your shelves or in a warehouse, getting it moving can inject new life into your revenue numbers. Here are four ways to help move your extra inventory.
1. Bundle it
Bundling inventory and selling multiple items together at a single price can get products that have been gathering dust out the door, while generating a profit. There are several ways to approach bundling, such as:
- Combining older or slower-selling products with newer or faster-moving ones
- Bundling multiple units of the same items
- Grouping items that are commonly used together
If you run a salon, for instance, and a particular brand of styling gel is a hot seller you could package it with those overstock bottles of shampoo and conditioner you’ve struggled to get rid of.
To make a bundle enticing, the price generally needs to be lower than what it would cost to buy each item individually. Just remember to keep profit margins in mind when bundling so you’re not sacrificing revenue unnecessarily.
2. Offer it as an upsell incentive
Upselling can be a simple and effective way to increase revenue. With an upsell incentive, the idea is to use one item to convince your customers to buy a second, more expensive item.
One of the easiest ways to upsell using extra inventory is to offer products as a bonus or a gift-with-purchase when a customer meets a certain requirement. For instance, they may need to spend $50 or $100 to get the freebie. You get the revenue benefit from the sale and you get to move more inventory in the process.
Upselling with incentives works best when customers feel like they’re getting a high-value freebie or bonus. As you create an incentive campaign, remember to weigh the value of what you’re giving against what you’re asking customers to spend.
3. Time your discounts strategically
Marking items down can attract bargain-hunting customers, but it helps to have a plan if you want to run a sale with maximum impact. Just sticking items on a clearance shelf may not cut it when you have a lot of inventory to move.
A better option might be to hold a “flash sale” online or door-buster sale in-store. These kinds of sales events can create a sense of urgency among customers who won’t want to miss out.
Remember that timing matters for sales. Have them too often and they might lose their impact.
4. Change up your marketing
Sometimes, sprucing up how you promote excess inventory can boost sales. Simple techniques to vary how you market your inventory may include:
- Relocating items to a different part of your store
- Redesigning product displays
- Updating product photos in your online store
- Adding new keywords or descriptions for products sold online
- Placing them somewhere new on your site
- Writing a post about it on your business blog
These are all ways to showcase excess inventory in a new light. The payoff can be a healthy revenue boost if repositioning inventory results in a sales comeback.
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