One of the most important things that keep a practice running is well-managed inventory. Without a good strategy in place, you could end up closing the doors.
Learn what all dental offices need to know. How do you manage inventory the right way to avoid losing clients?
Managing inventory improves the accuracy of actual inventory orders. When you know what you have, you know what you need. This knowledge helps prevents overstocking and wastefulness.
Also, when you have a good inventory strategy, you have a well-organized dental office.
It’s time to learn how to keep your most important inventory supplies stocked. Keep reading and find out how to lower your costs with these methods used by successful dental offices.
1. Dental Offices Should Identify the Products That Need Control
Every dental office has some inventory that requires extra focus. This inventory includes items with a short shelf lifespan, premium, and expensive items.
These are the items you want to control.
Create a product log of every item for authorized personnel use only. Hang it in your stock room, so those who remove items have to sign off first. Include items that take up a lot of space as well.
These dental products are cases of paper goods like toilet paper and paper towels, and bibs.
2. Assess Your Budget
Buying too much inventory just to have a lot on hand is a waste of money. Every dime you spend on inventory affects your overall budget.
Assess your budget and decide what’s a reasonable amount to spend on supplies. Compare that budget to what you’re already spending to make sure the numbers match up.
If the numbers line up, take that comparison and set it as a monthly goal. By doing so, you save money and stick to a solid budget.
3. Know Your Needs
It’s simple. Buy what your office needs and uses regularly. This way is important because it helps you order an accurate amount of supplies every month.
If you know you run out of a specific item often, adjust your budget and order more of it. Gloves and gauze are great examples of this.
4. Revisit Your Usage
Business needs change all the time as their client’s needs fluctuate. Some seasons are busier than others.
When this happens, you need to revisit the usage of inventory in the office. Pull your log and survey what items have slowed down. Order less of these items to prevent overstock until regular usage resumes.
This process helps you identify products you no longer use and products that aren’t in the market any longer.
5. Put an Inventory Manager in Place
When all else fails, hire someone to keep track of inventory. An inventory manager’s job is to focus on supplies, products, and materials. They forecast inventory needs.
Inventory managers use automation or traditional logging methods to keep a count of inventory. They do this to help them track stock levels. They also source suppliers and order supplies when they’ve depleted.
Manage Your Inventory
One of the best ways for dental offices to remain successful is to keep track of inventory. Get things in order and save your family dental practice time and money.
Let us share more business tips like this with you. Check out our business guide for up-to-date ideas and tips.
