In the beverage distribution industry, it is widely understood that compliance to brand and legal standards is not only scarce but also costly. These mistakes hamper your execution and often result in fines, losses, or outright damage to your gross sales profit. Nevertheless, software technologies can easily alleviate the gaping wounds by auditing your warehouses or field operations.

What do we mean by audits?

When you hear the word audit, you might associate the significance to an accounting procedure. However, we use this word to convey a distinct meaning.

Much like the accounting audit examines the location of money within an organization, a warehouse or field audit is a form that examines the location of your inventory with supporting files for verification. Thereby, ensuring compliance to standards, tracking deficiencies, and assigning an appropriate best action plan.

For example, an audit form could ask field employees to take pictures of your costly tap handles with proper placement, or a warehouse employee to take pictures of your stocked products. Then, a manager could seamlessly ensure that his responsibility, the products that flow in and out of his warehouse, is fulfilled with best practices.

This type of work is traditionally carried out in unreliable and time-consuming pen-and-paper collection, but with the help of technology, you can make this checklist easy to perform with just a few clicks.

Why should you be auditing?

Frequent audits promote a culture of compliance throughout your business by continually displaying organizational commitment to standards and best practices. This endeavor would not only help rectify or prevent mistakes, but it can also actively improve multiple areas of your beverage distribution business.

First, audits engage head management with field employees by offering a new and relevant form of communication. Through this practice, both sides learn from one another in an effort to ensure peak performance.

Second, it ensures that integral company standards are maintained throughout different locations and levels of operations. Although distributors with multiple locations might have slight differences across warehouses, core values and standards would be maintained.

Third, while warehouses become more efficient and well-maintained, your field operations leave almost nothing up to chance. Neatly stocked inventories within a culture of compliance create efficiencies in the way your warehouses are run. Moreover, the implementation of materials is assuredly spotless, which not only helps improper execution but also prevents loss.

These are just a few ways beverage distribution operations improve by conducting warehouse or field audits. Now, let's look at some tangible effects you can begin to measure within a few weeks of implementation.

What are the benefits of auditing?

• Reduce waste from improperly set-up marketing materials.

• Prevent loss and fees associated with neglecting legal compliance.

• Reduce inventory costs by ensuring warehouses are stocked and items are selling.

• Save valuable man-hours by replacing cumbersome collecting and communication methods.

• Track KPI's across your business and use data analytics to make educated decisions.

• Assign and verify task completion and timeliness.

• Take immediate corrective action when necessary.

• Gain a competitive advantage, create efficiencies, and increase your bottom line!

Hopefully, this short blog post has informed you of a better way to conduct your beverage distribution business. Interested in learning more about how alcohol distributors can leverage the power of data collection? Click here for off-premise collection or here for on-premise collection.