You can use the so-called pseudo warehouse numbers in Xentral to have flexible control over the stock numbers that are communicated to your online stores and sales platforms. This way, the stock numbers displayed on your sales platforms can differ from the stock that is actually physically available. Consequently, you can make sure that stock is reserved or even influence your customers’ buying behavior by displaying dedicated stock numbers.
Pseudo warehouse numbers are especially helpful if you are selling products on several platforms, and if you are using different storage locations or separate projects for your B2B and B2C business. Adjusting the stock that is communicated is done by rules and conditions that are easy to set up. As a result, you have increased control and excess sales are avoided.
Tip
Video tutorial: Your head start on pseudo warehouse number formulas
Are you looking for a quick overview on the functionalities and usage of pseudo warehouse number formulas in Xentral? Then, our video tutorial is exactly right for you. Take a look right away!
In the following, you’ll find a few practical examples for using pseudo warehouse numbers:
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You are selling a product that is in very high demand on several marketplaces (e.g. Amazon, eBay and your Shopify shop). Physically, the product is only available in the main warehouse. You can create a pseudo warehouse numbers formula that always keeps a fixed quantity in reserve in order to avoid overselling due to parallel sales orders on various sales platforms.
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You are using Shopify as your sales channel for premium B2B. In addition, you are selling your product to a broader audience on Amazon. The product is physically available in two of your warehouses - in the main warehouse for fast shipping on Amazon and in a separate warehouse for more labor-intensive shipping to your premium customers. In this case, it makes sense to display the complete stock of the main warehouse in your Shopify store. In case the total stock of the product falls below a certain level, you can communicate a combination of the stock of the main warehouse combined with the stock available in the separate warehouse to Amazon. This way, you can still guarantee delivery and a timely reorder in case of sinking stock levels.
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In addition to B2C sales via the usual sales channels, you are also selling your products to business and wholesale customers (B2B). For each of these two business models, you are using separate zones in your warehouse. In doing so, stock should only be assigned to the matching sales channel, e.g. because you are storing entire pallets for B2B sales orders while selling individual products in your B2C shop. Create two rules to reproduce this separation: One rule will transmit the available stock from the B2B project warehouse while another rule transmits the stock for the B2C warehouse. Thus, you can clearly differentiate between stock for different business models and thus reduce booking errors.
In Xentral, you can save pseudo warehouse numbers formulas in the product master data as well as in the settings of the respective shop interface. The correct location for your formulas depends on your requirements:
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In the product master data: Use this method to display differing stock numbers for specific products on all your sales platforms.
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In the shop interface settings: This method allows you to influence the stock numbers that are displayed for each shop interface. The formula entered is then applied to all products that are offered for sale in the respective shop.
Important
Pseudo warehouse numbers formulas saved in Xentral are checked and processed in the following order:
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Formulas exist in the product master data: The formulas are applied, other formulas are not considered.
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Formulas exist in the shop interface settings: The formulas are applied, other formulas are not considered (even if formulas are saved in the product master data).
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No formulas are saved in the product master data or the shop interface: Logically, no formula is applied in this case. Instead, the current stock (minus reservations and open sales orders) is displayed as the available product quantity.
Note
Note that the option Auto reservation in warehouse in the project settings under Tab: Logistics / Shipping > Section: Options must be activated so that Xentral reserves the required stock for open sales orders in the warehouse.
Proceed as follows to save formulas for transferring pseudo warehouse numbers to your online store.
Note
Note that the formulas only apply for the specific stock display for this product in this case. Other products that you are selling in the same online store will not be affected. If you want to use pseudo warehouse numbers for all products listed on a sales platform, you need to proceed as described in chapter Saving pseudo warehouse numbers formulas in the shop interface below.
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Go to Sell > Products.
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Open the desired product by clicking on the pencil icon to the right.
You are now in the Details tab of the product master data.
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Click on Online shop options.
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Scroll down until you reach the In stock section.
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Enter the formula(s) that should be used to calculate and then transmit the stock numbers to your online shop in the Pseudo stock number field.
Tip
The input field in Xentral is too small for you and entering values is inconvenient? Enter the formula into a notes app or text editor of your choice first. Copy the formula into the Pseudo stock number field once you are done.
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Click on Save.
The formula is applied, i.e. the stock numbers are calculated according to the formula. The result is then displayed as the available quantity for this product in your online store.
Note
After adjusting the formula, the Preview value is updated. To update, it is sufficient if you click next to the input field for the formula once.
If you want to transmit pseudo warehouse numbers for an online shop, you enter the formulas directly in the shop interface settings. In the following example, we create pseudo warehouse numbers for the Shopify marketplace.
Important
Note that the formula applies to all products listed in this online shop when you are using this method. This means that formulas saved individually in the product master data are not considered any more as soon as you have saved pseudo warehouse numbers formulas in the shop interface settings!
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Go to Settings > Sell > Stores/Marketplaces > Shops & Marketplaces overview.
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Click on the entry of the shop for which you want to set up pseudo warehouse numbers. In this example, it’s the Shopify entry.
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Click on Settings.
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Scroll down until you reach the section Product import / export section.
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Enter the formula(s) that should be used to calculate and then transmit the stock numbers to your online shop in the Pseudo rules field.
Tip
The input field in Xentral is too small for you and entering values is inconvenient? Enter the formula into a notes app or text editor of your choice first. Copy the formula into the Pseudo stock number field once you are done.
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Click on Save.
The formula is applied, i.e. the stock numbers are calculated according to the formula. The result is then displayed as the available quantity for this product in your online store.
Warning
Note the following rules and limitations for structuring your formulas:
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Using parentheses is not allowed.
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Before and after all operators, a space must be used to make sure that the formula is not interpreted as a storage location by mistake.
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You can enter as many subsequent formulas as you like. Use a semicolon (;) to separate the formulas.
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When entering multiple formulas, the formulas are checked and applied from first to last. Consequently, pay attention to the order in which you enter the formulas.
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To create conditions, enter the IF part first, follow it up with a pipe symbol (|) and then enter the THEN part.
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Formulas that are entered in the shop interface settings must not end with 0.
The following example illustrates how formulas for warehouse numbers are set up:
LP_HL001A - OFFEN > 10 AND L_Hauptlager > 20 | L_Hauptlager; LP_HL001B - RES > 10 | LP_HL001B; 5
This example uses three different formulas separated by a semicolon (;). If a pipe symbol (|) exists, the value before | is used as condition and the value after it as formula. The formula is used as soon as the condition is fulfilled.
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Formula |
Explanation |
|---|---|
LP_HL001A - OFFEN > 10 AND L_Hauptlager > 20 | L_Hauptlager; |
IF the stock on storage location HL001A is bigger than 10 considering all open sales orders AND the stock in the main warehouse is bigger than 20 at the same time, THEN the complete stock of the main warehouse will be transmitted. |
LP_HL001B - RES > 10 | LP_HL001B; |
IF the stock on storage location HL001B is bigger than 10 considering all reserved products, THEN the complete stock of the storage location LP_HL001B will be transmitted. |
5 |
If both conditions are not fulfilled, a static stock of 5 is transmitted. |
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Only transmit stock available in the main warehouse:
L:Hauptlager
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Only transmit the stock of a specific storage location (in this example storage location HL001A):
LP:HL001A
This example is useful in case you want to report different stock depending on the project. This can be required if you sell your products via multiple online shops and want to display different stock information on each of these platforms.
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Only transmit stock that is reserved for the Shopify project:
RES:PR:SHOPIFY
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Only transmit stock that is available, i.e. not reserved for current sales orders for the B2C project:
OFFEN:PR:B2C
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Only transmit stock that is reserved in the main warehouse:
RES:L:Hauptlager
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Only transmit stock that is reserved in the main warehouse, i.e. that is not reserved:
OFFEN:L:Hauptlager
Imagine the following use case: If stock of more than 200 pieces is available in the main warehouse, the stock of the main warehouse should be transmitted. In case the condition (more than 200 pieces) is not fulfilled, the stock of the main warehouse and the stock of the replenishment storage location should be transmitted.
The respective formula is structured as follows:
L:Hauptlager > 200 | L:Hauptlager ; L:Nachschublagerplatz + L:Hauptlager
In this case, the semicolon separates the two values of the preceding condition to be returned, comparable to
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IF main warehouse > 200
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THEN main warehouse
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ELSE main warehouse and replenishment storage location
You can use the following variables in pseudo warehouse numbers formulas:
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Variable(s) |
Explanation |
|---|---|
|
RES or RESERVIERT |
Stock that is already reserved for sales orders |
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OFFEN |
Stock that is included in open sales orders |
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LP_Short designation or LP:Short designation |
Storage location |
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L_Designation or L:Designation |
Warehouse |
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PR:project code |
Project |
|
RES:PR:project code |
Stock that is already reserved for sales orders of a specific project |
The following operators are available for pseudo warehouse numbers:
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AND
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OR
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<
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>
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<=
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>=
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"="
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<> bzw. !=
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"+"
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"-"