Learn how to use barcodes with Twice Commerce to speed up order fulfillment and returns, streamline inventory management, and improve overall operational efficiency.
Barcodes are unique identifiers that allow you to quickly scan and track items using compatible hardware. Twice Commerce supports both 1D (traditional) and 2D (QR code) barcodes, enabling:
Let's suppose that a typical order processing workflow looks something like this:
This is where barcodes come in handy. With a barcode system, you can just scan the product's label you're preparing, and TWICE automatically populates the ID in the right field in the order details. There is no need to activate that field — just scan the products in the order you prefer, and the IDs are filled out correctly.
This saves you several seconds for each product in the order. Otherwise, you would have to manually look up the product code on the label and then search for it TWICE using the drop-down menu. Manual work also increases the chance of human error.
If you consider that you can save a few minutes of manual work for each order you process, those minutes will add up to a significant time saving (=money) in the long run.
Note: If the scanned ID doesn't match the products pre-listed in the order details, a dialog asks whether you want to add that product to the order.
Using barcodes to streamline the return process is another low-hanging fruit when you want to speed up your workflows.
When a customer comes into your store to return products, go to the Orders view, select the Active tab, and scan any of the products the customer returns. This will open the correct order without having to search for the order by name.
Once the correct Order Details view is open, start scanning products. TWICE will ask for each product if the scanned product is being returned. Confirm by clicking the 'Return' button. Continue until all items have been checked and marked as returned.
Reviewing the order summary with the customer when marking items for return is advisable. This way, you'll avoid any hassle if you later discover something is missing.
Tip: Clicking 'End order' at the bottom-right corner of the view automatically marks all the products as returned. This is obviously faster than returning products one by one.
You can use barcode readers to search for information or navigate faster around TWICE's different views.
Orders section: You can use barcode scans on each tab to search for all upcoming, active, and completed orders for which a particular article has been or is about to be used. This feature can be used, for example, if after a return, you notice that an item is damaged and you want to contact the customer who last used the item.
Inventory section: You can search for items by reading the barcode. Reading the barcode will open the page of the item in question. This feature can be used, for example, when you want to make edits to an item's information or status in the inventory.
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