Purchasing cost control is the process of managing related expenses, including order costs, personnel costs, transportation costs, etc. The purpose of e-commerce companies controlling purchasing costs is to maximize profits. To achieve this goal, e-commerce companies must understand the classification of purchasing costs, factors that affect purchasing costs, and channels to reduce purchasing costs. In the purchasing process, in addition to explicit costs, there are also hidden costs that cannot be ignored. So, which costs can be classified as hidden costs? They mainly include the following.
(1) Order processing costs
When e-commerce companies process orders, if it takes too long, it will incur certain costs. Therefore, e-commerce companies should prepare in advance, build accurate portraits for buyers, and process orders in a shorter time. In addition, e-commerce companies should also train customer service staff to ensure that they can answer buyers’ questions in a timely manner
(2) Out-of-stock costs
Out-of-stock costs are expenses incurred due to insufficient inventory or supply interruptions that cannot meet normal production and operation needs. In financial statements, this part of the cost is usually not reflected. However, once out-of-stock situations occur, it will not only cause great economic losses to the e-commerce company, but also have a negative impact on the image and reputation of the e-commerce company.
(3) Inventory backlog cost
Inventory backlog cost is the cost caused by the backlog of goods due to excessive inventory. Once the goods are backlogged, the express delivery fee and storage fee will increase. If there are too many backlogged goods, it will also occupy the development funds of the e-commerce company. In addition, if some adverse consequences occur due to improper operation during the storage of goods, such as damage to the goods, the e-commerce company will also suffer certain losses, which is not conducive to the development of the e-commerce company.
Tips
When purchasing, other costs that are easily overlooked should also receive due attention, such as supplier bidding costs, bid document argumentation costs, information release costs, etc. In short, e-commerce companies should formulate targeted plans and strategies to distinguish the focus of procurement costs according to different goods, focus on analyzing the factors affecting procurement costs, and reduce explicit costs and implicit costs.