Christmas orders in July
Your seasonal range launches in summer. Reps take forward orders from trade customers at your trade show and on visits: so many cases of each line, delivered in a particular week of November. Those orders go into a spreadsheet, one tab per rep, because the order system cannot hold orders for stock that does not exist yet.
The buyer totals the spreadsheet to place orders with manufacturers. Then customers change their minds, reps add late orders, and the spreadsheet grows versions. When stock lands, someone keys every forward order into the system for picking. Some are missed. Some are keyed twice.
Why seasonal orders live outside the system
Standard order systems are built for orders against stock you hold or expect soon. Forward orders months ahead, often for new codes that are not set up yet, with delivery windows rather than dates, do not fit. So a parallel spreadsheet process grows each year, and it depends on the person who built it.
- New seasonal codes are not in the system when orders are taken.
- Delivery windows do not fit a single delivery date field.
- Customer changes arrive over months and are edited in different copies.
- Supplier orders are placed from totals that are out of date.
- Keying all forward orders at once creates errors in the busiest weeks.
What the spreadsheet season costs
Buying too much or too little seasonal stock is expensive either way: leftover stock after the season, or customers let down when the range sells out. Missed forward orders are especially damaging because the customer planned their own season around them. And the office spends peak season keying months-old orders instead of handling the rush.
Reps feel it as well. A rep who took a customer's seasonal order in July and cannot see in October whether it is still on the books has to ring the office, which has to open the right version of the spreadsheet. When the answer is unclear, the rep either reassures the customer and hopes, or admits they do not know. Neither does much for the relationship.
The forward order booking we build
- Seasonal lines are set up in the booking tool as soon as the range is decided, with your codes, supplier codes and pack sizes.
- Reps and the office record forward orders on a tablet or laptop, including at trade shows, with each customer's delivery window.
- Customers receive a confirmation, and can view or change their pre-order up to a cut-off date you set.
- The buyer sees live totals by line and delivery window, to place and adjust supplier orders.
- When supplier stock is booked in, forward orders due in that window are released into your order system for picking, with allocation rules if stock is short.
- Customers are told when their seasonal order is going out.
| Stage | Spreadsheet | Forward order booking |
|---|---|---|
| Taking orders | Tab per rep | One booking record per customer |
| Changes | Edited copies | Customer or office changes one record |
| Buying | Totals from old versions | Live totals by line |
| Stock arrives | Everything keyed at once | Orders released automatically |
How the season runs after
The buyer orders from current numbers. Customers see what they have committed to. When stock lands, orders flow into picking in the right week without a keying marathon. After the season, you can compare forward orders with what actually sold through, which makes next year's range and buying decisions easier.
Is your seasonal range run like this?
- Forward orders are kept in spreadsheets.
- Several versions of the order sheet exist.
- Seasonal orders are keyed in a rush when stock arrives.
- Customers' pre-orders get missed or duplicated.
- Supplier orders are placed from out-of-date totals.