For many eCommerce businesses, warehouse picking starts with a printer.
An order arrives, somebody prints a pick list, walks around the warehouse collecting the products and ticks them off with a pen.
There is nothing inherently wrong with that.
Paper picking is simple, inexpensive and familiar.
The problem is that as order volumes increase, the limitations of a paper-based warehouse often become much more noticeable.
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When does paper picking become a problem?
The warning signs are usually easy to recognise.
You may be experiencing:
- Increasing picking errors
- Lost or duplicated paperwork
- Employees struggling to find stock
- Orders being picked more than once
- Stock discrepancies
- Delays between picking and despatch
- Limited visibility of warehouse productivity
- Too much administration after orders have been processed
Eventually, businesses start asking:
"How do I get rid of paper picking in my warehouse?"
For many operations, barcode scanning is the logical next step.
What does barcode picking actually change?
Instead of relying entirely on somebody reading a piece of paper and selecting the correct product, the system can guide and validate the process.
A warehouse operative may scan:
The location
to confirm they are standing in the correct place.
The product
to confirm they have selected the correct item.
The order or container
to confirm that the product is being allocated correctly.
These relatively simple checks can remove opportunities for mistakes at the point where they happen.
That is an important distinction.
Good warehouse processes should try to prevent errors rather than discover them later.
Barcode scanning is not just about picking faster
Businesses often assume that warehouse technology is primarily about speed.
Speed matters, but accuracy is often more valuable.
Sending the wrong product quickly does not improve your warehouse.
A good barcode process can help improve:
- Picking accuracy
- Inventory accuracy
- Traceability
- Employee training
- Order visibility
- Despatch control
The eventual result may also be increased throughput because employees spend less time investigating and correcting mistakes.
Do not automate a bad process
This is one of the biggest mistakes businesses can make.
Adding barcode scanners to an inefficient process does not automatically make the process efficient.
Before introducing a paperless warehouse, look at how the operation currently works.
Where is stock located?
How are locations identified?
How are new products received?
How are pick routes organised?
What happens when the expected stock is not there?
How are mistakes currently identified?
Technology should support a well-designed process rather than disguise a bad one.
Your warehouse locations matter
Barcode picking works best when the physical warehouse is organised clearly.
Every picking location should have a logical identity.
For example:
Aisle 03 → Bay 04 → Shelf 02
The exact structure will depend on the warehouse, but an operative should be able to find a location quickly without relying on memory.
Clear warehouse locations also make it easier to introduce new employees without requiring them to learn where thousands of individual products live.
You may not need to change everything at once
Moving away from paper does not have to mean transforming the entire warehouse overnight.
A phased approach may be more practical.
You could begin with picking, then introduce barcode validation within packing or despatch.
Alternatively, a particular product range, area of the warehouse or order type could be used to prove the process before rolling it out more widely.
The right approach depends on how your warehouse currently operates.
When do you need a WMS?
Barcode scanners are only part of the solution.
The system behind them needs to know what is being picked, where stock is stored and what should happen when something changes.
If your warehouse is also struggling with stock accuracy, growing order volumes, disconnected sales channels or limited visibility, barcode scanning may be part of a wider move towards a warehouse management system.
[Read: When does an eCommerce business need a WMS?]
Thinking about moving away from paper?
Before buying scanners or choosing software, it is worth understanding what the new process should actually look like.
I specialise in working with businesses that are still operating paper-based warehouses or have little or no WMS functionality in place.
I can visit your warehouse, observe your existing processes, speak with the people carrying out the work and identify where barcode scanning, better processes or warehouse technology could make the biggest difference.
The aim is not simply to make the warehouse more technical.
It is to make it more accurate, more efficient and less expensive to operate.
Where StoreFeeder may form part of that solution, I will make that connection clear.