Peak season is make or break for businesses dealing with high sales volumes and surging customer demand. Whether you’re an eCommerce retailer, a distributor, or managing a complex supply chain, ensuring smooth and efficient order fulfillment is critical to maintaining customer satisfaction and profitability.

The reality? Consumer expectations are higher than ever, and businesses that can’t keep up with demand, manage inventory efficiently, and ship orders on time risk losing sales and damaging their brand reputation.

At Stratus Consulting Group, we work with businesses to streamline fulfillment, automate manual processes, and integrate real-time inventory tracking using ERP solutions like MYOB Acumatica, Wiise, and Epicor. Here’s how you can prepare for peak season and avoid fulfillment chaos.

1. Get Full Visibility Over Your Inventory – In Real-Time

The biggest cause of delayed shipments, overselling, and stock shortages? Poor inventory visibility. If your warehouse teams don’t know exactly what’s in stock and where it is, orders get delayed, errors increase, and customers get frustrated.

What You Can Do Now:

✅ Use live inventory tracking so stock levels update as orders come in.
✅ Centralise stock visibility across multiple locations – whether warehouses, stores, or third-party logistics providers.
✅ Prevent overselling by syncing stock data with your sales platforms.

• A screenshot of the MYOB Acumatica inventory dashboard showing real-time stock levels across multiple warehouses (Mark).

2. Automate the Repetitive Stuff – Don’t Let Manual Processes Hold You Back

Peak season means higher order volumes, and if you’re still relying on manual data entry, spreadsheets, or disconnected systems, you’re inviting errors and delays.

Automation should handle the basics so your team can focus on what matters.

Where Automation Makes a Difference:

✅ Order Processing: Automatically push orders from eCommerce platforms to fulfillment teams.
✅ Customer Updates: Send automatic tracking emails and notifications.
✅ Shipping Label Generation: Generate labels instantly, reducing processing time.

• A screenshot of the MYOB Acumatica automated order management dashboard, showing how orders flow through without manual intervention (Mark)

3. Speed Up Picking with Smarter Warehouse Strategies

Inefficient picking is a major bottleneck in fulfillment. If warehouse staff are walking kilometres every day to locate products, you’re losing valuable time and money.

How to Fix It:

✅ Batch Picking: Group similar orders to minimise trips around the warehouse.
✅ Location-Based Picking: Prioritise picking routes that reduce travel time.
✅ Use Barcode Scanning: Reduce errors and speed up verification.

📌 Where to Add an MYOB Acumatica Screenshot:

• A screenshot of MYOB Acumatica’s warehouse management system, showing optimized picking routes (Mark)

4. Focus on Exceptions – Not Every Pick Needs to Be Tracked

Many businesses waste too much time tracking every single pick. Instead, focus on exceptions—like short picks or stock mismatches—to quickly resolve issues without slowing down fulfillment.

What Works Best:

✅ Set automated alerts when inventory levels don’t match pick lists.
✅ Reduce unnecessary tracking by focusing on problem orders.
✅ Use live dashboards to flag exceptions in real time.

• A screenshot of MYOB Acumatica’s warehouse exception management system, showing flagged short picks (Mark)

5. Dedicated Packing Teams Reduce Errors and Increase Speed

Even if your picking process is flawless, a slow or inconsistent packing system can undo all your efficiency gains. If items are packed incorrectly, you face returns, refunds, and unhappy customers.

Packing Best Practices:

✅ Separate picking and packing teams so each step is optimised.
✅ Use digital scales and dimension validation to ensure correct shipping labels.
✅ Standardise packing processes so orders are secure and presentable.

• A screenshot of the packing and shipping module in MYOB Acumatica, showing real-time validation of order weights and dimensions (Mark)

6. Integrate Your Systems – Stop Manually Entering Data

Disconnected systems create delays, errors, and duplicate work. If your eCommerce store, warehouse, and finance system aren’t talking to each other, you’ll spend peak season firefighting issues instead of fulfilling orders.

How to Get Seamless Integration:

✅ Connect your eCommerce store (Shopify, WooCommerce, etc.) to your ERP.
✅ Ensure real-time updates between fulfillment, inventory, and accounting.
✅ Use API integrations to automate workflows across platforms.

• A screenshot of MYOB Acumatica’s integration with an eCommerce store, showing live order syncing (Mark)

7. Use Stores as Micro-Fulfillment Hubs for Faster Delivery

For omnichannel retailers, leveraging physical store locations as fulfillment hubs can speed up deliveries and reduce warehouse congestion.

What This Looks Like in Practice:

✅ Ship from store instead of a central warehouse for nearby customers.
✅ Dedicate inventory for online orders separate from in-store stock.
✅ Offer click-and-collect to reduce delivery lead times.

• A screenshot of MYOB Acumatica’s store fulfillment module, showing location-based inventory allocation (Mark)

8. Use Data to Predict Demand and Prevent Stock Issues

Instead of guessing how much inventory to stock for peak season, use AI-driven demand forecasting to make smarter purchasing decisions.

How to Get Ahead of Demand Surges:

✅ Analyse past sales trends to predict peak season volume.
✅ Monitor real-time fulfillment data to identify slow or fast-moving products.
✅ Adjust replenishment strategies to avoid stockouts or excess inventory.

📌 Where to Add an MYOB Acumatica Screenshot:

• A screenshot of MYOB Acumatica’s demand forecasting dashboard, showing AI-powered replenishment recommendations.

Final Thoughts: Get Ahead of Peak Season Now

Peak season isn’t just about handling higher order volumes—it’s about making sure every part of your fulfillment process is running at peak efficiency.

With the right strategy, automation, and an ERP system like MYOB Acumatica, Wiise, or Epicor, you can:
✅ Speed up fulfillment times.
✅ Reduce errors and returns.
✅ Ensure real-time stock accuracy.
✅ Keep customers happy with faster deliveries.

💡 Want to make sure your fulfillment process is peak-season ready? Contact Stratus Consulting Group today for an ERP strategy session and get ahead before the holiday rush starts.

📌 Where to Add an MYOB Acumatica Screenshot:

• A call-to-action graphic encouraging businesses to book an ERP consultation before peak season.