Seamless inventory control: automation with Soffi.io
Automate inventory tracking and purchasing to avoid losing sales
How to Turn Chaos into an Organized System: A Step-by-Step Recipe for Automated Inventory Control with soffi.io
(instructions tested on a real online store)
Why Change Anything at All
While the store owner was personally jumping between three Google Sheets, screenshots of CRM exports, and emails from suppliers, products would either run out or pile up. An error in just one cell could turn the purchasing plan into pure guesswork—customers left for competitors, money got “frozen” in dead stock.
Soffi.io bridges this gap: the service automatically pulls sales data once a week, cross-checks it with stock levels, and generates an easy-to-read report: “What’s low, what’s overstocked, and what to order.” No programmer, no complex integrations needed—just follow the five steps below.
Step 1. Bring Your Data “Under One Roof”
- 1.
Sales. Export a CSV file from your store or marketplace (usually it’s a single “Export” button).
- 2.
Stock. Make sure your current inventory is in one Google Sheet—with columns SKU, Name, Quantity.
- 3.
Shareable Link. Upload the CSV somewhere it can be downloaded with a direct URL (Google Drive, Dropbox, S3—doesn’t matter).
✦ Lifehack: if your warehouse keeps a separate file, just add a stock tab to the same sheet; Soffi.io understands ranges.
Step 2. Connect Sources in Soffi.io
- 1.
Go to “Data Sources” → “Add”.
- 2.
Select Google Sheets, paste the link to your inventory sheet, and specify the range.
- 3.
Click “Add URL File,” paste the link to your sales CSV; in the options, check “Update weekly.”
- 4.
Save—the service will check access and show green check marks.
Step 3. Create an “Inventory” Report Template
- 1.
Go to “Templates” → “New”.
- 2.
Name it “Inventory — Weekly.”
- 3.
In the builder, drag in the “Low Stock Alert” block and set a threshold, e.g. ≤ 10 pcs.
- 4.
Add the “Overstock” block and set the upper limit—≥ 90 days turnover.
- 5.
Save the template.
✦ Don’t worry about formulas—the typical calculations are already programmed inside the blocks, you just set the threshold numbers.
Step 4. Set Up the Schedule and Recipients
- •
In the schedule, select “Every Monday, 08:00.”
- •
In the “Delivery” section, add your email and, if you wish, your team’s Telegram chat.
- •
Activate the task.
Step 5. Read and Act
Next Monday by 8:00 AM, you’ll have a PDF in your inbox:
| SKU | Item | Left | Days to Zero | Recommendation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A123 | Mini Coffee Maker | 7 pcs. | 5 | Order 30 pcs. |
| B456 | “Latte” Mug | 212 pcs. | 180 | Pause purchasing |
| … | … | … | … | … |
- •
In the “Days to Zero” column, the service already accounts for average daily sales.
- •
In “Recommendation”—a specific action: reorder, stop-list, or sell-off.
What Changes After Implementation
| Before | After |
|---|---|
| Manual stock summary—2-3 hours weekly | Autopilot summary + report—0 mins |
| Frequent “sudden” out-of-stocks | Purchase reserve for 5–7 days ahead |
| Capital frozen in “slow movers” | Dead stock reduced by 20–30% |
| Stress and firefighting | Transparent ordering plan, calm weekends |
Quick Checklist Before You Start
- •
Make sure both inventory and sales files are accessible by link.
- •
Set accurate “low” / “high” thresholds.
- •
Check access rights (“View” mode) to the sheets.
- •
Add a backup email to make sure your report doesn’t get lost.
Result
Instead of plunging into spreadsheets and hunting for formula errors, the store owner gets a ready-to-use action map every seven days: which purchases to approve, what to put on sale, and which items are no cause for worry. Soffi.io does all the grunt work—you make the decisions.
In a month or two, you’ll wonder how you ever managed without this kind of automation.