How Voice Picking Can Improve Order Fulfillment (2024)

As your business expands and your customer base grows, your inventory management and warehouse capabilities need to keep pace. An online sporting goods retailer might expand to stock hundreds of items with separate stock keeping units (SKUs)—everything from golf balls and tennis rackets to lacrosse sticks and grip tape. This growth brings new challenges: the need to fulfill more orders quickly while avoiding costly errors that could disappoint customers.

Traditional order-picking methods, like paper-based systems and handheld scanners, may strain to meet the demands of a scaling retail operation. But voice-picking technology can help modernize your warehouse operations, equipping your staff with wireless headsets for hands-free, voice-guided work to get the right products into boxes and out the door faster and with fewer mistakes.

What is voice picking?

Voice picking is a warehouse technology that uses speech recognition and text-to-speech software to guide workers through the order fulfillment process. It equips staff with headsets that provide verbal instructions on what items to pick and where to find them, allowing warehouse operators to keep their hands and eyes free for the task. Workers confirm their actions by speaking into the headset, creating a two-way communication system.

Voice picking eliminates the need for workers to constantly refer to physical lists or devices, potentially reducing picking errors and increasing efficiency.

How does voice picking work?

While voice picking is an advanced technology that might be a meaningful investment, how it works is quite simple.

1. Sync with warehouse systems. The voice-picking system connects with your warehouse management system or enterprise resource planning software. This integration allows incoming orders to be converted into pick tasks.

2. Distribute tasks to workers. The system assigns pick tasks to individual workers, prioritizing orders based on factors like shipping deadlines or order complexity. Each warehouse worker receives their assignments through their voice-picking device.

3. Provide audio instructions. The voice-picking system provides step-by-step instructions to the worker through a headset. It tells them the location of the item, the quantity needed, and any special handling instructions.

4. Verify picks with voice commands. After picking an item, the worker reads a check digit or confirmation code into their headset. The voice recognition technology verifies this input for accuracy.

5. Update inventory in real-time. As items are picked and confirmed, the voice technology updates the warehouse management system in real-time. This ensures stock levels and order statuses are always current.

6. Complete and reassign tasks. Once all items for an individual order are picked, the voice system directs the worker to the packing station or next task. It then immediately assigns the next pick task, keeping the workflow continuous.

Benefits of voice picking

If you’re an ecommerce company ramping up your in-house order fulfillment—perhaps moving from a spare room to a full-fledged warehouse with dedicated fulfillment staff—voice picking can bring a degree of ease to your fulfillment processes. Alternatively, if you’re opting for a third-party logistics (3PL) provider, a partner that uses voice picking might be able to provide more consistency. Here are the benefits:

Quicker employee ramp-up

There’s always a learning curve when onboarding new warehouse staff, particularly with a complex ecommerce operation. Voice-picking software reduces this ramp-up period. The system guides new employees through each pick with step-by-step vocal instructions, eliminating the need to memorize product locations, box configurations, or special packaging instructions. This means new hires can become productive faster.

Increased picking productivity

After a customer places an order on your site, a countdown begins to when they’ll receive a shipping confirmation. Voice picking solutions accelerate this process by streamlining the order fulfillment workflow. A 2020 report by Körber Supply Chain found that ditching screens and paper-based work orders in favor of voice-enhanced operations can boost productivity by up to 35%.

This increase in productivity means you can handle more orders with the same staff, directly impacting your bottom line.

Reduced packing errors

Mistakes are bound to happen—especially when your ecommerce business deals with products that have multiple variations like clothing sizes, color options, or bundled sets. Voice-directed warehousing reduces these errors by providing clear, step-by-step audio instructions to pickers. Instead of relying on memory or hastily scanning a paper list, employees receive precise directions on what to pick and where to find it.

The voice system acts as a constant guide, confirming each action through spoken check digits or item verifications. It’s like having a knowledgeable supervisor walking alongside each worker, ensuring they’re grabbing the right medium-sized red shirt from aisle B, shelf 3, rather than the similar-looking large blue one next to it.

Warehouse safety

Voice-directed applications support warehouse safety by allowing workers to operate hands-free. With traditional methods, employees often juggle clipboards or handheld scanners while navigating the warehouse and handling products. This can be risky.

At a kitchenware company where staff are constantly picking and packing delicate glass and ceramic items, voice picking allows them to use both hands for careful handling, reducing the risk of drops and breakages. Similarly, for a fitness equipment retailer, workers can safely maneuver heavy dumbbells or weight plates without the distraction of consulting a device or paper list.

This hands-free approach prevents accidents and reduces repetitive strain injuries associated with constantly holding and operating a handheld mobile device. The result is a safer work environment, leading to happier and healthier employees. Plus, improved safety translates to lower liability risks for your business by minimizing workplace injuries.

Flexibility

Voice picking technology is versatile, adapting to various warehouse operations beyond just order picking. Regardless of which pick-and-pack method your warehouse or distribution center uses, voice systems can improve the process. With batch picking, for instance, the voice system guides warehouse workers through multiple orders simultaneously, efficiently grouping similar items.

Voice technology also simplifies receiving processes, assists with cycle counting for inventory management, and guides workers through packing and shipping procedures.