Did You Know This About . . . Fishbowl?
- RJMC
- Sep 22
- 3 min read
Updated: Sep 25
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Fishbowl Inventory: A Double-Edged Sword for Growing Businesses
For small to medium-sized businesses, especially those in manufacturing and distribution, the pain of inefficient inventory management is all too real. You've likely outgrown basic spreadsheets or the limited capabilities of your accounting software. The market is filled with options, and one that often comes up is Fishbowl. It's pitched as a powerful solution, but what's the reality? Let's break down the pros and cons of Fishbowl.
The Pros: Why Businesses Choose Fishbowl
1. A Powerhouse for QuickBooks Users: If your company runs on QuickBooks, this is Fishbowl's biggest selling point. It's designed to seamlessly integrate with both QuickBooks Desktop and Online, creating a unified system for financial and inventory data. This eliminates manual data entry and provides a more accurate view of your business’ health. Fishbowl will be your system of record for manufacturing and inventory transaction processing and reporting.
2. Made for Manufacturing: Fishbowl shines in many inventory environments. With features like Bill of Materials (BOM), Material Requirements Planning (MRP-Light), and detailed work order management, it provides the tools needed to track the stages of a production process. It provides control and visibility to manage costs and production schedules.
3. Comprehensive Inventory Control: Beyond simple stock counts, Fishbowl offers advanced inventory tracking. You can track items by lot number, serial number, expiration date, and more. This is crucial for businesses with regulatory requirements or those needing to manage returns and product recalls. Very relevant for consumer product companies.
4. Reasonable Licensing Fees: Like other software companies, Fishbowl has evolved into the world of annual and / or monthly subscriptions. Multiyear discounts are offered. Ecommerce integrations with platforms such as Shopify are included at no additional cost and rather straightforward to implement. Onboarding and Onsite Training is provided at a modest cost compared to other enterprise solutions.
The Cons: The Realities of Implementation and Use
1. A Steep Learning Curve: Fishbowl is a powerful tool, but its complexity can be a challenge. The user interface is often described as outdated and unintuitive and can lead to a steep learning curve for some new users. However, the supporting documentation is solid, and the Fishbowl Implementation Team does a good job of getting users ready to use the new system. Once you become familiar with the navigation use of the system becomes more intuitive. User investment in training is essential to ensure success.
2. Customer Support is a Mixed Bag: Customer service is not always stellar. Eventually you will get an answer to your question but expect the process to take one or more calls. The quality of support may vary, and for complex issues, you may be left to fend for yourself. Escalating an open issue to your assigned account representative may be required. It is nice to have domestic based support as opposed to being routed offshore.
3. QuickBooks Synchronization is not Real-Time: Fishbowl transactions do not post to QuickBooks instantly. However, syncing can be scheduled or pushed manually as needed. The sync process itself is rather quick.
4. Not a "Perfect" Fit: While Fishbowl is powerful, it's not a one-size-fits-all solution. Businesses that use different costing methods (like FIFO or LIFO) may find it difficult to adapt, as the software is primarily designed for average costing. Having multiple legal entities will also be a challenge. Custom reporting can also be limited or require additional development costs to get the data you need. That being said, recent software upgrades have provided for improved reporting and a partnership with an AI-based supply chain planning and decision intelligence solution provides a good added benefit for more complex organizations.
Final Takeaway
Fishbowl is a feature-rich solution that can significantly upgrade your inventory and manufacturing operations, especially if you're a long-time QuickBooks user. However, its power comes with complexity, and you need to be prepared for a substantial upfront investment in time and money for implementation and training. While it offers a cloud-hosted option (Fishbowl Drive), which is included in your licensing, it is fundamentally an on-premises solution, which may not suit businesses seeking true cloud-based experience.
Before you commit, prepare a detailed list of your core transaction processing and inventory control requirements that you can use to determine “fit” with the Fishbowl sales representative.
From a variety of sources that are from 900 to 2,500 companies relying upon Fishbowl to manage their manufacturing, inventory, and warehouse operations.
RJMC has had significant experience working through complex Fishbowl implementations. The results have always been favorable and definitely improved inventory management over the options provided by using QuickBooks alone.
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