Six Reasons to Adopt Electronic Proof of Delivery (besides the obvious)

In 2013, products ordered online generated just over one billion deliveries. By 2018, this number is expected to grow by 28.8% to 1.35 billion. This extreme growth, coupled with increased customer expectations at the time of delivery, has transformed a previously simple delivery signature into an opportunity for delivery workforces to increase both revenue and customer satisfaction.

Traditionally, the purpose of the acceptance signature was solely to verify delivery. With the advanced capabilities of today’s mobile devices, logistics companies can leverage solutions that meet endless ever changing customer expectations at the moment of delivery.

Using the GPS, sign-on-glass, camera and barcode scanning capabilities that already exist in mobile devices, mobile workforces can provide the real-time status and delivery confirmation that today’s consumers demand. In addition, there are many benefits that an electronic proof of delivery solution provides that can significantly impact the key performance indicators in every logistics company, including the following:

• Increase Customer Service. Having access to real-time data allows Customer Service to quickly and efficiently resolve customer queries and issues. For example, if a recipient is dissatisfied with the condition of a package when it arrives, the driver can message customer service and have an RMA issued on the spot. This relieves the possibly frustrated recipient of any additional responsibility or effort required to return the item.
• Real-time visibility. An electronic proof of delivery solution provides real-time visibility of driver and package location, proof of delivery data and operational updates such as accident reporting, allowing you to proactively manage issues in the field. For example, if a driver has an accident in the field, accident protocols can be automatically and immediately triggered, improving outcomes related to employee safety, insurance reporting, legal notifications, OSHA adherence, crisis management, reallocation of resources, media management, etc.
• Greater accuracy and productivity. The use of paper forms and manual data entry creates opportunity for information to be lost or altered due to human error. By eliminating the need for paper forms and manual data entry both in the field and in the back office, you improve billing efficiency and strengthen bottom-line profits while increasing customer satisfaction.
• Guided Workflow. An electronic proof of delivery solution guides your drivers through a consistent delivery process under varying conditions. For example, most often a signature is sufficient for proof of delivery. However, some deliveries have additional requirements, i.e., the restricted delivery of certain legal documents. The ability to prompt the courier to request to see an ID with the signature in a case like this drastically increases compliance.
• Better Data Capture. Paper forms are time-consuming to fill out leading to inconsistencies in the data captured by individual drivers as well as readability of their handwriting. They also do not provide a means by which to enforce the collection of mandatory data. By providing drop-down lists for certain fields on an electronic form, you can control what values are allowed for those fields allowing for better reporting and analytics.
• Go Green. Paper forms tend to be copied multiple times so that different areas of the business have access to the information on the form. Once the information is entered into a system, the paper form is usually discarded – creating an unnecessary burden on the environment.

An electronic proof of delivery solution coupled with today’s smartphones and tablets provides new and improved ways of interacting with your customers. In addition to providing a better customer delivery experience, an electronic proof of delivery solution helps increase your company’s efficiency and profitability through real-time visibility of driver and package location, elimination of time consuming paperwork, improvement in shipment accuracy and reduced time in billing cycles.