Post summary:
- What is electronic proof of delivery? (ePOD)
- What is electronic proof of delivery software?
- Benefits of ePOD software
- Where to begin using ePOD software
Researching the benefits of any new solution you wish to consider is extremely important; typically, you might not have enough time to do that and give up the whole idea entirely.
Fortunately, GSMTasks has done the hard work for you and put together a comprehensive list of the benefits that ePOD software can offer your business. Whether you’re already sold on the idea, you’ll probably need to build a strong business case to present to your management.
What is Electronic Proof of Delivery (EPOD)?
Proof of delivery (POD) authenticates the receipt of goods, traditionally verified by customer signature on paper documents. Many organisations now employ electronic proof-of-delivery (ePOD) via mobile applications to capture relevant data and images, eliminating manual paperwork. The move towards “contactless” ePOD allows for GPS-tracked photos to validate and streamline the delivery process.
What is electronic proof of delivery software (ePOD)?
An electronic proof of delivery or ePOD is a digital format (usually PDF) of a traditional paper delivery order or delivery note.
ePOD software can be installed on different mobile devices and facilitates paperless data capture outside the office. It’s a great tool for any mobile fleet as it helps to control activities like service calls, deliveries and collections performed by your employees and gives more visibility.
The potential benefits of modern ePOD software are now recognized by many industries as it improves operations on and off the field.
Who benefits from electronic proof delivery software?
It doesn’t matter if your business is medium or enterprise; if you operate a delivery company or provide field services, every industry with a mobile workforce can use advanced ePOD software like GSM Tasks.
It can boost customer retention, reduce costs, simplify processes for your workers and improve operational efficiency to transform your entire operation.
Top 9 benefits of ePOD software:
1. Remove paperwork
It’s not environmental factors; with ePOD software, you’ll leave time-consuming manual data entry and long delays in data processing behind with lost or damaged paper delivery notes.
With ePOD, your office-based teams are provided with real-time data; you will vastly reduce the administrative burden of paperwork. Experience shows that it might take up to three days for companies to process paper-based proofs of delivery fully. With software like GSM Tasks, it will most likely just take you one.
2. Improve on-site service
Let’s face it: handing over a crumpled or soaked delivery document to a client will not leave a lasting positive impression. When the delivery representative is the only human contact your client has with your company, all customer contact must be positive and professional, boosting customer satisfaction rates.
After taking ePOD on board, you will not only speed up your processes but also improve your brand image and ensure your drivers have all the relevant information they need, including customer-specific delivery instructions.
ePOD software provides easy-to-use applications that will make your drivers’ jobs easier and thus reduce any stress they might have. It’ll be more likely they deliver excellent customer experience, and your clients will be pleased. Word-of-mouth advertising is a hugely influential advertising channel, and you should always ensure your customers become your best brand ambassadors.
3. Enhance customer communication
Customer expectations have evolved, meaning companies need to offer more proactive services and offer real-time interaction to their clients. Using task management and ePOD software like GSM Tasks will provide you with these options to keep your customers informed throughout the whole delivery process:
- Pre-delivery notification – GSM Tasks offers manual and automated notification options, meaning clients will receive an e-mail or SMS notification when their employees begin deliveries.
- Delivery tracking – the pre-delivery notification will include an estimated delivery time and an HTML tracking link, allowing clients to trace the route of their package.
- Post-delivery notification and ePOD – after delivering the parcel, the driver automatically sends out an ePOD to the customer and to the office staff, who generates an electronic bill in no time. The ePOD even includes a picture and instructions to the exact location of the package, but it is not delivered hand-to-hand.
Utilizing these options will build brand trust and keep your employees protected from false allegations or negative customer feedback. It will ensure your clients are aware of the expected delivery or service and can remain home or change it if need be.
4. Improve the accuracy and detail of POD
There’s only so much you can do with a paper-based delivery note, but with stellar ePOD software like GSMTasks, the options are more extensive.
Build your business-specific electronic forms with a photo-capturing option, checkboxes, notes or alpha-numeric fields. This will make the document filling-in process much easier for the employee.
Itemized forms will provide a more detailed overview of what’s happening in the field and improve the accuracy of the information you provide to your customers. As mentioned, include a picture of the drop-off point or the condition in which the parcel was handed over.
5. Enhance real-time visibility
Your office staff will benefit from the real-time updates and data from the field, as they can respond quickly to any issues. For example, if a package is damaged, they can review the photos sent by the driver and rearrange a new delivery time or negotiate a discount with the client.
Plus, they will have up-to-date information about delivery delays that might occur and reallocate jobs between drivers to avoid late deliveries and negative feedback from customers.
6. Reduce internal communication time
When using a web-based task management software and paperless proof of delivery documents, employees can receive daily tasks, instructions and documents via an app. Thus removing the need to come to the office to receive or return paperwork.
Employees can communicate faster through the app via messages and even in groups, so there is no need to make phone calls and risk information becoming lost or misunderstood.
All the shared information can be verified later if any misunderstandings arise.
7. Optimize workforce productivity
There are multiple ways to improve labour force productivity both in the office and field with real-time data transmission offered by ePOD software.
Here are a few ways:
- Drivers complete more tasks per day thanks to quicker on-site processes
- Daily KPI reporting is faster due to real-time data availability
- Office-based staff will be free for higher-value tasks thanks to the removal of manual data entry
8. Gather and monitor KPI data for improvement
Software like GSM Tasks simplifies the collection of data recorded by your workers in the field.
It allows you to automatically create dashboards for daily reports and trend analysis to identify areas needing immediate improvement.
Data is critical when making decisions that help you improve your service and eventually boost profit. Ensure the analysis is as straightforward as possible and doesn’t create extra work for you.
9. Share valuable data with everyone
First-class ePOD software should be easily integrated with your business systems and provide you with valuable data if it is to be used to enhance your processes across several departments.
For example, warehouse teams can manage stock levels and process returns more quickly, and the finance department can generate electronic invoices faster.
The customer service teams can achieve more proactive management as they receive real-time data about any delivery issues.
Where to begin using ePOD software
As you might have already figured out, it doesn’t matter which industry you operate in, ePOD software offers a range of benefits that help you improve your entire operation.
The ones listed in this article are just a few of them that will help you present a strong presentation to either your employees or management and facilitate the implementation of new technology in your business.
If you still have concerns about whether an ePOD and fleet management software will work for your industry, feel free to get in touch with our experienced team.
GSMTasks are happy to provide you with an overview of GSM Tasks’ features and figure out your precise requirements.
