A parcel is a package essentially. In the mailing word, a parcel is any type of mail that is not a postcard, a letter, or a flat or large envelope. Most people think of parcels as boxes wrapped in brown paper or a brown box. Technically speaking, there is really no difference between a parcel and a package. The word parcel is more commonly used in the United Kingdom, whereas in the United States, package is more commonly used. When shipping, they are the same thing.
GetSwift offers an incredible parcel delivery software that will solve your three main problems when it comes to parcel delivery: lost parcels, parcels that are delivered late, and the wrong item shipped to the wrong address. GetSwift makes parcel delivery easy, with real-time driver tracking, route optimization for your parcel drivers, and advanced dispatching applications. In our continuing back to basics series, we’ll take a look at solving the common parcel delivery hiccups and tell you how GetSwift can help. Contact us today to learn more!
Common Hiccups in Parcel Delivery
Lost Parcels
Even with modern technology, parcels still get lost. This can be from a variety of reasons, such as their shipping information is wrong or incomplete, the parcels are small so they fall in-between cracks or get mixed up in bins, or they are just completely misplaced like being placed on a shelf and inadvertently forgotten. Tracking lost packages can be difficult, and more often than not, are simply replaced instead of found, which leads to lost revenue since you are shipping two items for the price of one.
Late Parcels
Late parcels are what will distinguish you from the crowded parcel delivery service market. When you deliver parcels later than promised, this is an indication of a fundamental delivery service problem. Often, this is where your parcel delivery software will shine and where you will see the most impact the quickest once implemented. Late parcels often come down to routes that are not optimized, so picture your delivery driver going back and forth instead of going in a relatively straight line.
Wrong Items
Depending on if you are a last mile delivery service or if you are the one packaging the items, this often comes down to the wrong item being packaged, although it can be a problem with labeling as well. Either way, when you deliver the wrong item, this is a loss in revenue as well because often you will have to return to the address to retrieve it, sometimes at no expense.
Sorting Parcels
Sorting parcels can contribute to some of the other common hiccups, especially when you lack a top-notch parcel delivery service. If parcels are sorted incorrectly, you may deliver the wrong items to the wrong addresses. If there is a delay in sorting, your parcel delivery will be late. And if there is carelessness or a rushed day in sorting, parcels can become lost.
Driver Turnover
Ultimately, a lot of the problems mentioned above can be attributed to employee error, which is why employees are so valuable. When you have a new employee, they are just learning the ropes, and there will be mistakes made. While this is to be expected, a high level of employee turnover not only is costly for the company in terms of training, but only increases the amount of errors made, which to the customer, only reflects poorly on the parcel delivery company. Furthermore, if you are pulling drivers to cover other routes, parcel delivery times will suffer overall — which, ultimately, is what you want to avoid.
Loss of Customers
While an error here or there is forgivable by the customer, if errors are frequent (this can mean even two errors), the customer will look elsewhere for parcel delivery services. If you are a last mile delivery service, your entire company depends upon on-time deliveries, meaning you could lose important contracts with other companies as well.
Choose GetSwift as Your Parcel Delivery Service of Choice
Parcel delivery is a surprisingly crowded industry. Many people tend just to think of the big players, such as the United States Postal Service, UPS, and FedEx. However, while these hold a big share of the market, the little guys play a valuable role, especially in local markets and in delivery services that the big companies are just not equipped to handle, such as perishable goods. To compete, you need a powerful and robust parcel delivery software that can optimize your operations and routes, schedule dispatching, track your driver’s performance, and offer real-time feedback to customers. Let’s face it, there’s something inherently cool in receiving a text message with the exact expected time of arrival.
GetSwift offers all of the above services and more. With unlimited integration capabilities, your parcel delivery software can churn out analytics that will allow you to discover inefficiencies, explore more routes, and optimize processes.
We offer a free trial, so discover today what we can do for you!
