How to Counter Last Mile Issues
Last mile delivery is the final step of a product’s journey. That journey takes the product from the shelf of a warehouse to the back of a delivery truck to the customer’s door, with the final element of the process being the point where it arrives at the door of the buyer.
Though it is an essential part of guaranteeing customer satisfaction, last mile delivery is also a taxing and expensive aspect of shipping that can cause a few headaches for companies. Here’s a look at what last mile issues are and the best ways to correct them.
Inefficiency Is The Biggest Problem
The final step of deliveries usually involves several stops with lower drop sizes. Depending on the area where the delivery takes place, it can be an arduous process. Rural areas, in particular, have delivery points that could be many miles apart despite only a handful of packages dropped off during a specific delivery point.
In cities, there are also issues because traffic congestion on highways and at major intersections will affect delivery points. Consumers are left frustrated when they see ‘out for delivery’ on their tracker, only for the delivery to be delayed for a considerable amount of time.
Such inefficiency hurts when you consider that last mile delivery costs exceed 50% of total shipping costs. Furthermore, with more companies offering free shipping, consumers are less incentivized to pay delivery fees, causing financial pain for logistics companies as well as retailers.
Crowdsourcing Is An Increasingly Popular Alternative
More companies across different industries are crowdsourcing their local services through digital platforms, allowing consumers to open mobile apps to do anything from buying food to securing a rental on vacation.
Retailers have caught on to this growing trend because of its low startup costs as well as lighter operations. Customer experiences with crowdsourcing have usually been positive, encouraging outlets to use it as an alternative method to counter last-mile delivery hiccups.
Crowdsourcing technology also helps logistics partners and customers make connections with non-professional couriers in their local areas to make deliveries. Online orders can be made to speed up the delivery of packages while giving consumers the freedom to schedule deliveries at their convenience, once address verification is sorted after signing up takes place. With added automation also factored in, this makes the last-mile delivery process an easier one for all involved.
Anchor Software, with its solutions for validating delivery points and determining if an address is a residence or business, is here to solve all your issues for better delivery of mail and parcels, as well as all your software concerns. Contact us today for more information.