Why fixed delivery routes no longer work for b2b companies
Driving the same delivery routes for years sounds easy, but in practice you run into all kinds of obstacles. You notice that you are racking up unnecessary mileage, fuel costs are rising and your drivers are on the road longer. Meanwhile, your customers are becoming increasingly impatient and demanding accurate delivery times.
All this adds up to stress, higher costs and dissatisfied customers. It's time to review your delivery routes and decide whether to continue working with fixed delivery routes or not.
Common reasons for working with fixed delivery routes
There are a number of reasons for not changing delivery routes and keeping them that way for years:
- Drivers know the route well and can drive it almost blindly.
- Less time spent on daily route planning.
- Seems cheaper and less time consuming at first.
- No addresses are dropped or added to our delivery routes.
- We have been driving the same delivery routes for years without any major problems.
- Our customers do not find it important that we inform them about what time their order will be delivered.
Are these reasons recognizable? What if you had a solution that gives you customized daily delivery routes and eliminates these pain points? Read on quickly.
Drivers know the route well and can drive it almost blind.
While it is familiar for drivers to drive fixed delivery routes, it can lead to inefficiency, extra driving time and fuel costs. By creating efficient delivery routes each day, drivers can take the most efficient route each day. This saves time and fuel, and makes deliveries faster and more accurate. By providing drivers with an APP that they can easily navigate, they know exactly where to go. Navigating can also be done by the driver directly from the APP, no more retyping into a navigation system.
Less time spent on daily route planning.
It may seem easier to use fixed delivery routes, but daily planning of dynamic delivery routes does not have to be a time-consuming task. With automated planning tools, you can quickly and easily calculate the most optimal delivery routes. All orders automatically enter the route planning software and with the push of a button, you have perfect delivery routes every day. This not only makes your daily planning more efficient, but also much more accurate. You can also easily make any rush orders or final changes after you have already created the route.
Seems cheaper and less time-consuming at first.
Fixed delivery routes may seem more economical, but they can lead to unnecessary costs due to longer driving times and higher fuel consumption. On average, companies can drive up to 30% more miles with fixed delivery routes, which directly results in higher fuel costs. In addition, it often costs drivers up to 20% more time on the road, which translates into higher labor costs.
With dynamic delivery routes, you ensure a more efficient use of resources. By calculating the most optimal route each day, you can save up to 25% on fuel and reduce your drivers' driving time by 15%. This increases productivity and reduces operational costs. Companies using dynamic route planning often see a 10-15% decrease in their overall delivery costs. This means not only direct financial savings, but also more efficient and sustainable operations.
No addresses drop out or add to our delivery routes.
Although it may appear that delivery addresses remain stable, in reality delivery addresses change regularly. New customers add, existing customers move or drop out, and some deliveries are cancelled or rescheduled. This can affect up to 15-20% of addresses each month. If you use fixed delivery routes, you have to track these changes manually, which is time-consuming and error-prone.
With dynamic delivery routes, you can effortlessly incorporate these changes into your schedule. By optimizing your delivery routes daily, you avoid unnecessary detours and avoid situations where drivers drive to the wrong or outdated addresses. This ensures that you are always following the most up-to-date and efficient route, which can lead to a 10-15% savings in fuel costs and a 20-25% reduction in driving time.
In addition, companies using dynamic route planning, such as with RouteLogic, can more accurately predict their delivery time and better respond to last-minute changes. This not only increases efficiency, but also customer satisfaction because your customers are always served on time and correctly.
We have been running the same delivery routes for years without any major problems.
While fixed delivery routes may run without major problems, this does not mean they are optimal. You may have been driving the same delivery routes for years and therefore think you are operating efficiently, but in reality this can lead to hidden inefficiencies and missed opportunities. Research shows that companies that do not regularly review their delivery routes can have up to 15-20% higher operating costs due to unnecessary mileage and fuel consumption.
Dynamic delivery routes offer the flexibility to continuously optimize your delivery routes. This means you can plan the most efficient route every day, taking into account new customers, changing traffic conditions and other variables.
In addition, dynamic delivery routes allow you to respond more quickly to changes. Imagine a new customer has been added across town or an important customer moves to a new address. With fixed delivery routes this would lead to inefficient detours, but with dynamic route planning you can integrate these changes immediately, saving time and money. This leads not only to increased efficiency, but also to improved customer satisfaction because deliveries are always made on time and according to the most optimal route.
Our customers don't mind us informing them about what time their order will be delivered.
In today's market, customers expect accurate and reliable delivery information. Research shows that consumers (B2C) find it essential to know what time their delivery will arrive. The time period of 9-17am is long gone; customers want specific time slots and real-time updates. This is true not only for consumers, but now also for B2B customers.
According to a recent survey by McKinsey, 70% of B2C customers say they care about knowing an accurate timeframe for their delivery. This percentage also reflects in the B2B sector, where customers are becoming increasingly demanding and expect the same level of precision and reliability as consumers. They want to know exactly when their order will arrive to optimize their own planning and operations.
Dynamic delivery routes allow you to exceed these expectations by providing accurate timeframes and giving your customers real-time updates. This not only increases customer satisfaction, but also confidence in your service. Dynamic route planning allows companies to narrow their delivery windows from broad time periods to specific time periods of, say, one hour. This ensures that customers are better informed and can better plan their own activities, leading to better cooperation and satisfaction on both sides.
With dynamic route planning, you can also provide customers with real-time tracking so they know exactly where their delivery is and when it will arrive. This reduces calls to customer service and increases the efficiency of your entire operation. Companies using dynamic route planning report an average 25-30% increase in customer satisfaction because customers appreciate the transparency and reliability this technology provides.
From fixed to dynamic delivery routes
You want to save fuel and time, keep customers better informed, but above all you don't want to be much busier than you already are. RouteLogic offers the perfect solution for companies that work with fixed delivery routes and want to switch to efficient delivery routes.
RouteLogic takes into account changing delivery addresses and new customers, so you always follow the most up-to-date and efficient route. This not only saves you time, but also ensures that your customers are served on time and correctly.
Benefits of RouteLogic:
- More efficient delivery routes: Reduce unnecessary mileage and save up to 25% on fuel costs.
- Time savings: Save 20% driving time through daily route optimization.
- Flexibility: Effortlessly adjust delivery routes for changing delivery addresses and new customers.
- Accurate time slots: Offer your customers real-time updates and accurate delivery windows.
- Higher customer satisfaction: Reduce delivery windows, improve communication and increase customer satisfaction by 25-30% on average.
- User-friendly driver app: Drivers always know exactly where to go and can navigate easily.
Plus, RouteLogic provides accurate time slots and real-time updates, resulting in higher customer satisfaction and fewer calls to customer service. With our easy-to-use driver app, your drivers always know exactly where they need to go and can navigate easily.
Companies using RouteLogic see a 10-15% decrease in their overall delivery costs and an average 25-30% increase in customer satisfaction. Choose RouteLogic and transform your delivery operation into a more efficient, cost-effective and customer-friendly experience.
Request a free demo today and find out how RouteLogic can help your business.
