i)Parcel maps:The system also generates parcel maps showing the route taken by the parcel. These maps also show the parcel status.
ii)Parcel delivery reports:These are detailed reports showing the parcel details, parcel log and the parcel map. It shows which employees handled the parcel up to the point of delivery. These reports act as proof of delivery reports.
3)Parcel Notifications
The system sends notifications to clients regarding the status of their deliveries.
i)Consignors (senders) are automatically sent notifications when
Their parcels have been delivered and to whom the parcel has been delivered to
Their parcels have not been collected within the specified time
i)Recipients (Recipients) are sent notifications when
A parcel that is to be collected from courier offices has arrived
Reminder if the parcel remains uncollected after the specified time.
The most notable features of D-Trail include:
i.User friendly interface- D-trail web based system provides you with a very easy-to-use interface with all system functionalities located on the dashboard. This can be seen after logging in to the system. The other sections of the system such as reports, sending parcels can be accessed at the click of the button. The system can also be customized to meet the needs and operations of every client, where the things like company details such as logos, report formats can be created in the system.
ii.Package status- The system allows you to check the status of the parcels throughout the process of transportation. The system is updated automatically to reflect the current status of the parcel, that is, if it has been delivered, or if a new parcel, or if it has arrived at a subsidiary office of your company.
iii.Rider/Driver Locations- The system also tracks the locations of riders. The distances are rider locations, maps and distances covered are displayed in the system in the administrators account. In case a client wants to have his or her parcel picked up from a certain location, the admin can easily find the rider who is nearer to the parcel and assign them the pickup job.
iv.Web based Tracking Reports- D-Trail provides you with various web based reports based on the details entered in to the system. The reports can be accessed easily by clicking the reports link on the dashboard. They provide information about rider performances, movement of parcels in and out of the company as well as parcel activities in subsidiary offices of the company. These reports can be relied on by the company management in making of decisions.
v.Automated E-mail or SMS notifications- The system sends messages to clients informing them of the status of their parcels. Both the sender and the receiver are notified of the parcels status at certain stages of the delivery process. The sender of the parcel will receive notifications when their parcel has been picked up for delivery, when it is on transit and when it has been delivered to the intended person. The receiver will be notified when the parcel is due for collection.
vi.Courier Personnel Analytics- D-Trail gives various analyses of the data recorded in the system in order to help you improve management of your parcel delivery process. This comprises of charts and graphs detailing the movement of parcels in the company, delivery rates of riders/drivers, performance of subsidiary companies. All this is geared towards improving your company’s parcel management.
The D-Trail mobile application allows for users to contact courier companies straight from the comfort of their homes or offices. The courier company will then come in to collect the parcel from where the client is. The clients will enter the details in the application, and then he/she will receive a verification code from the courier company. The code is to be shown to the rider/driver who comes to pick the parcel. The driver will enter the code in the system and the tracking process will begin. The client will receive notifications and updates about the whereabouts of his/her parcel through email/SMS.
For courier companies, D-Trail aims to be a stepping stone to better service delivery. With D-Trail, courier companies will be able to monitor the movement of their clients’ parcels and send them delivery notifications as well as manage their parcel records.
Courier companies face a lot of challenges. Most of them lack the capabilities to manage their drivers/riders effectively. They cannot determine the amount of time each driver takes to deliver a parcel, and how many parcels each driver/rider delivers within a specific period of time. Parcel delivery companies also face the other challenge of escalating overheads. The direct and indirect overheads relating to document collections and deliveries are quite phenomenal. Some of such costs include direct transport costs for motor vehicles, fuel, insurance, repairs, taxis, Postage costs for posting of letters within Nairobi among others.
D-Trail will go a long way in helping parcel delivery companies reduce the administrative inefficiencies they face. With the D-Trail application, companies will be able to effectively manage their parcels records, riders and their clients’ details. The system admin will be able to view reports detailing the performance of each rider/driver, reports showing the movement of parcels in and out of the company as well as any other subsidiary office of the company. The reports can be viewed in form of detailed graphs and charts. With this kind of reports, managers can make appropriate decisions to improve the efficiency of the firm.
Benefits of Using D-Trail
Efficient parcel delivery planning is the key to your competitiveness whether you are a national state-owned post responsible for round planning of addressed mail via letter carrier routes, a regional private mail or global parcel Delivery Company, or a door-to-door advertising company. The changes that latest technology has brought about in the business realm require businesses to alter their strategies and make use of the technology.
Whether it is delivery of letters to hundreds of thousands of addresses, express mail delivery with tight time-of-service restrictions, or the planning and optimization of other network-based functions, D-Trail provides the right mix of software and experience to help ensure that your organization keeps up with the demands of your operating environment.
Courier companies using d-trail can experience a lot of advantages the system has and will certainly be well positioned to be beat the competition and save more time, make more money and earn more clients. Among those the advantages a company is likely to derive from using d-trail include:
i.Measure your delivery performance: With D-Trail you can easily check whether you have delivered items to your customer’s expectations. If they paid for a Next Day delivery, you can use the delivery scan to check their item met this specification
ii. Confidence when handling customer complaints: With a d-trail tracking system you can access information that enables you to physically check the delivery details that your customers may make inquiries about.
iii. Know who received the item: If a customer contacts you saying their item was not delivered, you can use the d-trail system to identify the date, time and the name of the person who received the parcel.
iv. Confirm delivery with a delivery track: D-Trail enables you to monitor your delivery process effectively because you can find out exactly when an item was delivered. What’s more some the system updates itself automatically to reflect the current status of the parcel and the customer receives the same information through notifications! With this kind of system you will be well armed if a customer tells you their parcel hasn’t arrived.
v. Get the ability to track your parcel through the network: Tracking means you can easily locate the whereabouts of your parcel at the click of a button. What’s more if an item goes missing you are able to identify when and where it was last seen – and this is invaluable information to narrow down the search for your parcel.
vi. Peace of mind: This system will give both you and your clients a piece of mind. The system is easy to use; it updates automaticall
y and maintains communication between your company and the customer. No waiting for a phone call to say the item hasn’t appeared, or wasting time phoning around to check items have arrived.
vii. Professionalism: Items delivered by properly maintained systems often make a good impression on the customer.
viii. Knowledge: Knowledge, they say is power – and if you know where your parcel is you can respond professionally to any customer inquiries.
With the d-trail mobile package-tracking app, you can track your packages right from your Android phone. You can now relax and do all you got to do as your parcel is safely transported to its destination. When your package is delivered, you’ll know when to come home. D-Trail will help you speed up your delivery processes and improve on your service delivery. This will ensure customer satisfaction and will go along way in building your reputation in the industry.
For more details about the D-rail system and more insights about the parcel delivery industry in general, visit the product’s website at https://d-trail.co.ke and join D-Trail on social media at the following links:
Like the D-Trail facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/DTrailKenya?ref=hl
Follow Dtrail_Tracker on twitter at https://twitter.com/Dtrail_tracker
Connect on linked in at https://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=210895023&trk=tab_pro
Other Advantages of using the D-Trail System
We maintain the infrastructure which means you can now concentrate on your core business process of delivering parcels.
We leverage business analytics and reports to help you make the right decision for your business. From customer analytics, to rider efficiency reports, as well as ability to manage your riders across multiple offices efficiently.
Using our custom algorithms, you can intuitively direct the nearest rider to the next parcel collection point, or just view real time data of your rider’s locations and transactions.
Your clients get instant SMS notification on delivery, arrival of parcels, or late deliveries.
You get to send SMS’s to your clients informing them of promotions or any new feature of your service.
Using QR code makes data recording and authentication easy, fast and accurate. You no longer have to trace missing delivery papers.
You can generate proof of delivery reports complete with rider location maps and times. And where required, time stamped image.
System Requirements
In order to use the D-Trail system, you will need to register with the developers of the system (Doban Africa). For more details on how to purchase the system, visit https://d-trail.co.ke. Once your company is registered, log in details and the user manual will be provided to you and you will be able to have the D-Trail experience.
All you need to have is an internet enabled computer, android/java camera phone and about 7- 10 delivery people or more in order to fully maximize the functionalities that the D-Trail system brings to you.
CHPATER SIX:
THE FUTURE OF HOME DELIVERY SERVICES
The home delivery sector has been experiencing unprecedented growth in the last few years. Historically, home delivery of many goods was much more common in urban centers of the developed world. The range of goods that can be delivered to the home is extremely wide. They may range from groceries, small packages, large items, flowers, cooked meals, electronics and computer accessories, furniture and even water and gas.
The core of this market remains the agency mail order business and the delivery of high-value household items such as electrical appliances and furniture. While these services have been expanding, new forms of ‘remote’ shopping have emerged which also require home delivery.
The growth of on-line shopping is now responsible for much of the increase in van traffic in residential neighborhoods. Concern has been expressed about the economic efficiency of home delivery operations and their wider social and environmental implications. While retailers and carriers are keen to exploit new commercial opportunities in the home delivery market, local authorities are considering the resulting impact on the transport system.
Couriers, retailers and restaurants are all embracing home delivery services in order to appeal to their customers. With the growth and development of urban centers and increased home shopping, home delivery services have become a necessity to most urban dwellers. There is therefore need to tailor home delivery services to meet the requirements of both the customers and companies in order to accommodate future trends in the industry.
From the customer’s point of view, home delivery services would suit him/her best when the items are delivered at the time of their choice and when they are available. Customers also need reassurance of when their products are going to arrive while they are waiting, so they need to be aware of where the vehicle and the parcel are. Flexibility is also a feature that customers would like to see in most delivery companies offering home delivery services. When the items arrive while they are out of their homes, the delivery company should be willing to deliver the items at another location where it will be easier to retrieve. The consignors (senders) will want to see proof of delivery reports so that they know if their items have arrived in good condition at the specified address.
Courier companies act on behalf of the consignor to deliver items to their places of choice. Consignors would like to be represented by excellent couriers who would deliver the items in the way the consignors would do, if they were to deliver by themselves. Couriers should therefore be willing to go an extra mile in doing all they can to represent their clients in the way they want. Its therefore important for couriers to improve their delivery services so as to meet the needs of their clients and customers. There is therefore need to improve on their parcel management systems, employee management and improved customer relations.
Some of the issues that are likely to shape the future of home delivery services include:
i) Improved Transparency
This is in terms of letting the customers be part of the delivery process by giving them updates on the progress made on their items during the delivery process. This will highly improve customer satisfaction. Couriers and other delivery companies should have in place systems that can send either email or text message notifications to clients informing them about the status of their deliveries. Such messages may be as simple as ‘Expect your delivery in about an hour’.
ii) Proof of Delivery
Clients want to know about their deliveries. They need something as proof that their items were delivered in good conditions and to the right people at the addresses they specified. Some couriers use signatures to prove deliveries were made; others use photos of the recipient or home where the delivery was made. With developments in technology, new systems are in place to give evidence of delivery electronically, and notifications sent to clients.
iii) Real Time Tracking
The popularity of smart phones has made is easy for the gadgets to be used to provide real time location tracking. With appropriate applications, drivers, riders and all delivery people can join the delivery network. This technology also means you can know the actual location of a vehicle in real time so for a home delivery a customer can track the order being delivered or receive an automatic alert when the vehicle with their package is within a certain radius.
iv) Secure Drop Boxes at Properties
Courier should advice their home delivery clients to have secure boxes at their homes or offices, where their items can be dropped when they are not at the premises. The boxes should be lockable and placed at a secure location.
REFERENCES
Brown, Elizabeth F. (1988). "Business America, "Kenya's telecommunications market is opening up to U.S. suppliers", 24 October 1998". Business America. Retrieved March 16, 2006.
"Peter Kariuki, CCK speech, CTO Workshop on Telecommun
ications Competition and Privatisation, 5 March 2003". Retrieved March 16, 2006
https://www.cck.go.ke
https://d-trail.co.ke
The Courier Industry in Kenya: An In-depth Analysis Page 3