Helping distribution do more

Successfully running a busy distribution company requires a very particular set of skills. Fleet managers are tasked with juggling the demands of suppliers and customers, keeping vehicles on the road as much as possible, and ensuring staff are equipped to do their jobs – all while maintaining control of costs and efficiency. It’s not easy, to say the least.

To help meet this array of challenges, many turn to fleet management technology. Once in place, a comprehensive solution can help spot inefficiency, drive greater productivity, improve service levels and keep costs under control.

Below are four simple but effective ways that fleet management technology can help your distribution company to do more.

Improve customer experiences

Happy customers are the backbone of a successful business. And as they increasingly demand more from their services providers, you need to ensure you can continue to meet their needs. Or they’ll look elsewhere.

With a fleet management solution integrated into your fleet, you can customise routes by customer needs and delivery times. With near real-time location data at your fingertips, you can also keep your customers updated with accurate ETAs. And when you know exactly where your drivers are heading and where they’ve been, customer queries are easier to handle.

Reduce vehicle downtime

Having vehicles off the road can spell disaster for distribution companies, leading to costly delays, unhappy customers and potential losses. The matter is only exacerbated when vehicle downtime is unexpected.

Fleet management technology can help to keep your vehicles on the road for longer. Thanks to intuitive alerts on servicing dates and part replacement – based on mileage, time, or driving hours, you can take a proactive approach to routine maintenance.

This helps you plan for downtime and keep vehicles in optimum condition, reducing the risk of breakdown and unexpected repairs.

Increase efficiency

Fleet managers often feel like they need to be in a thousand places at once. Fleet management technology can give you the next best thing, offering simple, at a glance visibility of your entire operation.

With this information so readily to hand, you can create smart routes and potentially add more jobs to the working day. A comprehensive solution can also help you to respond quickly to new requests as they come in. Pick-ups and drop-offs can be assigned in just a few clicks, with existing jobs automatically rearranged.

Create safe drivers

When your business is driving, road safety is a huge issue. Accidents and traffic violations can carry considerable financial penalties, not to mention the potential for damage to your company reputation.

Data gathered on speeding and harsh driving can be used to monitor and score your drivers’ safety records. The safer the driver, the higher the score. These rankings can be used to reward top performers and incentivise others to improve.

Monitoring instances like these, along with idling, can also help you coach improved driving styles and lower fuel consumption.

Delve into your data

Your fleet data has plenty to say. But without effective fleet management software, it isn’t easy to understand.

With the right solution, you can monitor and analyse thousands of events from across your fleet, delivering information back to you in a simple, easy-to-understand format. This information can be used to help transform your business, increase efficiency, reduce costs and much more.

And such powerful technology is now within reach of fleet-reliant businesses of all sizes. Want to know more? Read our eBook to find out why Verizon Connect is the driving force behind many distribution businesses.

Or, to see our solution in action, book a free demo today.