Go Paperless with ePOD 

In an ever-changing and growing tech business landscape, your supply chain operation should be digital too. 

At the click of a button, your logistics data can be electronic, accurate and accessible. What you’ll get is less paperwork and errors, within a streamlined and automated structure.

In the fast-paced supply chain industry, this is vital, so you can get orders out quickly and accurately to create a satisfactory customer experience. It also helps you track deliveries done in a day, to meet supply chain targets and business goals. 

In this article, we’ll talk about making your deliveries digital, using ePOD (electronic proof of delivery). In other words, having a sign-off system in place, right at the client or delivery place. 

INControl has got this tool for you, so you can control your delivery process and go paperless. 

Let’s get straight to it. 

What is electronic proof of delivery (ePOD)?

This is a digital record of all the information related to the delivery of orders. You can call it a digital receipt where the client acknowledges receiving one or multiple items from your company. This allows you to have a concise record and confirmation of completed deliveries, and at what times. You’ll also see the total number of products delivered in a day, the delivery address and contact details of the person who received the goods, plus more. 

No more paperwork sounds great, right? But there’s more…

3 advantages of using ePOD 

• Instant real-time data

With ePOD, you will know exactly what’s happening with your drivers in the field, and if you are on time with all your deliveries daily. Your office team can monitor supply chain activities effectively, which will create more synergy in your team. For example, they will have instant access to field data and can create follow-up actions, in real-time or at any convenient time. This includes reviewing POD data, generating invoices, resolving customer issues, ordering replacement parts, and rescheduling deliveries. Then, your drivers are also in control. They can quickly view orders and customer details, including any special instructions for efficient deliveries – instead of manually calling the office. 

• Fewer customer disputes 

Customer disputes can be time-consuming for your team and cause damage to your reputation. 

Equipping your staff with ePOD is one way to get on top of customer queries. They can capture proof of deliveries, which serves as accurate evidence, in the event of customer disputes. This is useful if a customer was not present to receive a delivery. Then, your drivers can take pictures of delivered items or record GPS time-stamped details, to show that the order was still delivered to another authorised person. This reduces the likelihood of complaints, wastes less time, and protects your business.

• Improve internal processes 

An electronic proof of delivery system lets you ramp up various internal processes and staff productivity. You’ll be replacing paper delivery notes with a digital data stream in real time, giving your office team powerful resources. They can invoice clients faster, and use the system to automate communication with customers, reducing call volumes and excessive admin tasks.  You and your team can focus on more important internal tasks such as warehouse management, making sales, and stock control. These are just some examples of how you can use the tool to optimise your processes. 

Come find out how INControl’s 4PL’s software solution puts you in control. Learn how to get on track with our ePOD feature.