Since that jolly delivery guy, the elven operation and last-mile reindeer only exist in the minds of excited kids on Christmas eve — is it really possible to transport goods with less stress this Christmas without a delivery tracking system? As a mid-sized transport company, you know all too well that delivering freight at Christmas time, or any peak period, can be anything but magical. Between lost deliveries and unhappy customers, missed pick-ups and angry shippers, wasted time seeking important information and wasted money redelivering parcels and freight, it’s not easy or fun being at the logistics end of ‘Santa’. But there are delivery tracking systems out there that won’t cost a fortune and are easy to get started with.

In the lead-up to Christmas in Australia, over 75% of internet users prefer online shopping over traditional shopping(1). Consequently, consumer and service level demand for ‘in full, on time’ deliveries will sky rocket, again. Transport and logistics companies need to be ready, with supply chain visibility, to meet these requirements. In fact, the Australian transport and logistics sector is dominated by businesses who move freight with limited supply chain visibility; restricted by the high cost of complex IT systems(2). To improve business results, suitable generic IT solutions that help businesses monitor supply chain visibility and delivery events in real time, were recommended(2).

JINGLE BELLS (& WHISTLES) NEEDED FOR DELIVERY TRACKING SYSTEMS?

With deliveries from online sales set to boom—yet, many delivery companies find it difficult to make major technology investments like courier tracking systems—a low-cost delivery tracking system makes commercial sense. These businesses could start with an easy-to-use, fast-to-deploy proof of delivery app that resolves the fundamental challenges of supply chain visibility.

Logically, delivery companies recruit non-permanent contractors and temp-hire drivers to cover busy peak periods like Christmas. But how do you keep track of outsourced freight runs and ensure your contract drivers perform your deliveries correctly? Is there a way to help your temp drivers reduce the error-prone manual handling of delivery transactions, and simplify how they document completed jobs? If you could track every driver’s pick-ups and deliveries in real time, and record every end-customer’s receiving signature, wouldn’t that delivery tracking system information, alone, help your company better monitor the work done, and know what work you are paying for? Better still, what if your company could enhance your ‘completed run’ supply chain visibility via the very smartphone devices your contract drivers already own? And, what if you could quickly launch this delivery tracking system in a couple of days, not months?

When all in sync, your drivers use the Leopard Delivery Cloud™ app at every pick-up and delivery point. They scan the freight’s barcode, and record the quantity of items and location. Most importantly, your drivers collect the customer’s sign-on-glass Proof of Delivery (POD) or pick-up signature, via their touchscreen, to instantly verify the transaction took place. Back at head-office, the Job Centre allows management to see all the information entered by the drivers in real time and throughout the day. Every night the Job Centre creates spreadsheet reports of your company’s daily run details and collected proof of delivery app information for account management purposes. You can also easily add or disable driver accounts from the Job Centre delivery tracking system.

The seemingly simple requirement of POD or Proof of Pick Up, shouldn’t be underestimated in safeguarding your delivery service performance. In short, no-one is left in the dark about where an item is, or who’s responsible for it. What’s more, your drivers follow your company processes, which in turn, informs your performance and payroll obligations, plus promotes greater productivity.

SUCCEED LIKE SANTA

To successfully deliver your goods, minus the traditional Christmas delivery stress, simply request a Starter Registration Form by emailing register@leopardsystems.com.au. Complete and return the form, then you’ll receive your Starter account login. Your account includes your Job Centre, plus multiple smartphone access details for your delivery drivers to install Leopard Delivery Cloud™ on their iOS and Android devices. From there you can get started straight away with your delivery tracking system. Add jobs to your Job Centre. Link drivers to your awaiting jobs list. Your drivers can start delivering your Christmas parcels and freight immediately. Sound good? We hope you enjoy the supply chain visibility benefits of a proof of delivery app that you can set up today. Good luck with your deliveries and Merry Christmas! From all the team at Leopard Systems P.S. We also offer Leopard Delivery Cloud™ as a full-scale enterprise mobility solution. The Starter account can be expanded to an all-inclusive range of capabilities such as turn-by-turn GPS navigation for drivers, real-time GPS map locations of vehicles for head office, real-time job forwarding to drivers, push-to-talk audio communications, OHS & chain of responsibility checks, ERP integration, proof of condition or damage photos, and much more… If your company needs a supply chain visibility solution with more features and more functionality, talk to us today. —–

1. ‘Australia B2C E-commerce Report 2016’, Ecommerce Foundation, accessed 23 October 2017,

2. Elphick-Darling, R. et al. ‘Investigating the Potential Benefits of Enhanced End to End Supply Chain Visibility’, Austroads, Research Report AP-R538-17, accessed 23 October 2017.