The Importance of Order Tracking in Last-Mile Logistics

Almost gone are the days when customers would wait anxiously for delivery agents to arrive with their parcels—only for a van to pull up five minutes after they had to head out for an appointment.

For the driver of the van, arriving at an address only to find no one home is equally frustrating.

However, thanks to order tracking, failed deliveries are becoming rarer and rarer, and parcel delivery less frustrating for all involved in this important customer-centric process.

In this article, we will look at the importance of order tracking in last-mile logistics for customer satisfaction and why your business could boost sales and customer loyalty by offering this essential service feature.

Where’s My Parcel? Why Order Tracking Matters to Your Customers

Last-mile delivery, the final leg of the supply chain, marks the moment of a package’s transit from fulfillment center to your customer’s doorstep. A smooth and efficient last-mile experience is the key to customer satisfaction and can significantly boost business success.

The importance of order tracking in this process can’t be overstated.

According to an international study by delivery technology provider Metapack, 69% of consumers said the ability to track orders was among their top three considerations when shopping online. A sizeable 56% said tracking was a top consideration when ordering a luxury item.

Let’s look at some of the reasons why order tracking matters so much for customers.

1. Reduced Delivery Anxiety

Waiting for a delivery can be an anxious experience. Parcel tracking alleviates some of the anxiety by providing real-time visibility into the location and status of packages. It allows your customers to anticipate the arrival time of their orders, offering them an opportunity to reorganize their schedules if necessary.

2. Options for Self-Scheduling

Many companies are implementing self-scheduling options, enabling customers to choose their preferred delivery time slots. By tracking orders, your customers can schedule their activities around the requested delivery time.

3. Real-Time Notifications

Order tracking ensures that your customers are immediately aware of delays or other delivery issues, allowing them to adjust their plans to accommodate the changed circumstances. It also empowers them to immediately identify and report anomalies in the delivery process. That gives your enterprise the real-time awareness necessary to address these issues promptly.

Where’s My Driver? How Order Tracking Aids Your Business

So far, we have examined how order tracking benefits your customers. But it also gives your business a number of significant advantages.

1. More Intelligent Routing

By tracking drivers in real-time and analyzing traffic patterns, road conditions, and other relevant factors, you can make data-driven decisions for route optimization. Intelligent routing not only saves time and fuel but also contributes to environmental sustainability.

2. More Valuable Feedback

Order tracking provides an opportunity to collect feedback directly from your customers. Was the delivery process smooth? Were there any hiccups? Gathering insights from real-time tracking data helps your company identify areas for improvement.

Whether it’s optimizing delivery routes, addressing recurring issues, or enhancing communication, feedback from order tracking allows you to continually refine your fulfillment processes.

3. An Extra Security Layer

With order tracking deployed, you gain an extra measure of security for your goods-in-transit. For example, in the event of theft or loss, tracking systems provide data that can help authorities recover stolen goods and hold responsible parties accountable.

How Shipa Delivery Tracks Parcels

Shipa Delivery offers no less than five ways for your business and your customers to track parcels in real time.

1. Via Our Web App

This is a website where your fulfillment team and your customers can track packages. Your fulfillment team can enter the tracking number to track a particular shipment.

Alternatively, they can access their shipments by verifying their mobile number. Once their number has been verified, customers can track all their orders and edit information such as delivery location and delivery time.

If the number is not verified, customers can only track an order, without being able to edit the information.

2. Via the Shipa Delivery App (download from the Apple App Store or Google Play, depending on the device used). Once your customers verify a mobile number in the app, they will get a list of packages related to that number to track and, if necessary, take appropriate action.

3. Via our Website’s Landing Page

Entering the tracking number will lead the user to our tracking page.

4. Via our Dedicated Tracking App.

This website is dedicated solely to tracking. Users can simply enter the tracking number to get updates.

5. Via our Business Dashboard.

Through the business dashboard, you can track all the shipments and delivery orders made by your customers. You can also create orders and view the order history.

The following image shows the tracking updates in our mobile app. The updates follow a similar form on the other digital platforms listed above.

Let Shipa Keep You on Track

Visibility into the delivery process enhances transparency for your customers and builds trust in your brand. However, reliable tracking technology requires significant investment and constant updating.

Smaller and even many middle-sized companies may not have the resources to invest in a decent tracking system—which is when third-party logistics companies (3PLs) like Shipa Delivery may be the answer.

At Shipa Delivery, our experts have developed cutting-edge technologies, which are continually upgraded and refined. Our dedicated teams tap into these technologies to manage all aspects of last-mile logistics, including real-time tracking.

So, why not leave last-mile delivery of your orders to us while you get on with the business of selling, marketing, and growing your business? We operate fulfillment centers and vehicle fleets with skilled professional drivers, and, above all, we have the technology to give your customers real-time visibility into their orders’ progress.