Six Mobile App Ideas for Logistics and Transportation Companies

If you are with a transportation company, you might be thinking that mobile applications are not something that you require immediately. It’s true that mobile apps for transportation companies don’t get a lot of press but that is not because others are not using them. In fact, logistics and transportation is one of the prime areas where man-fold efficiency increase can be achieved with digitization.

I am sure that you must have heard competitors using technology and mobile apps to their advantage. Not considering these may leave you missing out on valuable tools for bringing more clients.

Here are six mobile app ideas for logistics and transportation companies. You can improve your processes by incorporating technology in to these parts of your business.

Last Mile Delivery

Last-Mile Delivery refers to getting a product past the last leg of its journey. Unfortunately, the last mile can be one of the most expensive. Your drivers likely know how to get from one big city to the next.

But, what if the product is being delivered to a suburb or a small town past that last big city? Even with GPS as it is today, it can be difficult for drivers to navigate to their end destination once they’ve gotten off the main roads.

Mobile applications have come up to solve this problem. With services like Bringg, Localz and LocoLogic you can deliver your product to a big city. From there, people who know the area will pick it up and bring it to the end recipient. This saves your drivers the hassle of navigating back-roads and suburbs.

GPS Tracking

Keeping track of where your trucks are can be difficult. That’s especially true if you have more than one truck making deliveries. Of course, you can call your drivers and ask them where they are.

But, what if your driver is between two landmarks and you get a vague answer? What if your driver is refilling the tank and misses your call? Best case scenario they answer you and are distracted from their driving. This can lead to accidents or missed turns.

Mobile apps can solve this problem too. Most phones these days are equipped with GPS. There are a number of apps that allow a user to track phones sharing an account on the app.

Using one of these services, you can keep track of exactly where your drivers are. This gives a variety of advantages over other systems. You will know exactly where your drivers are without needing to call them.

This allows you to know how much time they are spending on the road as opposed to at gas stations or rest stops. It also lets you create more accurate estimates for delivery and return times. No missed calls, no vague answers, no distractions.

When your drivers are off the clock, they can simply sign out of the app or turn off their phone’s GPS feature until they return to work.

Dispatch

Dispatch is an essential role for any transportation company. It’s also one of the most tedious. Knowing what driver is on what job is important for knowing that everything is getting done. There is lots of room for confusion, however. This is especially true because drivers are on the road and dispatch is in the office.

This is yet another problem that can be solved by mobile apps. There are a number of mobile apps, specifically for drivers. ‘Dispatch Anywhere for Drivers’ and ‘Driver Dispatch’ are only a few popular examples. These apps let you and your drivers keep track of who is bringing what where. Everyone has access to the same information from wherever they are. This cuts down on confusion in the office and on the roads.

Forms And Receipts

Dispatch isn’t the only way that mobile apps cut down on paperwork. Much of the delivery business is about forms. These forms track what was picked up where, what was dropped off where, and just about everything else.

Existing as physical documents, however, these forms are awkward to keep handy and keep in order. Then they need to be brought back to the office for filing. This means that reports are always out of date because the most current forms haven’t been returned or entered yet.

Many mobile apps allow you to create digital documents. These documents can then be opened and filled out from any mobile device with the app. They can then be uploaded instantly.

No more drivers jostling around with clipboards and pens, no more waiting until the driver returns to enter in the form. Delivery and dispatch companies can create customer service portals and apps for end-users to schedule delivery, get quotes, etc.. One example of such a customer portal for delivery companies is using Bringg API

Training And Assessment

Before drivers hit the road themselves, they often do ride-alongs with a more experienced company driver. This is a way for them to learn the ropes. It is also a time when companies are often assessing the skills of new employees.

There are many mobile apps that allow you to create quizzes and assessments. In many cases, you can also rank test-takers and compare their results with others. Introducing an app like this into your company could be valuable in a number of ways. It allows you to keep your new and experienced drivers engaged. It also allows you to incentivize high scoring drivers.

Revenue And Inventory

Finally, incorporating mobile apps allows you to keep your finances in order. By linking reports and point-of-sale, you can always know what your budgets and revenue are they change in real-time.

Linking forms with inventory software let you know how many units you have, how many you have sold, how many are on the road, and how many you need to order. By switching from paper or desktop-based applications to mobile applications, all of this information can be instantly updated and always in your hand.

Mobile apps are changing business as we know it. If you feel that transportation has been left behind by this change, it means that you are choosing to stay behind. You don’t need to make all of the changes discussed in this article.

Especially not all at once. You should be aware of the significant advantages of switching some of your processes over to mobile applications, however. From training new drivers to keeping track of current drivers. From knowing how many products you have to knowing when they get to the customer.

There is virtually no part of the logistics of transportation that hasn’t been improved by mobile applications. All you have to do is look for the apps that are right for you and make them a part of your business.

Want to know the cost to build a mobile app? Try our App Cost Estimator Tool for free