GUEST COLUMN
Embracing Tech Should be First Priority in Last-Mile Delivery Customer demands and expectations are greater today than they’ve ever been before. Technology advancement ensures that last-mile logistics organizations in the UAE can remain at the center of the growth story that is expected to unfold in the coming years.
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ustomer demands and expectations today are greater than they’ve ever been. Consequently, one of the main challenges courier businesses face is the heightened intolerance today’s customers have of bad delivery experiences. One late delivery will send them to social media pages, where they will broadcast their displeasure far and wide. This hurts the market reputation and internal morale. One projection for the UAE courier, express, and parcel (CEP) market is a value of more than US$ 1.6 billion by 2028, with a CAGR of 7.5% across the next five years. This growth will be driven by consumers looking for convenience and businesses looking to fulfill their promises. Technology is the way to deliver these things and here are three key benefits to be expected when embracing tech in last-mile delivery operations.
Enhanced customer experience The business models of industry giants like Amazon are built on kept promises. If they say it is going to be there by 4 pm on Wednesday, then it arrives by 4 pm on Wednesday. Customer expectations rule in the digital economy. But another thing the business world has learned in the past few years is that modern consumers’ expectations go beyond the basic promise of on-time delivery. On-time delivery is a given. What else can you offer me? Technology can enhance a consumer’s experience of the order lifecycle before delivery. Instead of wondering whether and when their package will arrive, they can watch its journey on their mobile device.
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Technology allows companies ready access, through easy-to-use apps, to outsourced fleets to manage demand spikes.
While this is particularly useful when ensuring a recipient is there to receive the parcel, the capability can be extended. Customers can be sent notifications and pictures for confirmation of delivery if they are unable to receive it in person. Delivery time windows become easier to calculate and allow more deliveries per round trip, leading to massive cost savings that can be passed on to the consumer to further enhance their experience. And as a bonus, tech is so good at optimizing routes and multiple drop-offs that express delivery options become viable.
Lower operational costs We have already seen how technology can enable more deliveries per round trip, leading to cost reductions. Fuel prices are on the rise. This, along with a range of other factors affecting
