Las failed deliveries They are the Achilles' heel of any company that offers last-mile delivery services and is even the main problem of companies that rely on logistics for the development of their commercial activity.

Logistic activities present great challenges but, without a doubt, the biggest of them all are failed deliveries. It is estimated that more than 1 in 10 deliveries are unsuccessful due, for the most part, to communication problems between customers and the delivery company.

Some of the most common situations in which failed deliveries occur and the origin of customer-company communication problems, according to the portal Eurosender are the absence of the recipient at the time of delivery, an incomplete or incorrect address or, even, problems accessing the recipient are some of the most common causes, among others.

The failed deliveries of Marcos, Silvia and César: a story of overcoming

As mentioned before, failed deliveries are a major challenge for many companies, not only those that focus their activities on the last mile but also for many others that rely on logistics for the success of their business.

Below we tell you the story of Marcos, Silvia and César. Three short stories that show the impact of failed deliveries on their daily activities and how they have been able to overcome them.

Marcos is a first-class chef

Marcos is the owner and chef of a centrally located restaurant in Madrid. Marcos is also responsible for making the inventory and receiving the daily merchandise for its elaborations. However, he also suffers from failed deliveries, since he told us that he had to change many dishes from his daily menu beforehand because the merchandise arrived late and without prior notice. This forced him to redo the menu at the last minute and adapt in record time, which has made him a first-class chef. Now, thanks to better planning and communication with their suppliers, their failed deliveries have been reduced by 97%.

Silvia's round numbers

Silvia is in charge of the logistics area of her company ecommerce, specialized in the last mile delivery of organic products. Before the incorporation of Silvia, her company had a 19% failed delivery rate, a very high cost for a small family business. As soon as Silvia joined the company, she could see the great challenge she was facing and looked for the main reasons why there were so many failed deliveries over the course of a single day and these were, in short, problems in communication between customer and delivery person. Now, Silvia has round the numbers, as the rate of failed deliveries has fallen to less than 4%.

César's customer satisfaction

Over the years, César has suffered from poor reviews about his company from customers who were dissatisfied with the services he offered. César had to find out what was the problem that most of his clients were facing and try to solve it quickly, in order to avoid the debacle of his company's image on the Internet. Over time, he was able to identify that he had communication problems with his customers, since they complained of not being notified when the service was performed (despite being carried out) or even of not having photographic evidence to verify that the service was being performed. César solved the problem as soon as he detected the problem and now has a better reputation and a score of 4.4 out of 5 in his company.

Marcos, Silvia, César and yours's solution for failed deliveries

As you can see, failed deliveries are a pending issue in many companies. A highly complex challenge within the logistics chain that leads us to prioritize knowing what its possible errors are and how to solve them. But what then is the solution? As any marriage therapist would also tell you... COMMUNICATION.

The stories of Marcos, Silvia and César are real stories of our clients who have sent us over the years and as a sign of gratitude.

Not having direct and effective communication with your customers and even with the drivers and delivery people themselves is one of the biggest mistakes in logistics.

Being able to enjoy direct and inattentive communication channels that allow customers to know when they will receive a package, to verify that a service has been carried out or what phase of operation it is in is key to effective deliveries and also to the satisfaction of all parties.

The transparency and effectiveness of the entire process is very important and both Marcos, Silvia and César know this. All of them were able to identify the problem their business had and found it in Routal Planner the solution. They saw Planner not only as an optimizer of delivery routes, but also as a platform for direct communication with their customers. Now all your customers have Information updated in real time in addition to also having delivery tests for the verification of the performance of the services.

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Learn about other effective methods to combat failed deliveries in our article “Optimize delivery management with proactive monitoring”.

The last days and the first days of the year are crucial in any area, both personally and in business. We take the opportunity to take stock of everything that happened in the previous year and, we also took the opportunity to set new resolutions for the following year, in order to improve and prosper in the nearest future.

At SmartMonkey we want to help you have a very prosperous and beneficial next year for you and, therefore, we are going to help you with what we do best: last-mile logistics.

If you haven't yet considered what resolutions you need for 2022, don't worry, we'll give you the keys. Below, we show you what logistics purposes you need to set for a successful 2022 for your company.

Logistic Purposes for 2022

• Improve customer satisfaction: User satisfaction with the service we offer must be one of our greatest objectives as a company. To do this, we must carry out actions that directly increase satisfaction and one of the key aspects for this is communication. Direct communication with users is essential, since in the midst of the digital age, we are used to being constantly connected and informed. With the use of specialized software, customers should be able to receive direct and real-time information about your purchases. For example, your customers should be able to know at all times where their order is or when they will receive it, among others. Therefore, it is essential that you incorporate mechanisms or tools that allow such direct communication and, therefore, increase your satisfaction.
• Reduce failed deliveries: One of the big puzzles for most logistics companies and the carriers themselves is failed deliveries. For this reason, it is essential to make every effort to reduce this rate to a minimum or even disappear in the coming year. But you may wonder, and how do I do it? Well, as we mentioned before, the communication is key. If you establish direct communication channels with your customers, not only will their satisfaction with your company increase, but you will also reduce failed deliveries, since you can set a schedule or ensure that your customer will be at home a few minutes before receiving the package. It's that simple!
• More sustainable logistics: La Green Logistics refers to all those efforts and actions aimed at measuring and minimizing the impact of logistics on the environment. In short, a set of initiatives to reduce the environmental impact derived from logistics activity. By implementing measures such as the reduction of plastics in packaging or the incorporation of specialized software to obtain efficient routes, we will make our operations increasingly sustainable, bringing us ever closer to the famous “green logistics”.
• Reduce route times: Have the route planning service, in order to ensure the correct management of the operation taking into account parameters such as mileage or travel time. With the right software, this will be an autonomous task, in which you will not have to invest time and with an optimal result, since it will always offer you the most efficient route.
• Proactive monitoring: La proactive monitoring It is the live monitoring of the daily planning of services and deliveries that warns of possible failures and errors while allowing us to react and adapt operations in a satisfactory manner.

Start the year fulfilling your resolutions and have a year of business success within your reach thanks to SmartMonkey Planner. Enjoy a free 10-day trial period.

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Before setting resolutions, it is time to take stock of the previous year to evaluate everything that happened and give rise to reflection. Learn about SmartMonkey's 2021 balance sheet in the article 2021 balance sheet: Routal's success story.

A few days before the end of the year, at SmartMonkey we take stock of 2021: a year as convulsive as it is productive.

Throughout 2021 and even with the pandemic of Covid-19 very present, many companies have been forced to change and adapt to that no longer so “new reality”. New ways of proceeding such as “contact 0” deliveries or the switch to a increasingly sustainable logistics.

We can't be unfair, because despite enormous efforts, 2021 has been a great year at SmartMonkey and you, the user, know what we're talking about.

We have established ourselves as one of the last-mile management platforms most highly rated by its users: more than 200 customers from around 26 countries rely on SmartMonkey Planner for their operations on a daily basis. And thanks to this, and because more and more people trust Planner as their last mile manager, we can say that 2021 is closing as a year that is very aware of the environment: thanks to the use of Planner, 332 tons of CO2 have been saved.

The secret to SmartMonkey's success in 2021: We listen to our users

As we mentioned before, our users know how important it is for us to listen actively in addition to meeting and understanding each other's needs.

Precisely for this reason, in 2021 at SmartMonkey Planner we have implemented great new features on our platform. We started the year with Highway and in April we switched to Planner: a new platform with a much friendlier interface, further improving the experience of our users.

Thanks to the trust of users in SmartMonkey, we are Constant growth, which facilitates the relentless implementation of new features within the platform. In the last month of November, we launched new features within Planner, thus meeting the needs that our users let us know.

Planner is one of the most complete software for managing the last mile, thanks to some of the recent features:

Creating Zones: the possibility of organizing your daily planning taking into account the areas where delivery people can go. You can create zones for different zip codes, neighborhoods, regions, or any division that is of interest to your business.

Tasks: Tasks are all those activities or services that are part of the same stop, regardless of their status (whether those in force, to be performed or completed). Add more information to your stops by creating tasks to include all the details of your deliveries.

Barcode reading: The driver currently has the possibility to indicate the tasks as performed by scanning the barcode from the application.

Mode of transport: currently, in addition to a car, you can generate your routes with a bicycle, motorcycle and truck.

Estimated delivery time: know at all times what the current time of arrival of a driver is at a specific service, at what exact time it has been canceled or if at that time he is in transit, while your customers have the estimated time of delivery constantly updated.

These latest news are added to the long list of features that we have today. From the optimization of efficient routes to direct communication with your customers and even to the real-time monitoring of operations. All this and much more is SmartMonkey Planner. If you want to know in detail how our customers benefit from all these features and many others, discover Planner's use cases: Plan and optimize your deliveries, Track your deliveries, Monitor your operations and Notify your customers.

Don't be left behind and be part of a successful platform and transfer it to your operations, sign up for Planner:

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Santa Claus is one of the greatest and most recognized representations of Christmas. A great, endearing hero and the one responsible par excellence for distributing thousands and thousands of gifts in addition to fulfilling a large number of dreams.

The work of Santa Claus at Christmas is commendable: distributing a large volume of gifts on time and around the world, without forgetting a single one. For this reason, he is a hero, a hero without a cape, as are all those people who are part of a company's logistics operations and who, day after day (not just at Christmas), manage to distribute thousands of products in record time. But what is their secret? How do they manage to deliver so many packages and always on time? Keep reading and we'll explain how to:

2021 Christmas sales forecast

The Christmas campaign is, without a doubt, one of the great challenges for companies in the logistics sector. The increase in Christmas shopping compared to other months of the year leads to an increase in logistics operations. Companies in the logistics sector must do their best to meet the high demand these days (Santa Claus is unforgiving!).

In fact, on specialized portals such as The Economist, highlight a forecast of an increase in shipping management of more than 7% compared to data for the 2020 financial year, which will lead to more than 160 million shipments over this period.

For this reason, logistics heroes, including Santa Claus, are not left behind and rely on tools that can provide all their gifts on time and around the world. Below we reveal to you the great enigma of success.

What is the big secret of Santa Claus?

Given the great impact on sales in practically all stores during the Christmas campaign, it is essential to have excellent logistics management to meet the high demand.

For Santa Claus, it is increasingly important to speed and efficiency when it comes to distributing your gifts: being able to reach all places and in the shortest possible time is a priority.

For this reason, implementing tools that facilitate logistics operations and, above all, help to efficiently manage delivery routes is vital on such a special date.

Here's what Santa Claus' great secret is for a successful Christmas:

· Un software specialized in the last mile: the implementation of specialized tools for managing the last mile is essential, especially considering the busy Christmas dates. Specialized software will contribute to your company's commercial success at Christmas, since it will allow you to plan delivery routes in a matter of seconds, as well as making them more efficient. With efficient routes, you will not only have economic savings, due to lower fuel consumption, but also time savings, since you will carry out the most optimal route.

· Direct communication channels with your customers: direct communication with users is essential, since in the midst of the digital age, we are used to being constantly connected and informed. With the use of specialized software, your customers will be able to receive direct and real-time information about your purchases. For example, your customers will be able to know at all times where their order is or when they will receive it, among others.

· Transportation: given the huge sales forecast for Christmas, it is necessary to take into account the company's logistics and transport capabilities. If, as we mentioned before, the increase in sales is greater than 7% compared to other days, we must weigh what the transport needs will be in order to operate successfully. To reach the total of the operation, you must Increase transport of the same exponentially: increasing one third of available transport, at least 2% if sales exceed 7%.

· Logistic staff: in the same way as with transport, it will be necessary increase specialized logistics staff to be able to carry out the day in a satisfactory manner. Taking into account that the increase in sales will be 7%, the available logistics staff must increase by the same number or, at least, by 2% more. Therefore, the workforce should increase by 2%-5% for that day.

Still not delivering like Santa Claus? Do like him and get all your orders to arrive on time and with great savings thanks to the use of SmartMonkey Planner. And if you know any stragglers who are still delivering on a camel, give them a gift and share this item (they arrive, but they always take longer).

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La delivery management It is one of the most important and important parts of any logistics company and, therefore, it is essential to incorporate the proactive monitoring in our operations, in order to carry out the provision of services in a satisfactory manner.

El Rise of online commerce, especially after the pandemic, is further evidence of the paradigm shift in terms of the purchasing habits of the vast majority of consumers, since a new scenario is being proposed where the great advantages of ecommerce, such as the convenience of shopping anywhere or the possibility of buying products and prices.

Taking into account that this e-commerce model is here to stay and will most likely grow and innovate in the coming years, it is essential to ensure optimal management of logistics resources in order to offer efficient and satisfactory delivery management for customers.

In this regard, organization, efficiency and, especially, the ease of adaptation in deliveries are key factors in achieving fast and optimal deliveries. All of this will contribute greatly to the satisfaction of our customers and, therefore, to the good image of our company.

For all these reasons and given the importance of managing deliveries, today many companies have chosen to implement specialized software in the last mile to carry out the operation of deliveries in an efficient manner. The incorporation of specialized tools for last-mile management in logistics companies is the solution to many of the inconveniences that may arise, such as poor planning in deliveries or keeping an exhaustive monitoring of operations in order to carry out a more productive and satisfactory delivery.

Proactive monitoring

As stated before, delivery management is already a determining factor in the proper functioning of any logistics company and the implementation of tools to help us manage it is becoming increasingly important.

In this regard, it is important to take into account concepts such as proactive monitoring.

What is proactive monitoring?

La proactive monitoring It is the live monitoring of the daily planning of services and deliveries that warns of possible failures and errors while allowing us to react and adapt operations in a satisfactory manner.

What should good proactive monitoring look like?

Precisely, adequate proactive monitoring must have sufficient tools and functionalities that allow our operations to react favorably in time.

In this way, it is essential that Let's incorporate delivery management tools that have proactive monitoring and that it be comprehensive enough.

To keep in mind, good monitoring must have the possibility of carrying out the Real-time monitoring of operations: to be able to view at any time and live what the operation is going on.

In addition, and in relation to the real-time monitoring of operations, it is essential that it incorporates sufficient functions that allow a timely reaction to possible failures or errors. For example, it's important to consider the possibility of change in the order of stops or services. In the event of an unforeseen event and we must give priority to one stop over the rest, it will be essential that we have the right tool that allows us to make this change easily.

On the other hand, it is also important in terms of proactive monitoring, that our delivery management software also has the possibility of being able to carry out a change in the assignment of services between one driver and another. For example, thanks to the live view, we can see how one of our drivers must deviate from the route and there is one stop waiting to be made: in this case, we can easily change the assignment of that stop from one driver to another, so that said stop or service can be performed correctly.

Proactive monitoring is also very important when it comes to our customers. Thanks to being able to carry out an exhaustive and live monitoring of the operation, it will be possible to give our customers timely notice of, for example, a delay, which will have allowed them to react and then be able to perform the service efficiently.

All of these features and functions of proactive monitoring are essential, but it is also important to consider the magnitude of the operation and how stressful it can be. Therefore, it is also important to keep in mind that proactive monitoring can be done in a way comfortable and friendly: to be able to know what is happening on a single screen and without having to press the different Inputs on a consistent basis.

To do this, we must incorporate a tool that allows proactive monitoring to be possible and complete but, in addition, that it is independent and that we only have to have the screen open without having to be constantly aware, but simply to see sideways that everything is going as planned or that some of the routes are having unexpected behavior. That's when we'll need to pay attention and identify how to solve the problem.

Differences between proactive and reactive monitoring

Although it is true that more and more companies are betting on continuous improvement and are incorporating mechanisms such as monitoring given their great benefits, there are still laggards that are left behind doing reactive monitoring, a way of proceeding that is currently obsolete.

By proactively monitoring, we can move forward to potential problems. An informed customer at all times allows us to act quickly in the face of any incident, offering solutions proactively, such as arriving later than expected. Being proactive allows us to move forward to possible problems that may arise and not only to avoid them, but also to think about customer satisfaction by offering solutions and alternatives, which they will undoubtedly value very positively.

On the other hand, reactive monitoring does not contemplate possible problems that may arise. It only takes them into account once they have occurred, usually when the wait is longer than usual. At that point, it's too late to provide a satisfactory solution to the customer.

The usual case, when a customer makes the decision to call. This situation is usually due to the lack of information and visibility to the customer, which does not allow them to adapt their daily lives to the operational one. This situation creates stress and uncertainty for the client. The call is a sign that any changes we make to meet that customer's demand will generate extra delays for the rest and not only that, the added pressure for drivers.

With SmartMonkey Planner you can enjoy all the advantages of being able to carry out proactive monitoring, since it is a software specialized in last mile management that has a multitude of functions so that you can easily monitor and adapt your operations at any time.

If you want to position yourself ahead of your competitors, join Planner. In addition, you can sign up now without obligation, we have a free 10-day trial period.

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Do you want to know if you make some of the most common mistakes in the last mile and how to fix them? Go to our article The 4 mistakes to avoid in the last mile and we explain it to you.

With the rise of e-commerce and, especially, after the events of the COVID-19 pandemic, the delivery of Last mile has become increasingly complex.

This is a stage that is still present, as many companies struggle to cover each and every one of the customer's needs: satisfactory and fast deliveries, contactless, flexible deliveries or with an efficient reverse logistics policy, among others.

In order to meet all of these expectations (and many others!) , logistics companies are required to redesign their last-mile strategy in order to continue in an increasingly competitive market. It is therefore essential to consider new ways of proceeding with last-mile delivery, since traditional logistics models have become obsolete, since they will not be commensurate with the current expectations of users.

In this case, the scanning is the key piece of this puzzle, since it will be what will allow your company to keep up to date within the sector. In this regard, articles such as the The digitalization of the Logistics Sector, everything you need to know about the company of the company Spring Professional, emphasizes the importance of digitalization in a sector as challenging as logistics.

Here are the aspects you should consider when selecting appropriate and efficient last-mile management software.

Easy deployment

There are countless tools on the market that aim to manage the last mile. However, not all of them meet the first essential requirement: easy implementation.

By this we mean to easily incorporate software, without the need to invest significant human, technical or temporary resources. You should buy software that makes your work easier and doesn't increase it, logical, right? Choose a tool that is easy and quick to implement, which in a matter of a few hours you can use at 100%, without having to invest too much time in explanations or meetings. Choosing complex tools makes it harder for people who have to use it on a daily basis to be more difficult to adopt and tend to keep doing things as usual.

3-in-1 tool

The last mile encompasses many processes, all of them of equal relevance. Therefore, it is very important that you consider choosing an appropriate software that covers all possible needs. The three fundamental pillars you should look for in a route manager are the following:

Planning: it must have the route planning service, in order to ensure the correct management of the operation taking into account parameters such as mileage or travel time. With the right software, this will be an autonomous task, in which you will not have to invest time and with an optimal result, since it will always offer you the most efficient route.

Tracking: In the same way as planning, being able to monitor the operations in real time will be very useful for you to be able to face changes or possible setbacks that arise.

Communication: Being able to keep your customers informed at all times to notify them of the change in the status of the service or even that they can monitor their service in real time is already another requirement of any platform. Transparency and direct communication with users is essential for their satisfaction with our company.

Flexibility

As we mentioned before with the planning and monitoring process, there may be changes throughout the operation that hinder the success of the operation, for example, a change of schedule. Therefore, it is necessary to have a tool that has sufficient flexibility to be able to make such changes throughout the operating process, such as being able to modify schedules as needed or to transfer a service from one driver to another, among others.

Honest costs

Sometimes it is likely that we are very clear about the needs of our operations but, on the other hand, we do not choose the right software because they can have exorbitant costs or hidden costs of implementation, training or integration. It is important to prioritize when choosing a tool that adapts to the costs of our operations and has a fixed price per license.

Many software charge their customers for services performed with countless extras. Imagine that you have hired a last-mile management tool that charges you for each service performed and, in your case, you have had a very good month with many services. Would it really be a successful month for you? Because a large part of your income would go to software and not to you. So now you know, you don't have to share your successes, be smart!

Guaranteed support

Everything mentioned so far wouldn't make sense if you don't have the support you need, especially when you're starting out with the tool. Look for a last-mile manager who can guarantee you adequate and personalized support at all times. Run away from big corporations with answering machines and choose help One to One.

And now that you know everything to look for in specialized software in the last mile, don't you know where to start? Choose the one that Do everything. Impossible? Not at all! With SmartMonkey Planner you have all these features and many more.

If you want to position yourself at the top of logistics, join Planner. In addition, you can sign up now without obligation, we have a free 10-day trial period.

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Do you want to know if you make some of the most common mistakes in the last mile and how to fix them? Go to our article The 4 mistakes to avoid in the last mile and we explain it to you.

La Last mile is an essential part of the delivery process, since it plays a key role in user satisfaction and, consequently, in the success of the company itself.

It is important to emphasize the parameter of the satisfaction of our users since they, having a bad experience or being dissatisfied with the business activity we carry out, would turn to other competing providers. In addition, they would also highlight the negative experience regarding our company to other potential customers. For this reason, it is essential that in the logistics sector, we analyze what the main problems are in this last mile and, above all, how to solve them.

The Last Mile: The Great Challenge

As we have anticipated before, the last mile is the most challenging part of the logistics process given the great complexity involved, so identifying possible errors and possible solutions is of vital importance.

Here are some of the most common errors in the last mile and how to resolve them.

Outdated planning strategy: times change and with them the ways of proceeding. Living entrenched in the past is a mistake and this can be applied to practically any field, including logistics. Until very recently, last-mile planning was carried out manually: a single person responsible for drawing up that impossible “sketch” of hundreds of deliveries on the same route and with numerous drivers. This way of proceeding is the first big mistake: thinking that the way it has been done is always right.

It is often said that “adapt or die” and this is an example of this. It is crucial to adapt to the new times through the use of digital tools that allow last-mile planning. Thanks to the use of software specialized in managing the last mile, such as SmartMonkey Planner, better results are achieved in route efficiency, user satisfaction (direct communication with customers), savings in planning time (now it's a matter of a few minutes) and significant economic savings also in fuel.

Poor communication: Not having direct and effective communication with users and even with the drivers themselves is also one of the biggest mistakes in the last mile. Having direct communication channels that allow customers to know when they will receive a package or what phase of the operation it is in is key to their satisfaction. The transparency and effectiveness of the entire process is very important for your success and, consequently, ours as a company. At SmartMonkey Planner, we have a direct communication platform through emails in real time, so that operations leave that problem behind and become a pleasant common experience.

Low flexibility: as mentioned before, anchoring in the past is a mistake, since we are in a digitalized and constantly changing world. For this reason, it is necessary to implement last-mile management software that allows the flexibility required by logistics, such as schedule changes or the variability of service and driver assignments. It is necessary to have a tool that has this flexibility to ensure an optimal and efficient service.

A bad implementation: all the errors mentioned so far can be truncated in their solution if a good implementation has not been achieved. It is a priority to implement last-mile management software that has an efficient, fast and optimal implementation. With this we are not only referring to the most technical aspects but also to the human aspects: implementing a tool that is easy to use, so that it can begin to be used effectively in a matter of hours and not over weeks or months. An example of this is the company's success story. Prio Energy, who have been able to start optimizing production routes with literally 1 meeting and a 20-minute demonstration.

“Digital transformation is no longer a source of competitive advantage, it's a ticket to stay in the game”

Pablo Martinez — SmartMonkey CTO

If you want to solve all these problems and many more, join Planner

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Do you want to know more solutions for the logistics market? We recommend that you read the article How to increase logistics productivity: the 4 key aspects you must consider to increase logistics efficiency.

On November 26th, in exactly 10 days, a new edition of the Black Friday.

El Black Friday or Black Fridayor is it a commercial event of American origin that is held every year for a day: always on the last Friday of the month of November.

On the occasion of the opening of the Christmas shopping season, great discounts and offers are offered throughout Black Friday in large and small stores, both electronic and traditional.

Black Friday and the Last Mile

Given the enormous impact of this “Black Friday”, a large part of businesses are positively affected on this day, especially e-commerce. According to studies shown in Lobocom,”E-commerce companies increase their turnover by 35% on average during the week of Black Friday”. In addition, the fact about the comparison with Christmas shopping also stands out, “since The benefits may even exceed the Christmas campaign”.

In this regard, it should be noted that the month of November is the month of the year with the highest number of sales, thus surpassing the hitherto unbeatable months of December (Christmas campaign) or January (sales campaign).

In this way, and taking into account the great benefits and business repercussions of this important date, it is essential to formulate a strategy prior to Black Friday, in order to guarantee success in our company.

Preliminary market study

As we mentioned before, a prior approach is essential in addition to creating a strategy focused on Black Friday. Here are some of the key aspects you should consider when carrying out a previous study:

· Knowledge of market trends: know what the dynamics of the market are in terms of purchasing patterns, products or services most in demand or, even, purchase method (in-store pickup, home delivery, etc.), among others. Knowledge of all or some of these trends will help us to establish a more precise and, consequently, more beneficial strategy.

· Analysis of our consumers: in relation to market trends, it is also essential to know our own users or potential customers in depth. Knowing what they want, what they need and how they want to achieve it will provide us with a lot of information to direct a focused and efficient strategy.

· Black Friday marketing strategy: knowing the market and our potential consumers will help us to implement a marketing strategy focused solely and exclusively on Black Friday. Strategies such as email marketing campaigns in the previous days, publications on social networks or even banners and pop-ups within the website itself may be considered.

How to prepare your logistics last mile for a successful Black Friday

Given the enormous success of this “Black Friday” and the great impact on sales in practically all the stores participating in this “black day”, it is essential to establish a logistical preparation prior to this day.

For users, it is increasingly important to speed and efficiency in your purchases. Make a quick and convenient purchase: from anywhere (at home or from the beach) and receive it in the shortest possible time. This entire process is one of the most important aspects for users and one of the most difficult logistically for any company.

For this reason, implementing tools that facilitate logistics operations and, above all, help to efficiently manage delivery routes is vital on such a special date.

Here's how you should prepare for Black Friday in your store:

· Using specialized software in the last mile: the implementation of tools on such an important date as Black Friday will be a fundamental part of your company's commercial success. Tools such as SmartMonkey Planner they will help you to cope with this frenetic sales day in addition to Increase profits, because with Planner you'll plan routes in an intelligent way: the program itself will result in the fastest and most efficient routes in a matter of seconds. With efficient routes, you will not only have economic savings, due to lower fuel consumption, but also time savings, since you will carry out the most optimal route.

· Direct communication channels with your customers: direct communication with users is essential, since in the midst of the digital age, we are used to being constantly connected and informed. With the use of software such as Planner, your customers will be able to receive direct and real-time information about your purchases. For example, your customers will be able to know at all times where their order is or when they will receive it, among others.

· Transportation: given the enormous sales forecast on this date, it is necessary to take into account the company's logistics and transport capabilities. If, as we mentioned before, the increase in sales is greater than 35% compared to other days, we must weigh what the transport needs will be in order to operate successfully. To reach the total of the operation, you must Increase transport of the same exponentially: increasing one third of available transport, at least 10% if sales exceed 35%.

· Logistic staff: in the same way as with transport, it will be necessary increase specialized logistics staff to be able to carry out the day in a satisfactory manner. Taking into account that the increase in sales will be 35%, the available logistics staff must increase by the same number or, at least 10% less. Therefore, the workforce should increase by 25%-35% for that day.

But there are 10 days left, am I still on time?

Of course! One of our greatest achievements at SmartMonkey is, precisely, having launched it to the market the most user-friendly last-mile management tool on the market. In fact, a recent case is that of the Portuguese company Prio, a company that has been able to start optimizing production routes with literally 1 meeting and a 20-minute demonstration.

Don't be less, and do like Prio. Try Planner and start enjoying all the benefits.

Create a schedule in a few minutes with this step-by-step

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Do you want to know more about Black Friday and what are the forecasts for the 2021 edition? Go to our article Black Friday: 50 days until the biggest logistics challenge of the year and find out.

The trend towards digitalization has brought new forms of purchase among users, thus giving rise to Ecommerce.

El e-commerce or Ecommerce is defined as the purchase and sale of products or services over the internet.

Currently, the relationship between Logistics and the Ecommerce has become so important that the first has become one of the fundamental pillars of the second, since the logistics industry is indispensable for the success of ecommerce. For this reason, for companies that focus their business activity on Internet sales, logistics is one of the most careful processes, since the satisfaction of their customers and the shopping experience will depend on it, especially on last mile.

Advantages of Ecommerce

Below, we show you what are the main advantages of implementing a ecommerce compared to a traditional business with the help of the specialized blog Ecommerce News:

• No geographical limitations
• wider range of products and services
• Reducing costs
• Greater ease of purchase for users in addition to a saving in time spent on the purchase
• Easier to develop marketing strategies
• Increased transparency and information for customers
• Possibility to offer a comparison of products with respect to their prices and characteristics
• No time limit

Ecommerce and the Last Mile

La Last mile corresponds to the final stage of the delivery of the order. It is one of the steps that increase logistics costs the most, due to factors such as traffic, urban limitations or inefficient routes in daily deliveries (which will later result in delays in orders, among others).

How to optimize the management of the last mile?

• Establish strategies in the delivery conditions: use collection points after failed deliveries, direct communication with the user about the status of the package, etc. Also, with regard to transportation, grouping orders by area or the use of light vehicles with better urban mobility.
• Use transportation route management software: optimize the routes that are going to be taken in the distribution of packages so that they are as efficient as possible. With this, we will achieve not only a significant reduction in fuel costs, but also a reduction in the time spent on routes and, consequently, an increase in profits. In addition, optimizing routes will make your company a much more sustainable company.

With SmartMonkey Planner you can enjoy all the advantages offered by a ecommerce thanks to our advanced software, which allows you to establish direct communication with your customers, have traceability of deliveries, optimize routes, and much more!

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Do you want to know what are the 5 key tools for an ecommerce? Go to our article Ecommerce: 5 essential tools to survive in 2021 and find out.