8 Delivery Business Problems to Look Out For in 2022

0
699
8 Delivery Business Problems to Look Out For in 2022

With the ever-changing consumer preferences, delivery businesses worldwide are witnessing exponential rise and evolution, making it an excellent time to be in this industry. Having multiple options of easily customizable delivery route planner solutions, it may all seem lucrative for you on the surface with a huge market to tap into. But, the dynamic nature of a delivery business involves many underlying challenges. 

From maintaining operations efficiency to managing the correct driver ratio to keeping the fleets up-to-date, multiple challenges are awaiting your attention, as well as solutions, almost every single day. 

What are those challenges? Let’s find out through this blog to accomplish smoother business operations.  

8 Problems Delivery Businesses Should Look Out For in 2022

1. Dependency on Manual Route Planning

Let’s say you are setting up a plan for your next batch of delivery due for the following week. You have to look at multiple factors, including pick-up points, drop-off points, driver schedules, vehicle type and availability, the time window of delivery, and package size. Now, imagine doing route planning for the week’s orders manually. 

The process will not only be cumbersome but take up hours of your time. With zero assurance of accuracy, efficiency or optimized routes, risking your goodwill and business opportunities. 

2. Ineffective Real-time Routing 

In a delivery routing business, things change dynamically. Let’s assume the route you had planned for witnesses unexpected heavy traffic or the driver is unable to report for some reason. In this case, it becomes imperative for you to make necessary modifications quickly to complete the delivery on time. 

That’s when the capability of a route planning app to accommodate such sudden changes in real-time comes in handy. If your software doesn’t offer it or is not accurate enough, it may cause you significant delays and unhappy customers.  

3. Inefficient, Outdated Technologies

Using technology for optimized delivery route planning is not enough. You have to ensure that the software you’re relying on is of the latest technology, providing 100% accuracy, scalability, and optimum delivery efficiency. If you depend on an outdated solution, all you would get is flawed processes, unoptimized routes, delayed deliveries, and overlapping schedules. That would make it impossible to compete with other businesses using modern technologies and gain new clients. 

4. Changing Market Demands

A delivery business is highly dynamic, given the constant shifts in consumer needs and market demands. An offer that drew in a lot of takers a month ago may not appeal to the audience now, making it harder for businesses to survive. Therefore, for a smooth run, companies must understand the target consumer and market better through data analysis, which is everything but easy. 

5. Steep Competition 

Since there are too many players in the delivery routing industry, established and newbies alike, it raises the bar of competition higher. Besides, most of these giant corporations have access to funds, an elaborate team, and advanced technology, elevating the problems for relatively new or small-scale companies to attract clients and grow. Going niche and providing personalized services may be a solution. However, even that would take some time to click.   

6. Being Short-Staffed or Over-Staffed

Whether you are an established delivery routing company or a start-up, balancing your staffing needs may give you headaches. At times, say in peak season, you have so many orders that you end up hiring more people, including delivery drivers, to cope. Other times, it so happens you feel your organization has more than the required number of people. Navigating your way through these two ends can get quite confusing and messy.

7. Poor Customer Service

Delivery businesses, fundamentally, are consumer-driven with such high competition and rapid market demands. As a result, you may often find yourself falling short of offering the best customer service. It may be in the form of delayed delivery or late response to a query. Such seemingly small things instill in consumers a feeling of not being valued, driving them away from your business.  

8. Cost Control 

Running a delivery business can turn out to be quite expensive. From investing in a fleet of vehicles and its regular maintenance expenses to driver costs to staff salaries, the overall operations costs can often stretch your budget. Besides, there is a high cost per delivery depending upon the distance involved, order priority and continuous market fluctuations. The result? It becomes a struggle to keep the costs under control without compromising on the quality of services and consumer satisfaction. 

Conclusion 

Given the rapid changes, the problems a delivery business has to encounter evolve, too, over time. What we explored in this blog are some of the top challenges posing a threat to your seamless business operations and delivery efficiency in 2022. Switching to an effective delivery route planner is one of the solutions. However, make sure to identify your requirements first to get the most out of the technology.