Following nearly two years of disruption, expecting normalcy to be restored in the logistics industry, seems like a distant dream now. The pandemic wasn't the only hurdle. The Suez Canal incident, the Delta, and Omicron Covid-19 variants have caused logistics transport modes to be further affected. In summary, we must accept that disruptions haven't and won't stop. But the fact remains that the need for logistics to be resilient has been getting stronger every year. As we approach a new calendar year, a question stands before …
The fundamental aim of businesses is to help solve their customer's challenges and keep increasing sales. In a dynamic environment, retaining high customer satisfaction and growing revenue can get tricky. Customers in the freight industry are in a commanding position to get their demands fulfilled due to commoditization. This is because every freight forwarding company is offering a relatively indistinguishable set of services. Due to commoditization, it is only natural for companies to offer lower freight rates. Companies must realize…
The "Out for delivery" notification on our phones gives a feeling of joy. But only a logistician knows the effort to ensure the timely delivery of your cargo. In Logistics, delivering cargo on time is critical due to the contracts and larger supply chain considerations. To provide your stakeholders with estimates and timely notification requires a system that can track real-time cargo visibility. Knowing the progress of your cargo affects your internal team, vendors you work with, and your customers. Each has its unique…
Depending on the size of your company, poor logistics management processes can cost your company up to hundreds of thousands of dollars each year. Profit-chasing logistics companies tend to be more focused on saving costs. Such companies may head to the top rapidly but are destined for a crash at the same rate. Logistics companies are constantly involved in decision-making due to the volatile nature of business. Add to that the pressure from the competition to try newer ways to stay relevant. The answer to - What makes a company truly compet…
New businesses always begin with vigor and enthusiasm. There is an eagerness to explore new methods of conducting operations and attract customers. The freight forwarding business has also seen many startups that have disrupted the freight industry and others that have failed to take off. Although earning profit and market share is essential for businesses, they alone cannot form the basis of forwarders' plans. For forwarders looking for a fool-proof way to ensure a smooth ride, there isn't one available. At least, not yet. But there…
Although the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) market is expected to be worth $86 billion by 2022, it hasn't been a popular choice for small and medium-sized freight forwarders. Part of the reason is the belief that ERP for logistics and freight forwarding is not affordable. If you place costs before the benefits of ERP, you could lose out on the chance to create a unique value for your organization. The importance of ERP is realized when processes and communication start developing cracks. Globalization has been providing interaction …
Imagine a glitch in your customized software that leads to overcharging customers. Worse is, being a weekend, your software development team is unavailable for two days. In such an experience, you are at risk on two fronts: chances of losing a customer and continued loss till the issue is fixed. To understand the risk probability consider this: a PwC survey says 17% of people will walk away from a company after just one bad experience. If you are a Logistics Service Provider (LSP), then customer satisfaction gets more complex. For a logisti…
A positive experience has a lasting impact on us. And so does a poor one. How customers feel after using a service determines the volume of business you can expect from them in the future. Much importance has been given to customer experience in businesses in recent times. The fact that the global customer experience market is expected to grow at 11.8% CAGR shows why companies are investing in it. For freight companies, there are two touch points where you can influence and impress your customers. The first is how your staff or personnel int…
Since the 2020 pandemic, many companies in the freight industry have had to go through a series of changes. Some of those changes were meant for survival, to set off a transformation, or for establishing steady growth. As the times were uncertain, companies adopted ways to weather the storm. Now, as the pandemic is nearing its end with mass vaccination, forwarders are at crossroads to decide the next course of action in the new normal. The positive outcome for forwarders that survived the tough times was gaining the ability to be digital on …
Amid the market upheaval in the past few months, the brand's ability to communicate effectively with its customers online has become pivotal. Irrespective of the sector, businesses across the globe are quickly waking up to the potential of the mobile app. And the freight forwarding industry has been at the forefront of the adoption of mobility and mobile apps. In this context, it is vital to understand the wide-ranging implications of the mobile app that has already transformed logistics and freight forwarding operations to a great exten…
The steady flow of revenue with controlled costs is a definite way to head towards a profitable business. But with the commoditization of freight forwarding, it is not enough to look for profit by reducing costs. Forwarders looking to grow their profits consistently must develop stronger core capabilities to sustain in difficult times also. Smart businesses make optimal use of their resources to maintain high-profit margins. Spreadsheets and software with limited capabilities set boundaries to your growth, preventing you from maximizing your p…
Increasing globalization has changed the landscape of how cargo moves across various modes. Alongside the increase in the speed of delivery, there is a constant need to improve the customer's experience in the whole process. Among the suite of provisions you, as LSPs and business stakeholders provide, the impeccable management of documentation and the real-time cargo tracking must take precedence. Faster responses to questions like "Where's my shipment?" can satisfy a customer. If you're aiming for the ultimate customer …
Just when the recent pandemic seemed like the only disruption of the decade, the Suez Canal blockage incident came along. Bottlenecks and hurdles are bound to continue as long as freight keeps moving. Technology has been able to provide direction to navigate past hurdles and ease some of our troubles. Of course, some business aspects work best when technology is combined with human intelligence. The large-scale trend of remote working that set out in 2020 was for some companies, a makeshift arrangement. With the belief that such a way of wor…
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