Raising the bar with excellent customer experience in logistics

 

The recipe for a successful business has customer experience as one of the major ingredients. Customer service has long moved from "good to have" to a "must-have". The realization that good customer experience is conducive to growth and faring better in competition has companies investing increased resources towards it. 

According to Gartner's research, 89% of companies now expect to compete mostly based on customer experience.

The demand for a heightened experience emanates from the tech-savvy and informed customer. In the logistics domain too, customers are no longer satisfied with half-baked information. Customer concerns have now evolved from "has my cargo been delivered?" to "how can I track my shipment's progress?".

Distinguishing yourself among Logisticians

Logistics customer experience has matured greatly in importance and strategizing. An overall pleasant experience guarantees you long-term business. Excellent customer service is critical to competing effectively. When price and speed don't differentiate between logistics service providers, value-added services give you the edge. 

As your customers are serving their customers, it makes them answerable if the delivery schedule or state of cargo are affected. Logistics is ultimately a responsibility. Incoterms and contracts state the risks and boundaries as part of a shipper and logistician. But delays and mishaps are unavoidable. In such situations, timely and clear communication does not hamper the trust between you and your customer.

What do customers expect from you?

Keep the customer in mind and ask yourself what they expect when they avail your services. Broadly a customer's expectations are:

  • On-time and safe delivery
  • Paying the right price

As simple as it sounds, for logisticians, these two expectations are truly the essence of the logistics business. Bringing down the price and ensuring safe and timely delivery is as complex as it can get. 

And how you can get started in meeting those expectations

To truly simplify a complex multi-vendor, multi-leg movement of cargo across borders, technology is immensely beneficial. The first step towards ensuring on-time delivery is mapping various routes and forecasts to avoid routes with constant or possible delays. Implementing transport management software helps streamline your vendors and keep them connected in real-time. With visibility, you are immediately alerted of possible delays and take proactive steps to keep the schedule on track.

To provide the customer with the right price, you must keep track of each of your expenses. Billing software will probably be the easiest to get started with. But individual solutions for each function are the biggest hurdle in consolidating financial and accounting statements. To set the right price for your services, your logistics business needs a logistics ERP. The idea is to have a one-stop solution that can help manage your end-to-end needs - from knowing the right price to ensuring on-time delivery and keeping the customer informed on all updates.

Trust technology to elevate the customer experience

When you have complete control and visibility of operations and costs, you are confident in your services. With technology, you'll be able to go beyond just your responsibilities, offering value-added services to your customers. Enhanced customer experience will propel your brand and grant you the edge in the competition too.

Originally Published in Portcalls Asia Magazine

https://www.portcalls.com/investment-technology-big-decision-freight-forwarders/

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