Transparency: The Most Important Pillar Of Future Logistics

Providing good customer service and communications as part of your logistics services is essential to success. It allows companies to be more efficient in their operation and other areas. For example, customer service software can make the process of ordering, tracking, and delivering shipments more thrilling for everyone. Customers will want to keep shopping with you if you provide a more updated and interactive process. Having all this software proves to customers that you’re dedicated and take care of the products in the shipping process. The key role of customer service in logistics is to solve customer queries after the sale and make them feel satisfied with the delivery.

Logistics companies can cut operating costs by improving internal operations or changing suppliers. You need an organizational structure that allows you to effectively share information with other departments or operating units within your company’s supply chain network. There are various types of logistics and transportation software on the market today. Ensure that the technology solution that you choose has the functionality you need, is easy to use, and has structured implementation processes that meet your timeline. The logistics industry needs tools that provide visibility into the entire process.

Distribution and material handling

Even those LSPs with just a few projects report on the complexity of their system and the challenges of managing the underlying processes. We assume that this barrier does not significantly differ across the size of the LSP, as even LSPs with 100 employees are exposed to a similar industry system complexity. However, in the case of the complexity of underlying processes, the LSP’s size could matter – the larger the LSP, the more standard operations and processes it has (or tries to have). C4 with their Best Practice Library, or other case LSPs disseminating efficient standard processes across different locations, countries, regions and even customers, give the base to assume so. The terms customer support and customer service are interconnected and, in common parlance, are often used interchangeably.

Even though it might be impossible to be perfect, it’s still important to improve and ensure that your clients have an easy, smooth experience when collaborating with you. Keeping your customers informed about what you’re doing is always important. They’ll become more comfortable with your business once they know more about you. A big step in getting your customers to understand what’s going on is providing supply chain visibility.

Inbound Vs Outbound Logistics – What’s The Difference?

The case study is an effective for the current stage of DT conceptual development (Edmondson and McManus, 2007). It is recommended for exploratory and theory-building research (Eisenhardt, 1989; Gammelgaard, 2017). We analyzed multiple cases in order to provide a more robust and generalizable consensus (Yin, 2014).

Behind the scenes at most companies are people who never meet or greet the people who buy their products. The customer service representatives are the ones who have direct contact with the buyers. The buyers’ perceptions of the company and the product are shaped in part by their experience in dealing with that person.

Strategies to Improve Logistics Customer Service

Logistics managers must ensure that products are available when customers need them, and that they are delivered on time and in the right condition. This can help to improve customer satisfaction and loyalty, as well as reduce the likelihood of customer complaints or returns. The pandemic compelled businesses to rely more on logistics management to keep up with changing demands and provide essential items to customers. Although disruptive forces might be environmental, geopolitical or technological, they can throw logistics networks into disarray. To address disruptions in logistics management, it is necessary to establish a few best practices to increase scalability, maintain delivery, and limit delays in services. Luckily, the modern supply chain is in the midst of digitalization, with new technology and tools promising to add efficiency and enhance accuracy.

Keeping an inventory of products at the warehouse is costly for businesses and may affect their profitability. For this reason, the goal of inventory control is to gauge customer demand to maintain an inventory level that satisfies it, but without causing overcosts. Some manufacturing methods such as lean manufacturing or just-in-time manufacturing allow businesses to manage their inventory costs.

Factors Why Customer Service in Logistics is of Utmost Importance

In this article, I will discuss customer service in logistics, its role, and ways to improve it. According to a recent Forbes report, over 85% of customers will pay a 25% premium for better service. Customer service is becoming incredibly important in logistics, and companies that skimp on it simply won’t survive. As the report shows, one experience may be the tipping point for a customer—and if it’s negative, they may go elsewhere. By giving customers a positive logistics experience, companies are more likely to keep them coming back.

As 50–70% of logistics activities are outsourced (Langley, 2019), a significant proportion of the digital transformation (DT) of logistics rests on LSPs’ shoulders. LSPs can serve as architects of the further development of flows within Industry 4.0 (Delfmann et al., 2018) and backbones for e-commerce growth (Kembro et al., 2018). In order to fully exploit the opportunities established by new technologies and transform digitally, LSPs need to evolve their strategies, cultures and business models. If you read negative reviews about an online business, a majority of them are going to deal with something that happened after the sale.

Logistics management involves a vast network of suppliers, agents, freight forwarding providers, distributors, packers, and service providers, through various modes of transport. It is a complex process that includes multiple components that determine the effective movement of goods. Advanced routing practices help to plan delivery routes that highly efficient and productive. By considering a plethora of external factors like weather, one-ways, tonnage, empty miles, risk factors and more modern route planning platforms can significantly reduce transportation costs and delays. This movement generally involves moving stored materials or products for further manufacturing or distribution.

• That is why it is important to increase information visibility to ensure transparency for both the clients and the logistics.
• Another crucial aspect of customer support includes helping customers with timely maintenance and upgradation of systems.
• If they aren’t happy, or if the product shows up damaged or not as described, a customer wants assurances that they can return it and get their money back.
• Intermodal operations involve the use of two or more modes, or carriers, to transport goods from supplier to consumer.

Often, the root cause of what could be perceived as a lack of skill or unwillingness to learn is the result of a work environment (current or prior) that didn’t reward going above and beyond to provide excellent service. In these situations, it’s good to have a team of people who can think on their feet. Even better, look for people who will take the initiative to create guidelines for everyone to use in these situations moving forward. You have to be attentive to pick up on what customers are telling you without directly saying it. (2014), “The nine elements of digital transformation”, MIT Sloan Management Review, No. 7, pp. 1-6.

Businesses emphasize retaining their current customers because as per research, customer acquisition is anywhere between 5-25 times more expensive than customer retention. Customer service agents must maintain a record of important customer data, collating information via order forms, feedback forms, email inquiries, complaints, etc. In today’s era of hyper-digitalization, customers want support interactions that are high on empathy and less automated. Responsive or reactive support is support offered when a customer reaches out with a query or complaint. Unlike anticipatory or proactive support, responsive support cannot prevent issues before they crop up. Modern delivery management software allows you to plug it in with many other third-party apps, thanks to API.

Brands that ‘wow’ their customers with stellar customer service are bound to earn their respect and admiration by way of testimonials and referrals. Engaging with customers via unique experiences and interactions can help brands create a deep emotional connection with them. According to a research by global analytics firm Gallup, customers who are fully engaged with a brand contribute 23% more in terms of profitability and revenue as compared to the average customer. With a dynamic industry such as service providing and delivery management, you need to respond fast to changes. Speaking of visibility, the main thing you get from state-of-the-art delivery management software is automation. By integrating the delivery management software with other apps, APIs combine planning, scheduling, dispatching, and order execution.

The company should also set up quality metrics that are understood by the vendor and should become a part of the vendor’s way of business. In order for quality to become a complete part of the company’s supply chain, the outsourced company has to make quality inherit to their business. The company should be able to provide back to the vendor what work is acceptable and what goals are not being met. The analysis presented that, similar to the previous findings, an important for DT success in the logistics service industry are people – well-selected, trained, motivated and engaged.

Employees with poor training are very likely to receive complaints from customers. This might make them feel unhappy about their jobs, and we have already talked about the importance of a happy employee to your business. It is also the stage where if something is going to go wrong, it probably will. Give extra attention to this stage to ensure that the delivery is completed successfully.

It happens, and even though it’s the client’s fault, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try to come up with a solution. It shows people how much your brand cares about consumers, and it really takes the customer who made the mistake by surprise in a pleasant way. That’s why you should send out thank-you notes to customers whenever possible. Consider shipping your products alongside individual thank-you notes if your budget allows it. If your business has a subscription-based model, you can mail the notes to your customers.

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