Last-mile delivery courier companies worldwide have their work cut out for them on a daily basis.
This is according to Damian Velayadum, Group Financial Director at Fastway Couriers.
For example, Amazon reported faster shipping deliveries in 2023 in comparison to 2022 due to a combination of technological advancements and the use of local delivery hubs that allowed for shorter travel distances from depot to doorstep.
“We’re seeing a move towards smaller engined vehicles that can do quick trips on low fuel consumption,” Velayadum said.
According to Velayadum, the types of vehicles that the last mile delivery giant uses are small bakkies such as the Nissan NP200, Volkswagen Caddy, as well as Toyota Hilux, with approximately 400 vehicles on South African roads each day.
While innovation in logistics is at the core of the solution to solve last minute orders and deliveries, according to Velayadum there are tips and tricks senders can use to ensure that their parcel arrives quickly.
Flag the delivery as urgent or time sensitive
Certain courier companies will put a specialised sticker or a note on the parcel which states “please deliver before Valentine’s Day” for example.
Couriers will use this process to prioritise time sensitive parcels. If delivery of the package is not possible for whatever reason, the driver will also prioritise the re-delivery of this package.
Provide accurate information
The first thing a gift-giver needs to do it to ensure that the recipient’s details and address are correct.
It is vital that senders triple-check the personal details of the recipient to ensure that the information is correct before placing an order, especially when sending a package to a loved one whose address is not your own.
This may sound rather obvious – but it’s not. According to Velayadum, annually over 300,000 parcels are delayed due to incorrect information.
Use the express option
It is crucial to establish the delivery time before the order is placed. If it looks like the gift won’t arrive before that special occasion, customers can often opt for an express delivery to speed up the process.
IOL Business