Detailed Reporting Capabilities

1st September 2020

One of the crucial benefits of having a multi-carrier parcel management solution in place is its ability to gather detailed data from carriers and report on it. This data is crucial for helping logistics executives make sound business decisions.

Here’s how having an MCPMS empowers logistics executives with the right data to make timely decisions.

With more and more consumers preferring deliveries on the same day or next, the demand for a seamless last-mile delivery has increased. Last-mile delivery is already a complex process and when quicker delivery is needed, the process can turn disastrous without the right carrier partners.

The increase in demand for a smoother last-mile delivery has opened up new opportunities for retailers in terms of carriers. A huge selection of carrier choices is available. But logistics executives need to have access to their carrier information to leverage such opportunities.

A comprehensive multi-carrier parcel management solution can provide executives with detailed information about prospective carriers. Executives can compare carrier performance across a range of parameters including geographical location, products, delivery time, service type and rates.

Such real-time data enables executives to choose the best carrier at the best rates. Retailers can also build their carrier network quickly, which enables quicker and smoother operation-scaling.

With the right carrier partners, retailers can:

Achieve more efficient deliveries for every product and destination
Experience fast and efficient last-mile delivery
Upgrade and scale their carrier network
Get the best value for their money

Reporting Minimizes Data Errors
Retailers managing multiple carriers need to have all key and up-to-date information on each carrier. Without this in place, executives have to deal with data from multiple carriers on different systems. This can lead to executives missing crucial data when reporting.

Loss of key data can result in costly errors such as non-fulfillment of shipments according to customer preferences, or the selection of a wrong carrier, which can impact freight costs.

Prevention of errors becomes crucial for retailers dealing with huge volumes of parcels regularly. In such cases, it is easy to lose data when it’s spread across different systems.

With one solution in place, executives can have all information related to their carriers integrated on a single platform.

This makes it easier to choose the carriers that are most suitable for deliveries in terms of cost and route optimization.

Detailed reporting on a single platform makes it easier for executives to extract key data, compare them with carrier invoices, and detect errors.

Such detailed and integrated carrier reporting also gives executives access to accurate and the most up-to-date data, which enables them to make timely processing decisions. For example, executives can speed up warehousing process for faster fulfillment based on the latest customer data.

Thus, in-depth reporting combined with a single-point data integration keeps errors to a minimum and helps realize cost savings on freight.

MCPMS Reporting Minimizes Overhead Costs
Without an MCPMS, executives face the burden of gathering carrier data from multiple sources. Data such as invoicing reports must be analyzed, which requires a substantial amount of manual resources, leading to significant overhead costs.

In addition, this data needs to be double-checked for accurate fulfilment, which adds to the overall time wasted and increases costs.

But with an MCPMS, all data is gathered in one place. Executives don’t need to rely on manual processes, which increases the risk of errors. They can have the entire data and analyze them for crucial decision-making, including:

Choosing the best carrier based on customer type, carrier cost and geographic location of delivery
Assessing optimal time for parcel deliveries based on carrier and customer location
Analyzing carrier profit or loss by comparing costs estimated for carriers against actual costs consumed

The above data enables executives to make strategic decisions. For example, the data may reveal excellent performance by a specific carrier at a specific geographical location. On the other hand, the same carrier may also have a less-than-average performance at another geographic location.

Based on this data analysis, executives can allocate the carrier to its best-performance destinations. For other locations, executives can choose a different carrier.

This strategic decision leads to better customer experiences and repeat purchases.

Detailed Reporting Creates Carrier Transparency
The kind of data depth and integration that MCPMS offers remains unparalleled. Such insights were unavailable to executives in the traditional logistics set-up, which created a power imbalance in favor of carriers.

MCPMS creates a power balance because it ensures carrier data transparency with its real-time inputs. Executives become aware of all information related to carriers and their parcels.

Detailed reporting also enables data capture on all key performance indicators, even as they keep evolving according to industry standards. Insights into dynamic metrics enables executives to assess carrier performance on key metrics, which can assist critical business decisions.

In Conclusion
An MCPMS makes it quicker to gather complex carrier data. The detailed reporting features of this system ensures that no key logistics insights are lost. With comprehensive data, logistics executives can make decisive decisions leading to more efficient parcel management.

With the right MCPMS, retailers can minimize errors in key shipping factors that can make a difference between profit or loss.

For retailers, the use of an MCPMS culminates in a seamless logistics process, and the ability to deliver an enhanced customer experience. Not to mention, the capability to cater to a wider range of customer segments in new countries!

MCPMS simplifies cross-border e-commerce for retailers looking to leverage the opportunity for achieving a sharper competitive edge and revenue growth in a post-pandemic business landscape.

Download our free e-book to learn how successful brands overcome the 3 most common barriers to cross border e-commerce.