From DPD and Hermes, to Deliveroo and Just Eat, it seems that delivery trucks and couriers are everywhere nowadays.
There are hundreds of delivery-based businesses across the world. Although this makes modern-day life much easier for the everyday consumer, it makes it much more difficult for upcoming courier business owners to make their mark in the industry.
Maybe you’ve never stepped foot in the courier world or maybe you’ve been working for a large delivery company for years and have now decided to branch out on your own. Either way, it’s not going to be an easy process trying to build up a new courier service.
It’s difficult to convert customers to using a new delivery service when they’re stuck with the same company for years. But it’s not impossible.
By creating a strategic business plan and formulating an effective marketing strategy, you can definitely build a strong and successful brand. When these are paired up with a great team of enthusiastic employees, there’s no doubt that you will be an established courier business within just a few years.
All of this is much easier said than done. If you’re feeling a little overwhelmed while trying to start your new courier business, here are some top tips that will help you find your feet.
4 Top Tips for Start-Up Courier Businesses
1. Choose Your Fuel Provider Wisely
As a delivery business, one of your largest expenses will be your company vehicles and your fuel. As a start-up, it’s likely that you will only need one or two vehicles to cover your orders, but as you grow and expand your operations, you will need to invest in several more.
When your employees are driving to and from delivery destinations every day from morning to evening, the type of fuel you choose makes a huge difference to your expenses.
If you’re using an expensive provider, you will end up cutting into your already limited budget as a start-up business.
White diesel, also known as road diesel, suppliers offer great deals for bulk orders of fuel that can keep your company vehicles topped up for weeks to come without spending a fortune.
2. Organize Your Delivery System
This may seem like an obvious one, but it’s one of the most important factors in creating a successful courier business. It’s no good loading up your truck with hundreds of parcels and delivering them to your customers without an organized system.
You need to figure out how you can streamline your parcel delivery services to maximize the efficiency of your order fulfillment. This includes all aspects of your deliveries, from the storage of your products in the warehouse all the way to dropping parcels off at your customer’s doors.
This ensures your workers can easily find the right items in a specific order, package them correctly, and have them delivered quickly and safely to their destination.
3. Use an Automated Management Software
A great way to organize your delivery system is by using automation. Implementing courier delivery management software enables you to automate your deliveries from start to finish.
Management software also makes it much easier for you to stay on top of your inventory and identify which products are selling out quickly, and which aren’t so popular.
Your automated system makes your order fulfillment process much quicker and simpler. It can be used to autogenerate labels and packaging and makes it easier to manage which orders have been shipped and which are still in progress.
Not only this, but your courier delivery management software will reduce the chances of a parcel getting lost in transit by providing precise tracking updates during its delivery.
When your deliveries are fulfilled on time and fewer parcels get lost, enhancing your company’s reputation and helping you to build a loyal customer base.
4. Consider Getting Vehicle Graphics
Driving company cars or vehicles around the area provides the perfect marketing opportunity.
You can get custom-printed full or partial vehicle decals that can be placed on your vehicles to display your brand name and logo. Every person who passes by one of your company vehicles will, therefore, be exposed to your unique branding.
This acts as a form of subtle marketing by putting your business in front of their eyes, making them more likely to check out what you offer. It significantly increases your brand awareness and reinforces your brand identity to any potential customers in the area.
Better yet, once you’ve paid the initial cost for your vehicle graphics, you have life-long free marketing.
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Author: Pete.
