Offline mode: a must for delivery management software

Ensuring Uninterrupted Service: The Importance of Offline Capabilities in Delivery Management Systems

Last week, it came to our attention that the Canadian business market was significantly disturbed. A Rogers outage that began around 8 in the morning impacted most businesses for the entire day.

This outage affected thousands of people, not only Rogers customers, and some were unable to work throughout the day. Among those who couldn’t work were delivery drivers.

As we were discussing the impact this outage had on companies, we decided to write a blog not only to explain how an outage and a connection loss in general can affect companies but also to provide some advice on how to never experience that chaos again.

So many businesses depend on WiFi

As of 2022, many companies rely on technology to deliver orders, using delivery management systems to create and optimize delivery routes. While delivery software is a great tool, many companies that rely on it wouldn’t be able to function if they lost connection.

Network outages happen, and there is usually very little that businesses can do about them. Nowadays, businesses rely heavily on the internet to function and offer the best service to their customers. However, when the network is down, companies feel lost as they have no way of keeping their operations running without connection.

Bad consequences for companies delivering orders

When the internet is down, most delivery drivers won’t be able to use their delivery app to look at orders or access customers’ profiles. They will be unable to access route information, record proof of delivery, log photos in the app, or signal damages.

This will likely result in a great mess in a company’s operations as the consequences of one day will impact the following day. This is because if drivers are not able to deliver orders on a certain day, they will have to deliver it the next business day, so all that day’s orders will also be postponed.

As you might have guessed, this can rapidly become a real mess for companies. It is fair to say that drivers’ productivity levels will be highly impacted by the loss of connection. They might not even be able to deliver a single order.

An impact on the relationship with the customer

Customers are sometimes waiting for important items, and making them wait longer might frustrate them.

While some customers will be understanding when their delivery is postponed, many will not be pleased. As we mentioned earlier, if orders are not delivered one day, it will postpone the next day’s orders.

What can you do to keep your operations moving when there is no connection?

No company likes to have its operations down as it can result in loss of revenue and impact brand image. While you might think you don’t have any control on this because the outage is coming from Rogers, there is still a way to keep your operations running without WiFi.

While you can’t fix the outage and get the WiFi back, you can keep operating without a connection. To do this, you will need to choose a delivery software that offers offline mode.

Offline mode: a great option and not just in case of an outage

This option is very important not only in case of an outage but also when drivers are delivering in remote areas or places with no connection, such as basements. While lack of connection usually happens in remote areas far from urbanization, it can happen in big cities. 

Therefore, an offline mode allows drivers to keep using the app while they are in those areas. This is essential as drivers use the delivery app all the time. This will allow them to stay productive and prevent them from being interrupted in their daily tasks.

They will see the orders they have to deliver with the customer’s address. They will be able to mark it as complete and report any damage. They will also be able to take photos of the damages or as proof of delivery, which will be recorded directly in the app and request signatures. 

All of this information will be stored in the customer’s profile so that nothing is lost and your drivers can continue their deliveries without having to worry.

Meet Cigo

At Cigo, we are aware of the consequences a loss of connection can have on deliveries. This is why we made sure that our customers could use our delivery app wherever they go. Our offline mode is very appreciated and even a requirement for some customers.

This option makes our all-in-one delivery software the perfect tool to deliver orders seamlessly without experiencing interruption and keeping up drivers’ productivity.