If freight logistics forms a part of your business operation and you aren’t using freight management software (also referred to as transport management software) then you’re missing a vital piece of a cost-saving and productivity puzzle.
Or perhaps you are already working with a transport management system, but it’s not delivering the results you want and might not be a quality software package that reflects your needs, so upgrading your system is on the cards.
When quality systems are underpinning business operations, a solid foundation is created that supports enterprises in being as productive, efficient, and adaptable as possible. These abilities are paramount if you want your business to thrive and remain resilient when faced with challenges such as global pandemics, inflation, and recessions – and let’s face it – the last few years have proven to us all that anything can happen.
We investigated why leading transport companies use freight management software and have rounded up the top 10 reasons to provide you with insights to the benefits that your operation can also easily experience.
- Streamline Entire Operation
- Customise to Suit Requirements
- Slash Costs
- Exceed Customer Expectations
- Scalability
- Cloud-Based Benefits
- Optimise Inventory
- At a Glance Visibility
- Real-Time Data
- Integration With Other Systems
Reason 1: Streamline Entire Operation
Keeping the numerous functions of your business running smoothly is no mean feat, yet incredibly important to the outcomes of your operation. By having one single transport management solutions (TMS) platform where all documentation, quotes and transport options reside, you will ensure a more streamlined and coordinated operation of your processes.
Integrating a quality TMS will also reduce human error, clarify communication both within your organisation and externally with suppliers, transport crew and any other stakeholders.
An important step in the process is considering what you will need to do to prepare your business before integrating a TMS.
To further streamline your operation, there are also options to integrate other software with your TMS, such as Warehouse Management Software, Wholesale Distribution Software, or Manufacturing Management Software. All aspects of your business can exist on a single platform to optimise your processes, increase productivity and ultimately boost the bottom line of your business.
Reason 2: Customise to Suit Requirements
Any quality freight management software, or other logistics software for that matter, should offer you the option to customise features that reflect and support the requirements of your supply chain. Off the shelf software that claims to work for any logistics-based business will be a one size fits all approach and often include functions and features that many will not use, which isn’t a great use of your budget and will ultimately result in a system or software upgrade being needed down the track.
Go for software that you can customise, whether it’s developing a specific report structure, or adapting workflows for your teams, this flexibility is paramount. Increase the agility of your business by investing in customiseable freight management software.
Reason 3: Slash Costs
The biggest benefit of using quality freight management software is the reduction in costs you will experience. Backed by the power of real-time data, your FMS will run analytics to provide the best options for shipping, optimise your inventory and help to prevent loss of items in transit and in the warehouse with automated tracking. Many manual tasks can be automated, which also saves on your most valuable resources, time and money – particularly when it comes to tasks such as processing and invoicing.
Reason 4: Exceed Customer Expectations
These days customer expectations are higher than ever, making the competition between companies fierce and finding ways to satisfy customers vital. Freight management is a paramount aspect of this picture.
Enabling customers to track deliveries is no longer a nice to have. A quality TMS will empower you and your clients and customers to locate shipments in real-time, providing them with accuracy and giving you the chance to spot any potential problems beforehand, or as they occur, so you can rapidly amend the situation as needed.
If you integrate your TMS with other software, such as your WMS, you will also have the ability to consolidate shipments and lock in the most suitable carrier at the best price, which benefits all involved.
Reason 5: Scalability
With 24/7 analytics running, your operation will have real-time data at its fingertips. This enables businesses to access many freighting options, quickly hunt down the best prices and offer top value to customers.
Integrating quality TMS software also ensures that as your business scales and changes, the software will adapt to accommodate, removing the need to spend more budget on new software systems that don’t grow as your business does.
Reason 6: Cloud-Based Benefits
By now you may have heard the many benefits of shifting your opeartion systems to ‘the cloud’. Being cloud based ultimately means your data is no longer stored on fixed servers within your office space, but online, making it much more flexible to do business, wherever your inventory, teams and transport is located. It gives access to any location with a Wi-Fi connection and increases opportunities to do business at pace.
Cloud-based TMS will not only increase flexibility, but also the security and safety of your data. This is particularly evident when it comes to freight documents. They’re all stored electronically and not only with the shipping company on paper-based files.
Reason 7: Optimise Inventory
Maintaining and managing inventory is vital to any logistics operation, particularly those in the transport and warehouse industry. A TMS can automatically track all outgoing and incoming shipments and orders, while simultaneously calculate the impacts to existing stock levels. Using real-time data, the system will produce updates on when new orders need to be placed to ensure the inventory quantities remain at the level you require.
With many of the systems being automated, there will be a higher productivity rate with a lot less manual input, if any, required.
Reason 8: At-a-Glance Visibility
Make solid business decisions quickly by having access to your overall operation and supporting data at a glance. This is one of the many benefits a quality TMS will provide.
You can get a rapid overview of what is happening at any given time within your warehouses, staffing performance and evaluation, location of your fleet or the shipping companies you have hired, plus anyone with authority across your teams can also access data to support any customer enquires so they are able to quickly inform, reassure or action as needed.
Systems are highly intuitive, easy to use and any team member can be trained to use aspects relevant to their position for maximum results.
Reason 9: Real-Time Data
We’ve touched on the power of real-time data a few times already in this article, but it is a stand out benefit of a quality TMS. Performance analysis is one of the major perks of the analytic capabilities, with results enabling you to make any necessary adjustments to amend errors or potential issues with literally any aspect of your operation. Gone are the days of wondering what, exactly, is slowing things down, or creating a bottleneck.
Reason 10: Integration With Other Systems
As it’s clear to see, a quality TMS will ensure your stock keeps moving, but any warehouse-based operation needs solid frameworks in place beyond the transportation piece. By integrating your freight management system with other systems, such as warehouse management software, Manufactuing management software or wholesale distribution system, you can have all of your systems on one single platform for maximum results.
Transform Your Transport Company by Integrating Quality Freight Management Software
At Infocomm we create and deliver purpose-built systems for the transport and warehouse industry. We are a custom development house, with all solutions designed to fit you and your operational needs. Our solutions easily and flawlessly integrate, which eliminates double handling and reentering data across multiple platforms and our customised reporting feature will enable you to generate reports to meet stakeholder and in house requirements.
Once systems are integrated, savings will be realised quickly with the range of tasks that can be automated, saving you time and increasing productivity across all functions.
Want to find out how we can support you to transform your business?
Contact the team today to book a free demo.