There is nothing easy about real-time dispatching of multiple drivers on the road. Dispatch personnel are not only responsible for prioritizing calls, but also for planning the most efficient and expedient routes to handle these calls as they come in.

Doing so for a single driver can prove difficult enough, the more drivers your fleet handle, the more difficult that task becomes. GPS fleet tracking, though, can manage your routing needs in a matter of seconds without breaking a sweat – leaving you free to focus on efforts to build your business stronger and more profitable instead. These are just a few benefits GPS fleet tracking provides.

Immediately Identifies Fastest Response Vehicle

In some situations, the closest vehicle isn’t always the best choice to respond to high-priority service (or other) calls. When speed is essential in answering the calls, GPS fleet tracking can quickly identify the vehicle that can arrive at the location fastest.

This includes calculating things like time to finish up at existing location, driving speed, traffic disruptions or delays, potential weather delays, and other factors that human dispatchers may not even consider.

Ensures that All Customers are Happy

The real beauty of GPS re-routing for real-time dispatch needs is that it can do so in a manner that disrupts the overall order of calls for the day as minimally as possible. In other words, GPS dispatch can make big picture adjustments and fine tuning that ensure you are able to meet the demands of your day (unless something catastrophic occurs that increases call volume extensively).

More importantly, GPS can automate the notification process, through text message or email alerts to let customers know when delays occur. This keeps them better informed and less likely to feel the irritation that goes along with not knowing what’s going on.

Provides Voice Navigation to Drivers

This ensures drivers aren’t getting lost while attempting to make their appointed rounds. What you may not realize, though, is that the maps for GPS fleet services are constantly updated.

This means that you have access to the latest information about new roads, new housing developments, detours, road construction, and more. Things you’d have to painstakingly route around when planning routes by hand are a simple matter for GPS fleet tracking software to tackle.

On top of all this, the software will even notify the driver of changes to his or her route for you. It can be a completely automated process if that’s what you choose. This automation is good for your bottom line by creating safer driving conditions, greater fuel efficiency, happier customers, and easy re-routing in real time – because that’s when life happens.

If you’re looking to improve your fleet’s real-time dispatch, contact us here at LiveViewGPS to learn how GPS fleet tracking can help.

Theft is a bigger problem with today’s cargo carriers than you might realize. Not only does it cost your business money, but it also erodes the trust of customers — and it increases your insurance rates. Technology has evolved, though, and with that evolution comes new and exciting tools and tips you have at your disposal to mitigate and deter theft from your trucks.

Consider these tips to help reduce your exposure and risk when it comes to cargo theft.

Lock Your Trailer Doors

If your drivers aren’t locking trailer doors as a matter of course, it’s time to change your policies to encourage that behavior from drivers. If you are currently locking trailer doors and still have a problem with theft, then perhaps it’s time to upgrade your door locks.

One effective locking system for trucking companies involves using a round lock that features a hidden, shackle padlock. These locks are designed to protect against a wide range of attempts at entry including:

• Drilling
• Sawing
• Prying
• Hammering
• Using Crowbars

This is in addition to the fact that the sheltered shackle makes picking the lock an even greater challenge. Since most thieves are looking for targets of convenience, a complex locking system will encourage them to choose a different mark.

Utilize GPS Fleet Tracking

GPS fleet tracking can help you reduce cargo theft in numerous ways. First, it can help you identify trouble spots along your path and plan routes that eliminate these areas from your routes.

Second, you can use GPS fleet tracking to inform you if drivers are deviating from routes, making unscheduled stops, or even if your vehicle is operating at times when it shouldn’t be (in the event of vehicle theft).

Third, GPS tracking devices can be placed in with cargo providing real time location updates – not to mention text or email alerts when items are removed from your vehicles – allowing for the prompt capture of thieves and recovery of stolen cargo.

Finally, GPS fleet tracking services can be used to deviate routes on the go so that even your drivers aren’t sure of their exact routes (providing an added layer of security) until they are behind the wheel.

Vary Routes and Cargo Lanes

Thieves today are getting smarter and taking advantage of your weaknesses. Set schedules and routines, while efficient for business, place your cargo at risk from thieves who know when your drivers break for sleep, the routes they take, and their favorite pit stops along the way. Varying routes and routines helps to avoid complacency and eliminates patterns you may not even realize exist.

Small changes in the way you operate can help to reduce your exposure to theft while ensuring that your cargo reaches its intended destination. These tips will help.

Many companies offer company cars to employees for a variety of reasons. Some consider them positional perks. Others offer them as a way to improve visibility and build their brands. Whatever reason your business offers company cars, GPS car tracking provides you with an attractive set of options for protecting that investment and making it pay off big for your business. These are just a few things you can use GPS vehicle tracking in company cars to accomplish.

Improve Customer Service

You better believe that when employees know they’re being closely monitored they are going to be more mindful of schedules, timeliness, rules, and regulations. If you have any doubt, think of how much slower traffic moves when there are police cars in the area. It may not even be a conscious move on your employees’ parts, but they will be far more attentive to moving things along for your customers if they know you can keep an eye on their progress remotely. This works no matter what business you’re in: sales, insurance, deliveries, etc. Customer service improves when GPS is used to track your drivers.

Encourages Safer Driving

If your company cars are branded, your drivers are representatives of your business every time they get behind the wheel. Without GPS tracking, you can only hope that they are driving right to safeguard your reputation and good image among other drivers. With GPS tracking, though, you can receive notifications when your drivers do things that jeopardize your image, like speeding, swerving, cutting people off, hard braking, etc. That allows you to deal with the situation promptly so that drivers understand this isn’t acceptable in your company vehicles.

Enhances Record Keeping

Not only is GPS tracking excellent for helping you keep better records related to mileage and fuel efficiency, but it can be instrumental in helping you to have more efficient record-keeping when it comes to things like billing, payroll, creating expense reports, and scheduling vehicle maintenance.

These benefits are, of course, in addition to the many benefits all businesses receive from GPS fleet tracking like maintenance scheduling, more efficient route planning, fuel conservation, reduced labor costs, lower auto insurance premiums, emergency rerouting for weather, traffic, and other emergencies; turn by turn directions for drivers, and countless other large and small benefits only GPS tracking can deliver.

GPS tracking can even be used to help drivers retrace their steps to find missing packages. What you need to know now, is when you’re going to incorporate GPS tracking into all your company cars?

If your company provides company cars to employees, call us here at LiveViewGPS at 1-888-544-0494 to talk about getting GPS tracking for your company cars.