The rise of digital platforms in road transport expected to be accelerated by the corona crisis
By Sam Houwen
March 23, 2020 • 12 min read
“Those companies able to use technology well to keep going and rethink their business model for the future by fast-tracking digital transformation will be ones ahead of their competition.”
Bernard Marr @ Forbes
In this article, we’re going to discuss:
Online platforms offer comfort
Because of these extreme measures around COVID-19, existing digital solutions are developing at a fast rate.
Companies that provide video calling as a service, are being overwhelmed with new orders. Even Netflix had to decrease their video streaming quality, so the overloaded network could breathe a little.
Working from home - Is it the future or only for now?
It’s these digital solutions that a great part of the Netherlands needs right now. Because of the explosive growth in usage it will rapidly develop and improve.
The improvement will be so significant that a lot of companies will rely on it even more in the future, also after the corona crisis. Working remotely or from home will play a more significant role in our professional lives.
This will also apply to the logistics industry. The advantages of our digital freight network will prosper even more in times like these.
The added value of a digital freight network
Now the great majority of our country is forced to work from home, working with digital services that provide a total solution for your company’s problem is a big plus.
A supply chain manager that needs to ship freight wants to have a total solution from order entry up to monitoring the status of the shipments and invoicing. This is exactly what Quicargo does.
We are not an exchange freight platform but an online platform that matches shippers with carriers based on a number of variables.
To do this, we offer instant pricing and a full digital customer experience. Both the transaction with the shipper and carrier takes place on our platform and we also provide the customer service.
“In times of social distancing digital tools and services are the prerequisite for business continuity. Covid-19 will accelerate the digital transformation of industries and break the regulatory barriers to online tools and digital interactions. With this, the world will be able to achieve significant progress to move towards a much more distributed and possibly healthier lifestyle and way of working and operating.”
Wolfgang Lehmacher – Logistics expert and advisory board @ Quicargo
The advantages of a one-stop shop
Quicargo offers companies an end-to-end solution for the planning and monitoring of pallet transport. Our systems are integrated with the transport management systems (TMS) of our partner carriers. Therefore we are receiving real-time information about ETA’s, status of shipments and signed POD’s.
This intel is shared directly with the shippers through our platform and by email. Now we’re dealing with a crisis, it’s crucial to be up to date since there is great uncertainty about whether business is going as planned.
For example, if a shipper wants more information about expected loading- and unloading times due to all measures taken around the corona crisis, digital platforms can show this information in only one click.
Digital platforms are leading in information transparency as technology makes it possible to unlock and share information directly with all those involved.
All benefits at a glance for shippers:
- Fully digital customer experience, embracing working remotely
- Broad network of carriers, no carrier dependency
- Saving of time and costs
- Sustainable solution by using (partially) empty capacity in trucks
We always have a carrier for your freight
What also is important during a pandemic like we face today, is that you can trust that there is always a carrier ready to deliver your freight.
Quicargo has a network of more than 300 partner carriers and can therefore always offer a solution for every transport need a company may have. If there is a sudden illness under the truck drivers of a carrier, then other carriers will step in to help out.
Hence, a shipper always will be able to transport their freight and is protected against a possible negative impact of the crisis.
“Suppliers for commoditized products are at risk to lose market share, as clients will look into substitute suppliers when they don’t receive goods on time.”
Sean Galea-Pace @ Supply Chain Digital
Reasons for carriers to use Quicargo
Reliable and frequent communication is crucial should there be a problem. The operational team of Quicargo will always have the latest information regarding your shipment and is aware of the latest developments around the corona crisis.
Our digital platform plays an important role here as the platform enables us to disclose updates directly to our shippers and carriers.
All benefits at a glance for carriers:
- Possibility to accept or not accept extra shipments
- Higher loading rates of the trucks
- More revenue, also in times of a crisis
- Easy and transparent digital solution
Quicargo offers its partner carriers a solution to improve their truck loading rates which becomes even more important in these turbulent times.
The predictability of the transport planning is under pressure which means that carriers will have the challenge to fill up a larger part of their capacity with available last minute freight.
Our partner carriers are able to optimise their loading rates every day by accepting or declining available shipments on our platform. We offer these carriers a tool to fill in the unpredictable part in their planning in a very efficient way.
Less stress with Quicargo
In conclusion: our online platform offers all (from home working) logistics planners and supply chain managers a total solution for their transport needs. No more worries about finding a carrier that is able to deliver and always informed about the latest status of your shipments.
The only thing you need to do is to place the shipment on our platform and wait until the shipment has been delivered. In times like these, that is a big relief.
Sign up for free on our platform and discover all the possibilities.
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