After 20 plus years in Wholesale and Retail Distribution consulting, I have seen many technology changes. Some changes have been beneficial and others never panned out. Direct Store Delivery has long been a process ripe for improvement. Where to go, what to deliver, and how to get that information to the back office are all processes that benefit from a well-built mobile app. There are plenty of software choices but nothing as robust and impactful to a business as the Mobile Sales App created by FwdMbl.
We wrote our first DSD Application in early 2005. We had a customer with 50 routes and could not find software that did what they wanted. We had installed their ERP system, wrote a bunch of custom programs for them, and were very familiar with their operation. The DSD application sent data to an AS400, had signature capture, and helped to manage the data the driver needed to run their route. At the time, it was complex and ideal. It significantly improved the workflow of the company and was a great success. I still see those older devices and programming being used today and I think of how it made things better for the drivers. Then smartphones entered the picture.
Smartphones offer faster processing, bigger screens, and many other advantages. These devices, with the right software, will revolutionize your DSD process, but finding the right software is hard. Many DSD software companies still offer old software packages running on old hardware. They have been around for a long time and are pretty content just selling you the same old solution. At the most, maybe they decide to swap out the hardware of their solution with a Smartphone. Thinking their software is adequate but they need a hardware upgrade. Why would you want that for your company? One of the best things about new software is the ability do things a better way. Companies that do not move ahead with new technology or better business processes will be left behind by their competition.
FwdMbl’s Mobile Sales and DSD App was built using insight from within the process to improve the process. What does that mean? Let’s forget we have 20 plus years of industry experience and that we are a group of extremely talented developers, when we started to develop our Sales App in 2013, we spent time with distribution companies, drivers, and on loading docks. We analyzed the process, looked at how the process could be automated, and wrote code to make that happen. We worked with large vendors delivering product all over the U.S. to understand the problems they had and what they expected from a world-class solution. We ended up with a Sales App that is configurable. We ended up with a Sales App that is reliable. We ended up with a Sales App that saves drivers hours of time each day.
These are three big ways we help drivers.
Simple and Useful User Interface
Drivers and delivery staff demand speed and ease of use. Our goal is to get the driver in and out as quickly as possible. Our User Interface displays only what the driver needs in a way that makes sense. We understand the requirements of a driver because we have spent time in a truck, spent time on a dock, and spent time in meetings with drivers. Our close relationship with drivers and the delivery process has resulted in a solution built from this insight, not from a classroom. We believe for an installation to be successful, you cannot force a product from IT onto a department. You need to work with that department and find a champion for your product by working with them to make them more productive.
We Listen
Our software grows with each release using ideas from the industry and feedback from our drivers. Any idea, no matter if you have been a customer for years or one we just did a demo with, is considered and reviewed. Give us the business case and you will see it in our product. Our development team prides themselves on great communication, listening to ideas that make sense, and wants to create the best software possible. Our leadership is hands on, very technical, and believes we have partners not customers. Partners work hand-in-hand to solve problems and make things better.
Robust Feature Set
Operationally, DSD companies have many of the same core functions and have a few unique things sprinkled in. Maybe your company needs to track shippers or needs to track returnable containers, we can enable that in your App configuration. Our App Solution is full of features that we turn on or off based on your company’s operational needs. This allows us to make sure your drivers have a solution that grows and changes with them each year.
Our DSD and Mobile Sales App will make your drivers more efficient in many ways. Our DSD and Mobile Sales App is simple to use, designed to meet our customer’s needs, and has a robust feature set. Using our solutions allows drivers to focus on the customer and the job, not the mechanics of the software.
John Kangas is the CEO, partner and developer at FwdMbl Solutions. FwdMbl Solutions, LLC is a provider of Enterprise Android and iOS Apps for Mobile Sales, Proof of Delivery, and Account Management.
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