How do route planners and fleet management apps differ?

Any industry that heavily relies on transportation will have a significant portion of its overall operating costs devoted to the cost of operating and maintaining a fleet of vehicles (e.g., couriers, trucks). As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, all sectors related to transportation have consistently performed well in recent years. Every business has shifted to a more digital strategy, and without technology, the results would be much less impressive. What, then, exactly are the differences between a fleet management platform and a route planner?

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Table of Contents

• What does a route planner app actually do?
• The Benefits of software for Route Planning
• What does a fleet management app actually do?
• The main differences between fleet management and a route planner

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What does a route planner app actually do?

A route planning app puts a list of stops (orders) in a sensible and practical order for your business. It is software that creates a route that travels through each of the listed stops in the shortest amount of time.

A route planner almost always includes route optimization software to support all facets of logistics, including customer service and cost savings. The route-optimization software considers more factors than just distance. They improve everyone’s experience while also making room for more complicated business requirements.

The Benefits of Software for Route Planning

Better planning results in better operations.

Drivers used to be given a list of assignments, jobs, or stops based on their destination that they had to finish in a certain amount of time before the digital age. Turn-by-turn directions and a pre-ordered list are now available to drivers, eliminating the element of surprise, enhancing safety, and saving time and fuel.

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Improved efficiency.

Without the right routing tools, drivers might decide to approach the delivery in an inefficient way, resulting in higher fuel costs, overtime costs, decreased productivity, and lower customer satisfaction.

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It’s more eco-friendly.

Because a route planner offers the most effective routes, they conserve fuel. This directly affects the volume of carbon emissions generated by small businesses and therefore helps to protect the environment.

What does a fleet management app actually do?

Costs associated with the company-owned fleet have increased by 60% as a result of higher operating costs. At this volume, how can managers reduce costs per vehicle? A fleet management tool would be the first solution.

Managers can see their operations in real time thanks to fleet management software. It raises driver satisfaction while lowering fuel usage, effectively bringing down yearly costs for the company. Maintaining strong client relationships while keeping an eye on all fleet performance and maintenance is the aim of fleet management.

Businesses use fleet management systems (FMS) to track assets and control their fleets of vehicles. Additionally, they keep an eye on the safety of drivers and enforce laws like the Electronic Logging Device (ELD).

Sensors and GPS tracking are frequently used to track how vehicles are driven along a route. Real-time tracking of the vehicle’s location is part of this, along with keeping an eye on its fuel levels, speed, breaks, engine condition, fault codes, and a number of other factors. An ELD system that integrates with the engine may be required by law to track service hours (HOS).

A good fleet management tool covers the entire process from financing and purchasing the vehicle to remarketing it. Finding appropriate vehicles (based on various skills, such as refrigeration) and negotiating the best price to finance the purchase or lease are among the duties of a fleet manager. The manager can base all of these decisions on solid data with the aid of a good tool.

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Maintenance

Making a maintenance plan to schedule fleet service with little downtime is another duty. Monitoring data vehicle usage can provide low-cost assistance in the direction of such decisions and plans.
driving safety

The responsibility to ensure the driver’s safety is a crucial one. To maintain the safety of the fleet, managers must make sure that drivers adhere to all rules and operate their vehicles safely. FMS typically has the ability to integrate with other systems, like ELD or dashcams.

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Maintaining drivers

It can be challenging to keep employees happy, but these systems can help you keep drivers on the job for longer. The trucking industry only experienced a worker shortage of more than 60 000 people in 2018.

The main differences between fleet management and a route planner

Any small or medium-sized business that provides field sales, home services, pick-up or delivery services, or territory management can benefit from using route planners and fleet management tools.

The main differences between fleet management platforms and route planners are based on the needs of the business and the intended use. Both costs are decreased, and customer satisfaction is raised.

Last but not least, business needs and objectives are what distinguish fleet management platforms from route planners. You should research fleet management tools if you have a larger fleet that needs monitoring and cost control. In this manner, you’ll constantly be aware of the fleet’s performance, when maintenance is necessary, and whether or not drivers are abiding by all rules. However, you should also consider route planners if you need an extra layer to give your drivers and customers the best experience possible.

Introducing EasyRoutes local delivery route planner for Shopify.

EasyRoutes by Roundtrip is a Shopify route planner and local delivery manager that comes with all the equipment you need to deliver your own orders. Planning local delivery routes, managing and assigning drivers, and keeping customers informed via tracking pages, delivery notifications, and proof of delivery are all possible.

Without any problems, EasyRoutes integrates with Shopify and your orders. In other words, your orders will be ready to be added to local delivery routes as soon as you open our app. Spreadsheet import and export are no longer required.

Consolidate your delivery processes and inform your customers of the expected delivery times. EasyRoutes is the only all-in-one route planning and local delivery management app that is completely integrated with Shopify, in contrast to Circuit, Routific, and other route planners. You can save time and delight your customers with your new local delivery superpowers.

After you’ve decided which orders need to be delivered, EasyRoutes will walk you through the remaining steps. You can quickly design efficient local delivery routes using itemized inventories. Never before has planning a route been so quick and simple.

Send your drivers your local delivery routes after you’ve reviewed them. This will allow them to use our iOS and Android driver app to find stops, add proof of delivery, and mark orders as delivered, all of which are synced to your Shopify Orders.

Learn more about EasyRoutes or install EasyRoutes from the Shopify App Store to start your free 14-day trial and streamline your local deliveries in just a few clicks!