Customer deliveries that require prior notification or appointments to be scheduled are nothing new to our industry, but they are an important segment of business for Saia. The growth of e-commerce, delivery window times, home-based businesses, and appointment deliveries, in general, has been a dramatic change to the logistics landscape in recent years. Consider also the growth of internet shopping and how many more goods we have delivered directly to our homes now instead of shopping at brick and mortar stores or malls as we used to just ten or so years ago.

These factors have cost the LTL industry significant tonnage as formerly business-to-business shipments to stores have now been replaced by parcel and LTL shipments direct to our homes. The ready availability of tracing information via the internet and the proliferation of cell phones has raised the degree of difficulty for this segment of business.

Ask yourself this question — "Do I receive more merchandise directly to my home today than a few years ago?"  Chances are you do, so you are part of this growing segment of our economy, and as a customer, you have probably had bad experiences with delivery drivers running late, not showing up at all, or not calling.

So, this is where your work life intersects with your home life. The carrier that excels at satisfying the shippers that have these appointment deliveries is going to be able to command a higher price for their services — if they can perform these deliveries with distinction.  

As a company, we must strive for excellence in servicing appointment deliveries. When we schedule an appointment, we must make every effort to honor it. Our word is our bond. It is not okay to not put a shipment out for delivery on the scheduled day, or to save it for last, “if I can get to it later in the day.”

We must over-communicate with the customer if we are running late for a commitment. You expect that courtesy from a carrier delivering to your house, and we should provide the same level of respect to our customers.

At Saia, "First Appointment Efficiency" is measured and reported on in each terminal. First of all, did we schedule the delivery appointment before the freight arrived at the destination terminal? Secondly, did we honor the commitment and deliver at the time we promised? Our goal is to exceed 90 percent on these metrics, and in so doing would be providing a high level of satisfaction to our customers.

How is your terminal doing toward reaching the 90 percent goal? Growth opportunity abounds for the companies that deliver good customer experiences.  It is a component of quality, and at Saia, Quality Matters More.