It’s common knowledge that there’s been a shortage of trained long-haul truck drivers for decades…but, after the pandemic of 2020, a commercial driver shortage solution for local home deliveries is badly needed as well. Here’s why:
Consumer demand for home deliveries increased by double-digits across many industries in 2020. However, Emsi, a U.K.-based labor market research firm, reports that the ratio of job postings for light-duty truck drivers to actual hiring was 2:1. So, while demand for local home deliveries is soaring, the availability of light-duty truck & van delivery drivers is roughly half of what it needs to be.
Route optimization software tools like RouteSavvy help mitigate this problem.
Pandemic-related Changes In Consumer Attitudes & Buying Habits Create The Need For Even More Delivery Drivers
Before we discuss how route optimization software helps mitigate the delivery driver shortage, let’s take a look at how the pandemic has permanently changed consumer attitudes & shopping behaviors.
A 200+-page research report from August 2020 McKinsey research report states: There have been double-digit increases in shopping online for the following consumer goods:
- Alcohol: 34% increase
- Prepared food: 28% increase
- Clothing: 19% increase
- Consumer electronics: 10% increase
- Footwear: 16% increase
- Groceries: 41% increase
- Household Supplies: 38% increase
- Meds-Over the Counter: 44% increase
- Personal Care Products: 38% increase
- Skin care & Make-up: 18% increase
- Snacks: 20% increase
- Vitamins & Supplements: 27% increase
What this means for businesses is that consumers deployed home deliveries to stay safe in the pandemic. In addition, virtually every research study on consumer behavior shows that consumers intend to keep ordering products online and having the goods delivered to their homes.
Amazon & other similar companies will continue to reap rewards and see exponential growth. Local businesses that want to cash in on this trend must be prepared to take orders online, and deliver good to consumers in their local area.
This will require even more delivery drivers for light-duty trucks & vans…at a time when the volume of delivery drivers is about 50% of what’s needed.
This is where Route Optimization Software solutions like RouteSavvy can ease business’s or non-profit’s pain regarding delivery drivers (or the lack thereof).
How Route Optimization Software Provides A Solution To The Delivery Driver Shortage
Here are the top 3 ways RouteSavvy route optimization can help businesses & non-profits deal with the current shortage of delivery drivers:
- Get More Done with Fewer Delivery Drivers – When you optimize a route with RouteSavvy, your drivers travel fewer miles and spend less time to get the day’s deliveries done. More efficient routing from route optimization software literally can result in needing less delivery drivers.
- Create More Job Satisfaction & Retain Your Current Staff of Delivery Drivers – RouteSavvy can help create more job satisfaction & retain valuable delivery drivers. Here’s how:
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- Less Time Behind the Wheel – When you reduce miles driven, delivery drivers spend less time on the road and in traffic to get their deliveries completed.
- Reduced Stress from Clearer Directions – With RouteSavvy, there’s no more driving around trying to find a delivery location. RouteSavvy correlates addresses with current address databases & then generates an accurate route that can be exported to a driver’s phone or tablet for detailed, turn-by-turn navigation instructions.
- Less Overtime Work – Some delivery drivers welcome the overtime and income that goes with it. But there are just as many delivery drivers who would like to finish work at a reasonable hour so they can enjoy their personal lives and families. RouteSavvy helps facilitate getting the day’s work done and moving onto to one’s personal life.
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- Help Keep Drivers Healthier – It’s now being said that “sitting is the new smoking.” RouteSavvy can promote healthier drivers by helping them get the day’s deliveries done in less time (so they’re sitting for less hours per day). When you keep your drivers healthy, you keep your drivers driving for more years to come. Negative health effects of long hours spent driving include:
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- Obesity
- Heart problems
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes
- Heart disease
- Circulation issues including varicose veins & blood clots in a driver’s legs (aka Deep Vein Thrombosis)
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When it comes to dealing with these huge shifts in consumer behaviors & expectations, you’ll do your business or non-profit – and your delivery drivers – a huge favor if you deploy affordable route optimization software tools like RouteSavvy. In the process, you’ll need less delivery drivers to get the job done, and you’ll retain more of the delivery drivers already on your staff.
Need to explore a commercial driver shortage solution like RouteSavvy? Sign up for a free one-on-one demo.
