How To Choose The Right Route Planning Software
If you’re in the market for route planning software, it’s helpful to know how to choose the right route planning software for your business or non-profit. Before you buy route planning software, it’s wise to make sure that specific features & functions are on your shopping list so you ensure your investment produces great ROI. Check out these guidelines for choosing the right route planning software.
How To Choose The Right Route Planning Software: Free software vs. paid software
For starters, let’s talk about the free stuff. The old saying: “You get what you pay for” totally applies when it comes to route planning software. If you need to optimize one route for a special event, then by all means, use the free route planners. But for more robust business or non-profit fleets that need routes optimized, free route planning software isn’t feasible. Why? The majority of free route planning software tools have many built-in limitations such as only being able to optimize up to 10 stops. If you have more stops in your day than 10, you’re out of luck with the free versions.
But if you’re operating a small to mid-sized fleet in support of your delivery, pickup, or service business, then spending a modest amount of money per month will yield BIG savings, including less money spent on fuel, vehicle maintenance tied to mileage such as oil changes & tire replacement, and overtime labor costs.
3 Tips On How To Choose The Right Route Planning Software
1) Web-based: Make sure the route planning software is web-based. In this day and age of cloud computing, there’s no need for managers of small to mid-sized fleets to waste time and money installing software on your own computers. Just use web-based route planning software and the only tools you’ll need to optimize routes are a computer and an internet connection.
2) Fast Route Optimization Processing Speed: Make sure the route planning software can process routes FAST. Let’s face it: watching paint dry is more interesting than watching a computer screen and waiting for something to process. The worthy route planning software tools can process and optimize a route for your small fleet in seconds.
3) Mobile Integration: Make sure the route optimization tool offers mobile integration. You should still be able to print out routes for your drivers. But for those who’ve embraced technology and are comfortable using their smartphone or a tablet to follow the route and get turn-by-turn driving instructions, it’s key that route optimization software integrates with mobile devices.
If you’re researching route planning software for your small to mid-sized fleet, there are 10 key features that should be on your shopping list. Want more information on this? Please access our Route Planning Software Buyers Guide.
Want to take RouteSavvy route planning software for a test drive? Check out our Free, 14-day Trial of RouteSavvy.
