Electronic Proof of Delivery: One-Stop Solution for Multi-Dimensional Challenges

The business landscape in India has transitioned completely. While global economies are facing severe financial whiplashes after the COVID era, the Indian economy somehow seems to be growing at a steady pace. Why?

India saw:

• An incredible entrepreneurial/industrial revolution

• The expansion of the Indian middle class and a sudden increase in disposable income

• A surge in FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) thanks to a growing consumer market

Additionally, the pandemic brought about another transition - the successful penetration of e-commerce and e-retail businesses whose doorstep delivery is a service none of us are ready to let go of. Our mobile phones have become stores that are accessible 24/7 and amplify our spending probability, whereas comfortable door-to-door delivery services have become the norm. 

Today, India has over 230-250 million e-retail customers who prefer shopping via online marketplaces and expect home deliveries.

You contribute to this number, too, right? We all do! But here’s a thought. With 230-250 million customers ordering groceries, apparel, electronic gadgets, and even 3-course meals daily, how exactly do businesses keep up? How do they keep track of high-volume inventories? How do they reconcile in case of order discrepancies?

Another challenge created for businesses was managing proof of delivery for such voluminous assets. Imagine catering to a quarter billion orders comprising a spectrum of order values, sizes, and batches spread across postal addresses. Would the age-old paper invoices and proof of delivery documents still work?

Even if it does, imagine the ecological footprint you leave behind while catering to your consumers. What’s the solution?

Enter electronic proof of delivery (ePOD) – a digital document that records delivery at the last mile and change of hands across every supply chain touchpoint during the middle mile. So, no more signing off on delivery documents or struggling to preserve perishable PODs for future reconciliations.

But before delving into the transition from traditional proof of delivery to e-POD, let’s quickly learn what proof of delivery means.

What is Proof of Delivery in Logistics?

A proof of delivery is a document signed by the customer/recipient across logistics touchpoints to confirm the delivery of goods in proper condition. Once signed, the delivery is marked as successful. There are multiple forms of POD - traditionally, companies use a system of physical or scanned documents. A copy of this document was with the consignor (company that organizes or initiates a shipment), transporter (organization that completes the shipment), and consignee (distributor/recipient who receives the consignment).

The copies of these documents are to be signed by each of the respective parties to confirm the successful delivery of the consignment.

PODs are the most crucial documentation in supply chain logistics without which a company cannot recognize revenue.

Now that we are all aligned with what proof of delivery in logistics means let us see how we transitioned from paper or physical PODs to e-POD.

Transitioning from Paper POD Documents to Electronic Proof of Delivery in Logistics

1. The Penetration of E-Commerce and E-Retail

   Since the pandemic's onset, customers are relying heavily upon online shopping over brick-and-mortar stores. The Indian e-retail market is primed to reach nearly 300 to 350 million shoppers over the next 2 years—propelling the online Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) to $100 to 120 billion by 2025.

   
   Even small retail businesses have started investing heavily in direct-to-customer (D2C) online stores and apps to keep their business afloat. For hyperlocal deliveries, many retail companies are partnering with third-party logistics businesses.
   
   

2. Exponential Growth in Online Deliveries and Ecological Impact from Paper PODs

   The post-pandemic increase in business operations implied an insanely high volume of deliveries that were made possible through a more complex logistics and operations network. Keeping physical tabs on voluminous deliveries was not just time-consuming and error-prone but also left an irreversible ecological footprint for businesses.
   
   

3. Delayed Revenue Recognition

   Traditionally, a delivery person had to fill out the paperwork manually, get the customer's signature, and return it to the transporter’s office to be safely recorded. Transporting goods across the country could sometimes take days, and physical PODs were simply too slow for businesses to recognize revenues on time. This manual process was also prone to human errors.
   
   

4. Reconciliation Process and Tackling Delivery Discrepancies

   Physical POD documents had a high manual dependency and were thus prone to human error. Moreover, they were perishable and required considerable care while handling and storing.

   
   With PODs being a crucial document confirming the successful delivery of the goods and their condition at the time of delivery, it was difficult to reconcile with customers if these documents were misplaced or errored.

   
   Hence, we transitioned to an electronic proof of delivery software.

What is Electronic Proof of Delivery (ePOD)?

An electronic proof of delivery or e-POD is a crucial document that confirms order delivery in the form of an attestation, image, or comments in an electronic format.

One can opt for multiple methods for proof of delivery. Intugine’s ePOD provides contactless options like OTP, links, missed calls, and WhatsApp-based verifications.

This electronic document then gets directly fed to your Enterprise Management System and Transport Management Systems or any other module you use to manage your invoices and finances.

How Does an e-POD Work?

An e-POD solution is implemented along with Enterprise Requirements Planning Systems (ERP) and Transport Management Systems (TMS). It enables the electronic exchange of transaction details, including shipping details, product specifications, purchase orders, invoices, etc., in real-time, thus minimizing physical contact.

Benefits of an Electronic Proof of Delivery in Logistics

1. Real-Time Revenue Recognition

   e-PODs can help make accounting easier at the end of the month, making the whole process faster and smoother. The e-pod gets automatically reflected on your ERP or TMS in real time, allowing you to recognize revenues instantly.
   
   

2. Alleviates Redundant Manual Dependencies

   Unlike the traditional methods, electronic proof of delivery automates POD transmission to the ERPs and TMSs once it is recorded. You can record an e-POD in 4 forms - digital signatures, QR codes, photographs, and fingerprints. It completely eliminates the manual processes of submitting physical documents to the transportation offices and consignees, thereby reducing manual errors like misplacement, misfiling, etc.
   
   

3. Easy to Store

   An e-POD can be directly integrated with your ERP or TMS and record delivery status in real time. This data is stored on the cloud and won’t perish over time
   
   

4. Facilitates Reconciliation Process

   Reconciliation with customers in cases of delivery discrepancies is a piece of cake with e-PODs. You have access to images, comments, and digital signatures that confirm the condition of goods at the time of delivery. This helps you breeze through customer reconciliations and ensure judicial resolution of queries.
   
   

Key Takeaways

The post-pandemic economic success of India was accompanied by a recognizable stroke in the business landscape. With increased FDIs (Foreign Direct Investments), the amplification of India’s manufacturing and logistics infrastructure, and the growth in India’s e-commerce landscape, there was a correlated increase in purchase and delivery volumes. With such an exponential increase in deliveries, traditional POD collection processes turned unproductive, with an added threat to the environment.

Thus, electronic Proof Of Delivery rose as the one-stop solution for both middle-mile and last-mile logistics. With benefits like real-time revenue recognition for businesses, seamless reconciliations, and the elimination of manual errors, most of the business community has already embraced e-PODs. 

If you don’t want to be left behind, hop on the bandwagon with us. Click here to learn more about Intugine’s e-POD solution and here to take a quick peep into its features.