Chapter 7Logistics
Orders and deliveries
From a customer's parcel to a signature at the door.
Orders
An order is what a customer asks you to move: who is sending, where from, where to, what it is, and the charge. Take one at the office from Orders, or let customers place one on your website against your published price list. Every order gets a reference and a tracking code the moment it is created.
The charge is either a line from your price list or an amount typed by staff. It can be adjusted later with a reason; the original stays on record.
Shipments and dispatch
An order has a shipment: the actual journey of the goods. Dispatch it by choosing a rider and a vehicle. The rider sees it on their phone under Deliveries, marks it picked up, and delivers it.
- 1Order created, waybill printed if the customer wants paper.
- 2Dispatched to a rider and a bike or van.
- 3Picked up: the rider confirms collection.
- 4Delivered: the rider records who received it, a note, the location, and a photo if you ask for one.
- 5Failed, with a reason, if nobody was there. Try again from the same order.
Proof of delivery
The delivery record holds the receiver's name, the time, the GPS position where the rider stood, and the photo. It is the answer to "did it arrive": the customer can see it on the tracking page, and you can show it if there is a dispute.
Customer tracking
Every order has a public tracking page, by its tracking code, with no login. It shows each step from booking to delivery. The link is on the waybill and in the confirmation the customer gets when they book online.
Payment
An order is unpaid, paid or partly paid. Online orders are paid before dispatch through your own payment account. Office orders are recorded as cash, transfer or POS by staff, and the day's takings reconcile the same way as tickets.