Shipment visibility refers to tracking goods in transit, providing a clear and real-time overview of inventory. As customer expectations and supply chain disruptions evolve, there is an increasing demand for real-time updates on the status of their shipments. Shipment visibility platforms, like BLU4U, enhance supply chain visibility, enabling shippers to efficiently manage global cargo flows, provide proactive status updates, and reduce disruptions. In this article, we will explain shipment visibility, why it’s important, and what benefits this solution can offer.
What is shipment visibility?
Shipment visibility is the ability to track a shipment’s location and status in real time throughout its journey from the pick-up location via a warehouse to its final destination. With real-time shipment visibility, you know exactly where your goods are at any given moment and can be alerted to any disruptions that might arise during transit, ideally before it arises.
If you’ve ever purchased something online, you’ve probably used a "track my package" feature. This tool provides a detailed timeline of your shipment’s journey. It lets you know when the order leaves the warehouse, when it arrives at a distribution center, and when the delivery carrier picks it up for the final leg of the journey. Along the way, you’re kept up to date on its status, including any unexpected delays.
But shipment visibility is not just for consumers, it’s also a critical tool for businesses. By having clear, real-time insights into where their shipments are, companies can better manage inventory, plan their production, proactively address potential delays, and improve customer communication. This leads to smoother operations, better customer service, and a more efficient supply chain overall.
Learn more about what a transportation management system is.
Why shipping visibility matters for freight forwarders
Did you know that 47% of shippers consider shipment visibility as a critical factor when evaluating freight forwarders? Visibility is essential for gaining new business, improving profit margins, and reducing customer churn. Some shippers are willing to pay higher rates for freight forwarders that offer advanced technology, better visibility, and better control. This makes shipping visibility a crucial part of freight forwarding, helping to streamline operations and manage complex processes.
In the past, companies could rely on simply sending an order out and trusting it would reach the customer. However, in today’s highly competitive environment, customers expect more. A small issue, such as a delayed package, can cause them to switch to a competitor.
For businesses, real-time data is crucial for making informed decisions. Just like customer data or sales data, shipment visibility should be seen as another important data point that can drive better decision-making and help your business grow. By treating it as a key factor in your operations, you can improve your service, increase efficiency, and ultimately boost customer satisfaction.
Take control of your supply chain. From real-time shipment tracking to complete supply chain visibility, our BLU4U platform ensures efficiency, transparency, and confidence in every link.
Gaining better visibility into your shipment processes can result in significant improvements in both logistics efficiency and customer satisfaction. Not quite convinced yet? Let’s break it down. Here are 7 reasons why improving shipment visibility should be a top priority for your business:
7 benefits of shipment visibility
1. Improved customer satisfaction
Improving delivery and fulfillment directly enhances the customer experience. Customers love receiving their orders ahead of schedule. Real-time shipment visibility allows you to optimize delivery times, increasing the likelihood of positive interactions and boosting customer satisfaction.
2. Lower workload for customer support teams
Shipment visibility equips your customer support teams with real-time tracking information, allowing them to provide accurate updates when customers inquire about their orders. By proactively sharing this information with customers, you can reduce the number of calls and improve overall efficiency.
3. Enhanced performance tracking
With better shipment visibility, you can easily track how well different carriers are performing. This helps you make smarter decisions, like whether using a mix of shipping options could improve your logistics.
4. Streamlined supply chains
Tools that enhance shipment visibility also improve overall supply chain transparency. This helps you identify inefficiencies and better predict demand, allowing you to optimize all aspects of your supply chain. By doing so, you can increase profit margins and reduce the impact of major disruptions.
5. More streamlined inventory management
Whether you handle all your orders in-house or rely on a network of partners, inventory management often comes with hidden costs. Issues like missing stock or duplicate orders can impact your profit margins – particularly if your inventory tracking system isn’t up to par. Shipment visibility can help prevent many of these issues, like identifying and addressing them before they disrupt your operations.
6. Improved risk management
Every business decision carries potential risks. The key to identifying and managing those risks is having the right information. In the case of your supply chain, shipment visibility provides the data you need to assess and minimize risks effectively.
7. Improved decision-making
Access to real-time data enables better strategic decisions across various parts of your business. Whether it’s adjusting delivery schedules, optimizing routes, or identifying cost-saving opportunities, this visibility allows you to make informed choices that can improve efficiency and profitability.
Learn more about how you can optimize your supply chain.
BLU4U - ALWAYS AN EYE ON YOUR CARGO
Freight visibility: Tracking shipments across land, sea, and air
Whether you’re dealing with land, sea, or air transport, cargo visibility systems offer a significant competitive advantage. Here’s how visibility works for each type of transportation:
- Land freight visibility
By using tracking tools, you can stay on top of land-based shipments and manage multiple transportation modes (trucks, trains, etc.). This visibility allows you to optimize routes, prevent delays, and respond quickly to disruptions. Real-time updates help you anticipate challenges and ensure products reach their destination on time.
- Ocean freight visibility
Ocean freight visibility is crucial for international shipments that travel by sea. Shipping by boat often takes weeks or even months. So, having access to real-time data can help your business manage inventory and customer expectations better. Technologies like GPS and automated tracking systems allow you to track containers and minimize delays caused by port congestion or bad weather.
- Air cargo visibility
For high-value, time-sensitive shipments, shipment status visibility for air cargo is very important. Air freight is particularly vulnerable to delays due to factors like weather, air traffic, or security checks. Real-time status tracking ensures businesses can make informed decisions and keep customers updated, reducing frustration caused by unexpected delays.
Read more about air cargo tracking.
6 effective ways to boost your shipment visibility
Improving shipment visibility doesn’t mean you have to overhaul your supply chain. With the right partners and strategies, you can make your shipping process much more transparent. Below are some simple steps to help you get started.
1. Use real-time tracking
Switching to real-time tracking is one of the easiest ways to improve shipment visibility. It goes beyond the basic tracking updates you get with standard shipping services – giving you instant updates on where your shipments are.
2. Integrate smart inventory management
Accurate inventory is crucial for many processes in your business. Use dedicated fulfillment tools that allow you to track inventory across multiple locations or warehouses. This ensures everything is accounted for and up to date.
3. Upgrade your analytics
Shipment visibility is more than tracking individual orders – it’s about understanding your whole fulfillment process. Shipment visibility platforms offer deeper insights into your operations, helping you identify areas for improvement.
4. Automate where you can
Automation might sound complex, but there are easy-to-use platforms that don’t require technical skills. Automating routine tasks can save you time and reduce human error.
For example, you can automate the process of importing estimated and actual shipment dates by connecting to platforms that provide transport data or by integrating with your carriers directly. This ensures you receive timely, auto-generated updates, keeping you informed without any manual effort.
5. Communicate proactively with customers
Keep customers informed about the status of their orders or shipments before they need to ask. Instead of waiting for customers to contact you with questions, send updates regularly. This approach helps build trust, improves customer satisfaction, and reduces the number of inquiries your support team needs to handle.
6. Partner with reliable shipping providers
Evaluate your current shipping partners regularly to ensure they meet your needs. Consider new partnerships that can help improve your shipping operations, whether with carriers or logistics providers.
Read: 5 reasons why your business should invest in TMS.
How can Bertling help your business improve shipment visibility?
Bertling provides innovative solutions designed to improve shipment visibility across your entire supply chain. With our advanced tracking system, you gain real-time updates for all your shipments, whether by road, rail, sea, or air. With a strong focus on customer service and operational efficiency, Bertling ensures you have full visibility into your cargo's journey – helping you proactively address potential delays or disruptions.
Our network of partners and global presence allow us to offer end-to-end solutions, ensuring that you can track and manage your freight seamlessly from start to finish.
By working with Bertling, your business can experience increased efficiency, improved shipment tracking, and enhanced supply chain transparency – ultimately driving cost savings and boosting customer satisfaction.
