Same-day strong during COVID-19
Freight technology is keeping the world moving, and Mothership is leading the charge.
“From the moment you book to the moment your freight picks up, you have complete ground level visibility on where the truck is, who the driver is, and where you are in their route.” — Mothership Director of Operations, Marko Milosevic
There’s nothing more valuable than time, and that remains ever true as the world grapples with COVID-19. With more people staying inside and adopting a “prepper” mindset, supply chains have been put to the test as demand for food, clothing, and cleaning products and more reaches record highs. Unfortunately many businesses struggle to keep things moving with a leaner workforce, Black Friday-level e-commerce activity on a daily basis, and new regulations. Food supply chains in the U.S. have been hit especially hard, with reports of food spoiling in warehouses while more people than ever struggle with food insecurity due to unemployment and reduced access to essentials.
Now more than ever, businesses need to do more with less. Delivering essentials to those who need it the most can’t happen tomorrow, it needs to happen today. But considering the circumstances, this is easier said than done.
Most same-day networks that exist in the world today are decentralized. Businesses reach out to truck drivers — often individual owner-operators — to get a few pallets delivered in a pinch. This is a highly manual and inconsistent process. Many drivers won’t want to make the trip if it’s not a full truckload, especially if the route is out of their way. They consistently have to negotiate the rate higher to improve an already low margin, as most drivers lose money on deadhead miles. This too often results in wasted time and money on both ends. Because of this, some companies defer to traditional LTL shipping which is cheaper, but requires a turnaround time of 72 hours or more.
Luckily, affordable same-day freight shipping is where Mothership shines. Our automated dispatch technology instantly connects businesses with trucks near them with open space for their freight. We then optimize routes so partner drivers can pick up multiple loads in succession from businesses that are already on their route to keep their truck full as much as possible. Not only does this allow partner drivers to make more money with every mile they drive, it also drastically lowers rates for businesses needing to ship less than a full truckload. Even better, automated route optimization ensures the fastest delivery—in many regions across the U.S., freight can be picked up and delivered in the same day at no additional cost.
“You get more confidence that your freight will be picked up quickly, and for a fair price.”
— Mothership Director of Operations, Marko Milosevic
The moment a shipment is booked, businesses can track the location of the dispatched truck and watch it move in real-time to the pickup location and then to delivery. The benefit here is time-savings, which is crucial when many businesses are operating with a leaner workforce. The whole operation is completely transparent, eliminating the need to call or email to determine the location of freight. Businesses that need to reliably ship essential goods like food and medical supplies save an average of five hours per week with Mothership when compared to other freight carriers, which is an even more meaningful difference in the wake of a global pandemic.
Another benefit of Mothership is paperless documentation—bills of lading and invoices are digitally generated and stored on an online dashboard, which reduces the need for human contact between partner drivers and workers on the warehouse floor. And Mothership partner drivers get paid immediately via direct deposit upon successful delivery, which is proven to significantly improve driver reliability.
“With Mothership’s model, one of the impacts I’ve seen on our drivers is that they have more time — they can log into their app, make the money they’re looking to make for the day, and when they’re done, they can log out and have time to spend with their families and foster hobbies.”
—Mothership Support Manager, Jennifer Edwards
With millions facing the unexpected, adopting advanced freight technology will help businesses, truck drivers, and consumers become more resilient. And during this time, resilience is key to survival. Schedule a demo with a Freight Specialist today to get started with Mothership.
If your business is donating goods to help combat COVID-19, you may also be eligible for free or discounted freight through Mothership’s Freight Support Program.
