Andy Hill, Sales Director of delivery management software provider Sorted, explains why closing the ‘virtuous circle’ of retailer, supply chain and customer benefits everyone.
Sorted has grown from My Parcel Delivery, a 2010 parcel price comparison startup that aimed to take the grind out of getting stuff to customers. With a suite of technology products now in the family, MPD evolved into Sorted Group – which now develops delivery management systems, customer experience delivery applications, and executes efficient carrier communications. Its products (SortedPRO, SortedHERO, and the forthcoming SortedApp) cover the links between retailer website, fulfilment provider and customer.
“Sorted provides logistics software that makes supply chain management easier for retailers and their warehouse operations teams,” explains Sales Director Andy Hill. SortedPRO integrates seamlessly into existing warehouse management systems to look after label printing, dynamic carrier allocation and global dispatching. It translates tracking events and information from different carriers into one consistent language that allows for proactive alerts to customers and dashboards across warehouse operations.
“Some of the biggest names in global ecommerce trust our platform because it puts the control back into the hands of the in-house team to control their own operations and shipping allocations. It’s about the retailer connecting with the warehouse, carriers and the customer.
“More and more, we’re connecting the customer because delivery technology is changing. Currently, if you order three items from three different retailers, you’ll get three confirmation emails pointing you to three carrier websites. What our SortedApp technology does is first aggregate all that into a single tracking app giving push notifications to the customer’s mobile. In the near future, it will give shoppers the ability to disrupt the delivery inflight, maybe having it sent to a pickup location at the retailer’s own store, or a Collect Plus location for example.”
With lack of delivery personalisation a key cause of basket abandonment, SortedHERO is a checkout plugin that offers customers a wider range of tailored options. These help to increase conversion and encourage return business and it’s the scope of
these options that Sorted finds
so fascinating.
“The landscape is changing and retailers need to be allied to many different partners to suit many different needs,” says Hill. “Retailers should be asking customers, ‘Where are you and what’s your perfect delivery scenario?’ Then, to fulfil all these options, they need modern tech wizardry in the warehouse to accommodate the demanding delivery and returns process.”
Core delivery management platforms that connect carriers to retailers are already an established marketplace that’s led by some big hitters such as MetaPack. Yet Hill thinks that Sorted are moving into the relatively untapped waters of the retailer, carrier, consumer virtuous circle. “In terms of this new world of logistics on demand and inflight communication,” he says, “we’re leading the way really. And that’s a great place to be.”
About Sorted
Sorted is a global delivery experience company harnessing the power of tech to transform the complex world of deliveries into a simple, seamless – and even uplifting – experience. There are three key products in Sorted’s portfolio:
SortedPRO: a delivery management platform that supports global ecommerce businesses
SortedHero: a plug-in that provides a raft of personalisation for your customers at checkout
Sorted.App: this game-changing app will allow consumers to aggregate deliveries and returns from multiple retailers on their smartphones
