GPS Tracked Leaflet Distribution
In 2011, we switched to GPS tracked leaflet distribution to improve the transparency of our service even more and give our customers complete peace of mind that their leaflets are being delivered. Each of our delivery personnel carries a data logger which monitors their position every 2-5 seconds while they are delivering using satellite technology. The information is all stored on the GPS logging device. When the distributor has completed his round, the tracker is returned to us in the office and the data is downloaded onto a computer. The software “joins” the data points creating a track of the route that the distributor took to deliver your leaflets. A separate track is created for each different day that the delivery person switches their tracker on and each of those individual tracks is date stamped and time stamped so that you can see exactly which days they have been out delivering. It even tells you what time they switched their tracker on! Checking the GPS tracking devices allow us to provide a guaranteed leaflet distribution service to you, our clients, but it also provides protection for the distributor in the unlikely event of any disputes. It’s important for both client and delivery personnel that we have in place a comprehensive checking system to ensure that the work has been completed to the standard we expect. That’s why the data from every GPS tracker is checked thoroughly after it has been downloaded. As well as the obvious tracks that we can see overlaid on Google maps and in Google Earth, there are several other checks that we can carry out to monitor the quality of the work.
Playback of the Route – the software allows us to “playback” the path taken by the distributors as they deliver their leaflets. From this, we can help our distributors and particularly our teams, to keep their deliveries as efficient as possible by providing ongoing feedback.
Total time taken – For each track, we can see the start time and end time and therefore the total time the distributor took to deliver that particular section of their round. We can then check that this is consistent with the average time it should take to cover that number of homes. From this information, we also maintain records of how long it takes to complete any given area so that our teams are working at maximum efficiency.
Walking/Driving speed – It is normally obvious from the “shape” of the tracks whether the distributor has delivered to each letterbox, particularly on the streets where the homes have longer drives. However, as there is less definition on terraced streets and in some cases, on the semi-detached homes, we check the walking speed where necessary to ensure it is consistent with what we would expect to see in those areas.
Reporting
Once we have completed our checks, we forward the file to you so that you can view the exact route that the delivery person took to deliver your leaflets. Although you don’t have access to all the information that we can see in the background, you do have the facility to view your tracks in Map view or Satellite view and even zoom in on the tracks. We send you an “update” report each time a tracker is returned to us that contains a section of your distribution.