3 Ways To Use Landmarks
InTouchGPS has a landmark feature in its application that allows you to create a virtual fence (some call it a geofence) around any specific location. Our landmark features includes an alert capability that notifies you when a vehicle arrives and leaves that specific location. Creating landmarks is as easy as inserting an address or picking a location on a map. Our software even allows you to define customs shaped landmarks exactly where you need it.
Our software runs reports to determine the arrival, duration and departure times of vehicles at the landmarks of your choosing. You can also set up live alerts so you’re notified when a vehicle reaches and leaves its destination. If you wish to track vehicles at a landmark individually, in groups, or as a whole, you can. You can track by the landmark (i.e. show everyone who came to this landmark) or by the driver (show me every landmark this driver went to).
Here are three examples that we have seen of businesses using landmarks in an interesting way.
1) Creating negative landmarks to enforce policies
A client owns a lawn service company. They would have their morning meeting to find out their jobs for the current day. The fleet would then disperse and go their way. Well that is what was supposed to be happening. In reality, what was happening was that the fleets were leaving the home office, only to meet up at a large gas station about 3 miles down the road. The drivers would get into conversation with each other and 20-30 minutes per day were spent gabbing when they were supposed to be working. The client sat his fleet down and discussed their policy again and then implemented Landmarks and created one around the gas station. That way he would be notified if a driver was spending too much time there or not doing what they were supposed to be doing.
2) Creating Alerts to Start Event Scenarios
A client owns a recycling company. One of the problems is that it was hard to provide an exact ETA of when a driver would get back. The team that unloaded the trucks would either be standing around waiting or they would arrive late to unload the truck. The client set up a landmark 2 miles out from his facility. When any vehicle entered that landmark the foreman would receive an alert and muster the unloading team. That way there was no any wasted time and trucks could come in and go much faster. The client said that route efficiency (picking up to unloading and leaving the warehouse again) increased by 3 percent daily. With as many trucks as they have, that is s a huge savings.
3) Provide Proof of Service for Billing
A pest company in Orlando has a set of clients that they service on a frequent basis. The company adds each new client as a landmark and prints out the report that shows when and how long his people are there. He attaches this report to his billing and said that past issues of people complaining of no shows or not enough time spent has gone to zero since he implemented this.
Here are just a couple of out-of-the-box ways landmarks can be used. We offer many more features that people enjoy and customize to fit their exact needs. Our GPS fleet tracking expertise allows us to help clients come up with solutions like this to improve processes or generate additional revenue. Learn what InTouchGPS can do for your fleet today.