Proof of Delivery Scanning Delivers Outstanding Value

There are so many specific business applications for Document Scanning and Document Management that it's a challenge to share all of them, but one application - Proof Of Delivery - continually stands out as an outstanding value for clients. Not all Scanning Applications make fiscal sense or improve Customer Service, but Proof of Delivery is different.

Proof of Delivery Scanning solutions enable companies to provide their clients with access to signed delivery receipts via a web browser, resulting in improved customer service and reduced daily sales outstanding (DSO). The technology hasn't changed much since the late 1990's, but a best practices implementation typically looks something like this:

• Creation of Delivery Ticket/Bill of Lading - When coordinating a Delivery, a vendor will create a Delivery Ticket or Bill of Lading to accompany the shipment. In an ideal scenario, these tickets will be printed with a Barcoded Ticket Number to help eliminate any manual data entry later on in the process.
• Delivery of Goods and/or Services - Vendor will deliver goods and/or provide services to a client and obtain a signature on a Bill of Lading or Proof of Delivery document as evidence that the transaction was completed.
• Vendor Scans Proof of Delivery Documents - With modern document capture software and today's affordable Scanners, Vendors can easily scan tickets and read the Barcode information to provide a quick lookup to that specific ticket number when a request is made. Additional information, such as Customer Name, Transaction Date, Branch Code, or Plant Code, can be obtained via ODBC Lookup, eliminating the need for any additional keystrokes.

Once the process is complete, the Documents are then placed into a Document Management Software application, such as OnBase or PaperVision Enterprise. From there, clients can be provided with direct access to review their completed POD's and search for transaction history and Internal Customer Service Representatives can quickly and easily field any questions or requests relating to Transactions. This is particularly useful for Collections staff looking to accelerate the payment cycle, as they're now able to quickly and effortlessly provide a record of the transaction and request prompt remittance of any required payment.

For clients that are processing higher volumes, there is also the option to leverage outsourced Proof of Delivery Scanning to even further reduce the costs associated with the process. In the outsourced scenario, completed delivery tickets can be sent to a third party vendor for scanning and posted to a hosted Document Management repository (ImageSilo or OnBase Online, for example) for web-based access by either external clients or internal staff.

In addition, advancements in integration technology from Providers such as Hyland Software and their Application Enabler utility have made it easy to integrate scanned tickets directly with ERP or Accounting Systems. This provides real-time access to Delivery Tickets directly from screens in systems like SAP, Oracle, or any other Line of Business application, even further increasing the ROI of Proof of Delivery Scanning.

If you're currently delivering goods and services and you're not scanning your Proof of Delivery Documents or Bill of Lading files, you need to take the time to at least explore these solutions. The investment required is far less than the cost of not getting paid for a delivery or service because of poor documentation, and the reduced operating costs provided by immediate action can save thousands of dollars in labor each month.