Client portal development for logistics companies

What shippers can do

Bookings that arrive ready to plan

Bookings by phone or email often miss details planners need: exact weights and dimensions, pallet counts, access restrictions, delivery windows, hazardous goods information. A portal booking form asks for these consistently, checks them and passes them to the planning system without re-keying. Saved addresses and templates make regular bookings quick for shippers, and validation catches mistakes before a vehicle is sent.

Larger shippers may prefer to send bookings automatically from their own systems instead of using the form.

Making charges transparent

A consignment as the shipper sees it

1. 01

   Booked

   Booking confirmed with reference.

   Output: Confirmation

2. 02

   Collected

   Collection time and any notes.

   Output: In our care

3. 03

   In transit

   Hub or route updates where available.

   Output: Progress

4. 04

   Delivered

   Proof of delivery available.

   Output: Evidence

5. 05

   Invoiced

   Charges and invoice linked.

   Output: Clear billing

Different shippers, different needs

• Occasional shippers

  Simple booking and tracking by reference.

• Regular accounts

  Templates, saved addresses and monthly reports.

• Large shippers

  System-to-system booking and tracking.

• Shippers' customers

  Tracking links the shipper can pass on, if agreed.

Transport portal or warehouse portal

This page covers transport: booking, tracking and delivery. Logistics companies that store stock for clients also need warehouse visibility, covered on the inventory page for logistics companies. Where a business does both, one portal with a shared sign-in can present transport and stock views to the same client.

Telling shippers about problems early

When a collection is missed, a vehicle is delayed or a delivery fails, shippers want to know before their own customers call them. Proactive notifications for exceptions, with a short explanation and the next step, protect the relationship. They work best when drivers' status updates are reliable, which depends on the driver app or handheld devices used in the operation. Agree which exceptions trigger messages and keep the wording factual.

Shippers can choose who in their team receives which alerts.

Reports for regular accounts

Regular shippers value monthly summaries: consignments by service, on-time performance, failed deliveries and charges. Providing these in the portal, with exports, supports account reviews and reduces ad hoc report requests. Make sure performance figures are calculated consistently and explained, because shippers will compare them with their own records.

Special goods

If you carry goods with special handling or regulatory requirements, the booking form can collect the information your operation needs and route those bookings for review before acceptance.

Where to start

Tracking with proof of delivery often removes many calls; validated bookings follow for accounts that book frequently.

Several users at a shipper

Shippers often have despatch staff who book, customer service staff who track and finance staff who handle invoices. Roles give each the right view, and sites within a larger shipper can be kept separate with a head-office view across them. Access should be removed promptly when shipper staff leave.

Connecting to your planning and billing

Portal bookings should flow into your planning or transport management system, and charges should come from billing, so the portal is never a separate copy that drifts out of date. Check integration options early.