Preparing for Holiday Season Shipments

The holiday period between Thanksgiving and New Year is particularly challenging for delivery businesses. UPS, FedEx, Amazon, and the US Postal Service (as well as all of their local subcontractors) see their freight volumes increase significantly. Many bring on temporary workers to assist with the greater demand. At the same time, many of our personal routines shift in ways that increase busyness, and it all takes place with less daylight, colder temperatures, and adverse weather.

How do we keep the season of Joy joyful, from a delivery perspective? At Am-Tran we embrace the reality of the situation, plan accordingly, and seek to carry on with a can-do spirit that matches this special time of the year.

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What you Can Expect from Am-Tran during the Holiday Season

We wrote in our previous blog about the safety precautions we take as a result of the daylight saving time switch. We will continue to promote awareness of more dangerous driving conditions, monitor traffic patterns, and be prepared for bad weather.

In addition, you can expect that we have evaluated our projected demand and matched employee schedules to meet that demand such that our high standard of quality is not compromised. Existing customers are given preference over new business.

Effective communication remains a top priority. What that really means is that when things go wrong, or we can’t handle a specific request, our customers will be told the reality of the situation – as soon as we know it ourselves – and the options available to mitigate adversity.

In addition to these seasonal changes we make, we are committed to our baseline quality of service. That includes the following: 

• Efficient Planning. Am-Tran will proactively manage your logistics to handle the holidays, with efficient planning strategies to minimize delays and ensure timely deliveries.
• Increased Customer support. Am-Tran will provide dedicated support teams to address inquiries related to holiday shipments, ensuring prompt and helpful assistance.
• Real time Communication. Am-Tran will continue to provide real time communication, informing about any special holiday hours, closures, or other relevant information that may impact their courier services.  This also includes system notifications regarding a live shipment allowing for a timely response to any unforeseen incident 
• Special Handling for Fragile Holiday items and shipments. You can expect Am-Tran to implement special handling protocols to ensure the safe and timely delivery of these items during the holiday season.

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How We Can Work Together to Improve the Outcome for All

1. Plan Ahead

First and foremost, the sooner we know about any given requirement, the better we can plan, and the more likely things will go off without a hitch. We understand that is not always possible, and we promise to do everything in our power to make the deliveries as expected (including proactively having more drivers available). 

Here are some other ways to plan ahead to ensure efficient logistics during the busy holidays:

• Schedule critical pre-scheduled jobs in advance for possible Holiday season delays. To avoid possible holiday season delays, we highly recommend scheduling critical pre-scheduled jobs in advance. 
• Consolidate your shipments as much as possible. To reduce peak time services, we recommend combining multiple shipments into a single, well-organized delivery. This can enhance logistics efficiency and minimize shipping costs amid potential holiday logistical challenges.
• Prioritize jobs and book the most critical jobs early in the day. Booking jobs early in the day minimizes the risk of delays or disruptions which is essential for the most critical jobs.

2. Communicate Any Changes

Let us know about any changes at your facility for the holidays. During this period, many office hours are reduced to enable employees to spend more time with friends and family. We regularly reach out to our customers to understand how these hours are changing, but it is especially helpful if customers touch base with us. 

The same applies to different pickup or delivery locations, and contact phone numbers. Oftentimes these temporary changes get overlooked in the busyness of the season, and drivers who are accustomed to certain locations and contacts are scrambling to figure out what’s happened. Without reliable contact information these can easily turn into dry runs where the drivers and dispatchers simply can’t find the packages.

Here are some other ways clear communication can optimize logistics during the busy holidays:

• Communicate any special handling requirements – With advanced knowledge of the requirements, we will be able to handle just about anything.
• Double double check labels and packaging. Double double check labels and packing on outgoing shipments to avoid any confusion.
• Work with us to identify opportunities for delivery optimization. We have a lot of experience handling increased holiday volumes and can work with you to ensure timely and reliable service. 

Conclusion

Working together, Am-Tran can help make the delivery process easy. Our dedicated customer service agents are available 24 hours a day, every day. We’ve been doing it for a long time, and understand the specific challenges of the holiday season. With good advance planning and effective communication we can meet these challenges head on and take the stress out of this busy time of the year.