How does Auto Dispatch work? (Auto-Dispatch Settings Explained)

Refer to this Auto Dispatch Configuration guide for full details on setting up the rules and limits for this feature.

The Auto Dispatch feature allows the system to automatically assign and dispatch orders to available resources based on predefined rules and availability. To enable Auto Dispatch check the Active box

 

When Auto Dispatch is active, the system will continuously monitor incoming orders and automatically assign them to appropriate resources (vehicles, personnel, etc.) according to the configured rules and schedules. This automated process helps to streamline order fulfillment and optimize resource utilization.

Some key points about Auto Dispatch:

 

  • Configure rules based on order priority, location, Driver resource, and other criteria.

  • Set limits and availability for each resource to control when they can receive orders.

  • Monitor and override auto-assignments if needed through the Dispatch Screen.

  • Receive notifications about failed auto-assignments that require manual intervention. (Dispatcher Alerts)

By default, the system will automatically send orders to the restaurant as soon as they become eligible based on the configured rules and preparation times.

However, you can choose to manually control the timing of when orders are sent to the restaurant. 

When the "Don't Send" box is checked, Auto Dispatch, will not automatically transmit the order to the restaurant. This allows you to review and manually send the order when you are ready.

Driver Radius Analysis

When a new order is received, the system will automatically analyze the available drivers within a predefined radius around the restaurant location. This radius analysis helps ensure that orders are efficiently assigned to drivers who are close to the restaurant.

 

The radius analysis process works as follows:

 

  1. Order Received: When a new order is placed, the system logs the restaurant's address.

  2. Radius Calculation: Using the restaurant's address as the center point, the system draws a circular radius of a predetermined distance (e.g., 5 miles, 10 km).

  3. Driver Location Check: The system checks the current locations of all available drivers.

  4. Driver Selection: Any drivers whose current location falls within the calculated radius around the restaurant are identified as potential candidates for order delivery.

 

By analyzing the drivers within the restaurant radius, the system can intelligently assign orders to drivers who are already close to the pickup location. This helps minimize travel time and ensures efficient order delivery.

 

The radius distance used for the analysis can be adjusted based on your specific operational needs and preferences. Larger radiuses may provide more driver options but could result in longer travel times, while smaller radiuses may have fewer driver options but potentially faster deliveries.

 

This automated radius analysis process occurs seamlessly in the background, ensuring that orders are promptly assigned to nearby drivers without any manual intervention required.

 

If there are no eligible drivers found within the initial radius during the automated analysis, the system can dynamically expand the search radius to include more potential drivers.

 

The radius expansion process works as follows:

 

  1. Initial Radius Search: The system first checks for available drivers within the predefined default radius around the restaurant location.  

  2. Driver Availability Check: If no eligible drivers are found in the initial radius, the system determines that additional drivers may be needed.

  3. Driver Count Target: In the system settings, you can specify the minimum number of drivers you would like the expanded radius to include.  

  4. Expanded Search: The system continues expanding the radius and checking for available drivers until the target driver count is met.

 

By allowing for radius expansion, the system ensures that there is a sufficient pool of potential drivers to choose from for order assignments, even in areas with lower driver density or during peak demand times.

 

This rule will attempt to match nearby available drivers to unassigned orders, prioritizing driver proximity. It runs before the standard auto dispatch rules.

 

The criteria are:

 

  1. Identify any orders that do not have a driver assigned.

  2. Identify any available drivers that do not have an order assigned.

  3. If there is an unassigned order and an available driver within 4 miles of each other:

  • The order will be dispatched to the closest available driver within that 4-mile radius.

  • If there are multiple available drivers within 4 miles, the order goes to the driver with the shortest distance to the order.

  • If no driver meets the 4-mile proximity criteria for a given unassigned order, then the standard autodispatch rules will be applied to that order.

 

This rule helps efficiently pair nearby drivers to orders to minimize travel time and delays. It runs continuously, accessing the latest order and driver locations to make the proximity calculations.

 

A few key points:

 

  • Drivers must be set to "Available" status to be considered for this rule.

  • The 4-mile radius is the default but can be configured.

  • If multiple drivers qualify, precedence goes to the closest driver.

  • Orders not proximity-matched will follow the other standard dispatch rules.

 

For orders that need to be placed online or called into the restaurant, the Dispatch Screen provides visual alerts to notify you when it is time to place the order. These alerts are displayed using a series of color codes.

 

The color-coded order placement alerts work as follows:

 

  1. Order Received: When a new order is received that requires manual placement with the restaurant, it will appear on the Dispatch Screen.

  2. Color-Coded Alerts: Each order will be assigned a specific color based on the recommended time frame for placing the order with the restaurant.

 

  • Green: The order can be placed now.

  • Yellow: The order should be placed soon to ensure timely preparation.

  • Red: The order is nearing the latest possible placement time and should be placed as soon as possible.

 

  1. Alert Escalation: As the order approaches its latest placement time, the color will transition from green to yellow, and then to red, drawing your attention to the urgent need for order placement.

 

  1. Order Placement: Once you have placed the order with the restaurant, you can mark the order as "Placed" in the system, and it will be removed from the color-coded alert list.

 

By utilizing this color-coded alert system, you can easily prioritize and manage the order placement process, ensuring that orders are placed with the restaurant at the optimal time for efficient preparation and delivery.

 

The specific color thresholds and time windows can be customized based on your operational requirements and the typical preparation times of the restaurants you work with.

 

 

Check the "All Orders" box to globally pause acceptance of any new orders. To pause specific order types like Portal or Alternate Payments, check the corresponding boxes in the "Pausing" area. Uncheck "Pause All Orders" or the order type box(es) to resume accepting those orders. Pausing only affects new orders, not ones already in progress.

 

In addition to the existing "Quick Find" capability, a new "Quick Reduction" rule has been implemented to dynamically adjust driver scores based on their proximity to upcoming order pickups.

 

The criteria are:

 

  1. Set a maximum distance threshold (e.g. 5 miles) from an order pickup location. 

  2. For each available driver:

  • Calculate their current distance to the next unassigned order pickup.

  • If the driver is currently further than the threshold distance away, or will be further than the threshold after completing their current delivery, flag them for reduction.

  • For any flagged drivers, apply a score reduction penalty as follows:

    • Determine the number of miles the driver is/will be over the threshold distance. 

    • Multiply those overage miles by a configured percentage (e.g. 10% per mile).

    • Reduce the driver's current score by that percentage amount.

 

Example:

  • Distance Threshold: 5 miles

  • Percentage Reduction: 10% per mile overage

  • Driver Matt is 8 miles from the next pickup, 3 miles over the threshold

  • Score Reduction = 3 miles * 10% = 30% 

  • Matt's score is reduced by 30%

 

This reduced score could prevent Matt from being automatically dispatched to that order if other drivers are within the proximity threshold.

 

The Quick Reduction rule allows for smarter utilization of nearby drivers while still factoring in other criteria like driver scores/stats. It can help minimize excess drive times.

 

Note that this is an automatic calculation applied before dispatch based on the configured distance and percentage settings.

 

 

 

When a new order comes in, the system will first check if any existing unassigned orders have an earlier due time/promise time than the new order. 

 

If so, the system will prioritize running Auto Dispatch for those earlier due orders first before attempting to assign the new order.

 

The criteria are:

 

  1. When a new order arrives, do not immediately run Auto Dispatch for it.

  2. Look at all other current unassigned orders in the queue that do not have a driver assigned yet.

  3. Check the due times/promise times of those existing unassigned orders.

  4. If any of the existing unassigned orders have a due time that is earlier than the new order's due time by X minutes or more, then hold off on dispatching the new order.

  5. Run Auto Dispatch first for those existing orders with earlier due times, assigning drivers to them based on priority.

  6. Once there are no remaining unassigned orders due X minutes or more before the new order, then run Auto Dispatch for the new order.

 

This helps ensure orders with more imminent due times are dispatched and assigned drivers first to meet those time commitments, before working on orders with more flexibility in their due times.

 

The X-minute threshold is configurable based on your operation's requirements around prioritizing by order promise times.

 

So in summary, the newest order will be dispatched only after all existing unassigned orders due X minutes sooner have had a chance to be auto-assigned first.

 

The system allows you to override distance qualifiers for driver assignments when the number of available drivers falls below a specified threshold. This setting can help ensure efficient order dispatching during periods of high demand or driver scarcity.

 

If you enter a value greater than zero (e.g., 5), the system will automatically remove all distance qualifiers for driver assignments when the number of available drivers is equal to or less than the specified value.

 

If you enter zero (0), the system will always use distance calculations and qualifiers for driver assignments, regardless of the number of available drivers.

 

By removing distance qualifiers when the number of available drivers is low, the system can expand the pool of potential drivers for order assignments, ensuring efficient dispatching and minimizing delays.

 

However, it's important to note that removing distance qualifiers may result in orders being assigned to drivers who are farther away from the pickup or delivery locations, potentially increasing travel times and decreasing overall efficiency.

 

It's recommended to carefully consider your operational requirements and strike a balance between maximizing driver availability and maintaining reasonable distance constraints for order assignments.

 

 

To ensure efficient order dispatching during periods of high demand or driver scarcity, the system provides a setting to override distance qualifiers for driver assignments based on the ratio of available drivers to active orders.

 

If you enter a ratio value greater than zero (e.g., 1.3), the system will automatically remove all distance qualifiers for driver assignments when the ratio of available drivers to active orders is equal to or less than the specified value.

 

If you enter zero (0), the system will always use distance calculations and qualifiers for driver assignments, regardless of the driver-to-order ratio.

 

By removing distance qualifiers when the driver-to-order ratio is low, the system can expand the pool of potential drivers for order assignments, ensuring efficient dispatching and minimizing delays during high-demand periods.

 

However, it's important to note that removing distance qualifiers may result in orders being assigned to drivers who are farther away from the pickup or delivery locations, potentially increasing travel times and decreasing overall efficiency.

 

It's recommended to carefully consider your operational requirements and strike a balance between maximizing driver availability and maintaining reasonable distance constraints for order assignments.

 

 

The "Spread the Love" setting allows you to distribute orders evenly and fairly among all drivers who are currently logged in and available for assignments. This feature helps to ensure that no driver is overloaded or underutilized, promoting balanced workloads and fair earning opportunities.

 

With the "Spread the Love" setting enabled, the system will automatically distribute incoming orders among the available drivers in a round-robin fashion, ensuring that each driver receives a similar number of order assignments over time.

 

The order distribution algorithm takes into account various factors, such as driver proximity to the pickup and delivery locations, and any specific driver preferences.

 

Additionally, the system will continuously monitor driver availability and adjust the distribution accordingly. If a driver becomes unavailable or logs out, their assigned orders will be redistributed to the remaining available drivers.

 

By using the "Spread the Love" setting, you can promote fairness and equality among your driver workforce during slow times, fostering a positive working environment and reducing the potential for driver dissatisfaction or burnout due to uneven workloads.

 

The "Spread the Love" setting aims to distribute orders evenly among available drivers. However, to ensure efficient dispatching, the system allows you to define a maximum distance radius from the restaurant within which drivers should be considered for the order distribution calculation.

 

When an order comes in, the system will identify all available drivers who are currently located within the specified radius from the restaurant. These drivers will be considered for the even distribution of the order under the "Spread the Love" setting.

 

Drivers located outside the defined proximity radius may still be eligible for order assignments, but they will not be included in the "Spread the Love" calculation. Instead, their assignments will be based on other factors, such as proximity to the delivery location or specific driver qualifications.

 

By adjusting the driver proximity radius, you can strike a balance between maximizing the pool of available drivers for even distribution and ensuring reasonable travel times for efficient order fulfillment.

 

Note: Setting a larger proximity radius may result in orders being assigned to drivers farther away from the restaurant, potentially increasing wait times and overall delivery times.

 

 

This rule will attempt to match nearby available drivers to unassigned orders, prioritizing driver proximity. It runs before the standard autodispatch rules.

 

The criteria are:

 

  1. Identify any orders that do not have a driver assigned.

  2. Identify any available drivers that do not have an order assigned.

  3. If there is an unassigned order and an available driver within 4 miles of each other:

  • The order will be dispatched to the closest available driver within that 4-mile radius.

  • If there are multiple available drivers within 4 miles, the order goes to the driver with the shortest distance to the order.

    • If no driver meets the 4-mile proximity criteria for a given unassigned order, then the standard autodispatch rules will be applied to that order.

 

This rule helps efficiently pair nearby drivers to orders to minimize travel time and delays. It runs continuously, accessing the latest order and driver locations to make the proximity calculations.

 

A few key points:

 

  • Drivers must be set to "Available" status to be considered for this rule.

  • The 4-mile radius is the default but can be configured.

  • If multiple drivers qualify, precedence goes to the closest driver.

  • Orders not proximity-matched will follow the other standard dispatch rules.

 

 

Efficiency vs. Fairness

 

This setting determines whether order bundling is allowed or disabled when the "Spread the Love" order distribution setting is active. Order bundling refers to assigning multiple orders to a single driver for delivery.

 

Allowing Order Bundling (Prioritizing Efficiency):

If you select this option while "Spread the Love" is active, the system will bundle multiple orders together and assign them to a single driver when it is efficient and logical to do so. This approach can improve delivery times for customers by reducing the number of individual trips required, leading to faster order fulfillment.

 

However, bundling orders may result in a higher workload for some drivers, as they will be responsible for multiple deliveries in a single trip.

 

Disabling Order Bundling (Prioritizing Fairness):

If you choose to disable order bundling with "Spread the Love" active, each order will be assigned to an individual driver. This approach ensures that workloads are distributed more evenly among drivers, as no single driver will be responsible for multiple deliveries at once.

 

While this setting promotes fairness for drivers, it may result in longer delivery times for customers, as more individual trips may be required to fulfill separate orders.

 

It's important to consider the priorities of your business and strike a balance between efficient order fulfillment for customers and fair workload distribution for your driver workforce when using "Spread the Love". 

 

This Future Order Send Buffer feature was previously used to control the order that Auto Dispatch would send orders based on their due times.

 

However, with recent updates to how Auto Dispatch handles future/scheduled orders more efficiently, this setting will be deprecated and removed.

 

  1. By default, this Order Due Time Prioritization setting should now be set to 0 minutes.

  2. With it set to 0 minutes, Auto Dispatch will operate normally utilizing the latest order prioritization logic.

  3. This setting will be going away entirely in a future release, so no further configuration is required.

 

Auto Dispatch has been enhanced to automatically prioritize orders based on due times, customer preferences, driver proximity, and other strategic factors. The improved handling of future/scheduled orders makes this separate prioritization setting redundant.

 

In summary:

  • Set Order Due Time Prioritization threshold to 0 minutes

  • This legacy setting will eventually be removed

  • No additional configuration is needed, as Auto Dispatch natively prioritizes orders intelligently

 

Let us know if you need any other details!

For scheduled orders with a future delivery date/time, you can specify how many minutes early the order can be delivered ahead of the scheduled time. This allows extra preparation time, especially for larger orders.

 

Locate the "Future Order Padding (Minutes)" field.

 By default, this is set to 0 minutes (no early delivery window).

For typical orders, set this between 10-15 minutes of padding.

  • For example, 10 minutes allows delivery from 4:50 PM for a 5:00 PM scheduled order.

  • 15 minutes allows delivery from 4:45 PM for a 5:00 PM order.

 

The configured number of minutes sets the maximum early time the order can be delivered ahead of the scheduled time.

 

A few key points:

  • Default is 0 minutes (no early delivery)

  • Typical padding is 10-15 minutes

  • Still allows delivery right at the scheduled time

 

This ensures scheduled orders have adequate preparation time by allowing deliveries to be made slightly ahead of the scheduled window, without being excessively early.

 

The system allows you to designate certain drivers as "prioritized" for order assignments, meaning they will always be considered first when new orders come in. This feature can be useful for recognizing top-performing drivers or those with specific qualifications or preferences.

 

To ensure efficient dispatching, you can define a radius around each restaurant within which the system will search for prioritized drivers before considering other available drivers.

 

When a new order comes in, the system will first check for any prioritized drivers located within the specified radius from the restaurant. If a prioritized driver is found within that radius, they will be given priority for the order assignment.

 

If no prioritized drivers are available within the defined radius, the system will then consider all other available drivers, following the standard order assignment logic based on factors such as proximity, and any other relevant criteria.

 

By adjusting the prioritized driver radius, you can balance the preference for assigning orders to your top drivers while still ensuring reasonable travel times and efficient order fulfillment.

 

Note: Setting a larger prioritized driver radius may result in orders being assigned to prioritized drivers who are farther away from the restaurant, potentially increasing wait times and overall delivery times.

 

 

 

This setting allows you to specify the criteria for identifying large or catering orders and ensures that only drivers who are qualified to handle such orders will be considered for assignment.

 

When a large or catering order is received, the system will only consider drivers who have been designated as "qualified" for such orders in their Driver Profile. This qualification can be based on factors such as:

 

  • Vehicle type (e.g., larger vehicles for catering orders)

  • Special training or certifications

  • Driver preferences or specializations

 

Drivers who have not been marked as qualified for catering orders will be excluded from the potential assignment pool for those types of orders.

 

By implementing this setting, you can ensure that large or catering orders are handled by drivers who are properly equipped and prepared to transport and deliver them safely and efficiently.

 

Note: It's important to regularly review and update the "Order Size Threshold" as well as the driver qualifications to align with any changes in your operational needs or menu offerings.

 

 

 

 

The system is designed to optimize the delivery process for orders involving multiple destinations. When a driver is assigned to deliver multiple orders, the system will provide them with detailed instructions on the most efficient route and sequence for completing the deliveries.

 

 

By following the provided instructions, drivers can efficiently navigate through their multi-order deliveries, minimizing wait times at restaurants and ensuring that all orders are delivered fresh and on time.

 

Additionally, the system continuously monitors the driver's progress and can dynamically adjust the instructions if any delays or changes occur, such as longer-than-anticipated prep times at a restaurant.

 

This multi-order delivery optimization feature streamlines the process for both drivers and customers, ensuring a smooth and efficient experience for all parties involved.

 

 

 

To ensure that drivers follow the recommended delivery sequence and prevent them from self-dispatching, the system provides a setting to control the release of multiple orders until the driver has confirmed their arrival at the previous Restaurant location.

 

This feature is particularly useful when you want to prioritize the delivery of the first order before the driver moves on to the next one, ensuring that orders are delivered in the intended order and preventing any potential mix-ups or delays.

 

With this setting enabled, the system will initially assign and provide the driver with details for the first order in the sequence. Upon arriving at the first Restaurant location, the driver must mark themselves as "Arrived" within the app.

 

Once the arrival is confirmed, the system will then release the next order in the sequence, providing the driver with the pickup and delivery details for that order.

 

This process repeats for each subsequent order until all deliveries in the sequence have been completed.

 

By controlling the release of orders, the system ensures that drivers follow the recommended delivery sequence, which is optimized based on factors such as restaurant prep times, order priority, and efficient routing.

 

This setting can help prevent drivers from attempting to self-dispatch or rearrange the order sequence, which could lead to delays, cold food, or customer dissatisfaction.

 

Note: In situations where order priorities or conditions change dynamically, the dispatch team has the ability to manually override the controlled release and provide the driver with updated instructions as needed.

 

This setting allows you to specify the maximum number of orders that can be assigned to a driver simultaneously. Once a driver has reached this maximum limit, the system will not assign them any additional orders until one or more of their current orders are marked as en route or delivered.

 

When an order becomes available for assignment, the system will first identify drivers who have not reached the specified maximum concurrent order limit. These drivers will be considered for the new order assignment.

 

However, if a driver already has the maximum number of concurrent orders assigned to them, they will be excluded from consideration for the new order until one of their existing orders is marked as en route or delivered.

 

Once a driver marks an order as en route (typically after picking it up from the restaurant), that order will no longer count toward their concurrent order limit. This allows the system to potentially assign them a new order, as long as they remain below the specified maximum.

 

By setting a maximum concurrent order limit, you can control the workload distribution among your driver workforce, preventing individual drivers from becoming overloaded with too many simultaneous orders. This can help ensure timely deliveries, reduce the risk of errors or delays, and promote a better overall experience for both drivers and customers.

 

Note: It's important to carefully consider your operational capacity, order volume, and driver availability when setting the maximum concurrent order limit to strike a balance between efficient order fulfillment and manageable workloads for your drivers.

It is recommended to set this setting to "v3" to enable the Auto Dispatch system to learn and optimize order assignment and delivery times based on historical data from previous orders.

 

 

By setting the Auto Dispatch Learning and Optimization setting to "v3," you enable the system to continuously improve its performance by adapting to the unique characteristics and patterns of your operation. This leads to more efficient order assignments, better timing of order dispatches, and ultimately, improved delivery times and customer satisfaction.

 

Note: The system will continue to refine and update the calculated average times as more order data becomes available, ensuring that the optimization process remains up-to-date and aligned with any changes in your operational patterns or restaurant performance.

 

 

 

Note: This setting should not be used. As recommended in the previous "Pre-Send" setting, the option "v3" should always be selected to enable the system to learn and optimize order assignment and delivery times based on historical data from previous orders. Using any other option for this setting is not recommended and may negatively impact the performance of the Auto Dispatch system.

 

 

 

 

There may be situations where you need to account for unforeseen factors that could impact drive times, such as traffic congestion, road closures, or adverse weather conditions. The Drive Time Inflation setting allows you to artificially add extra time to the estimated drive times calculated by the system.

 

For example, if you enter "10" minutes in the Drive Time Inflation field, the system will add 10 minutes to the estimated drive time for all routes and deliveries.

 

By inflating the drive times, you can build in a buffer to account for potential delays or unforeseen circumstances that may arise during the delivery process. This can help ensure more realistic time estimates for drivers, prevent overly optimistic delivery projections, and improve overall on-time delivery rates.

 

It's important to note that setting an excessive Drive Time Inflation value may lead to overly conservative time estimates, potentially resulting in longer wait times for customers or inefficient use of driver resources.

 

Therefore, it's recommended to adjust the Drive Time Inflation setting based on your specific operational needs, geographic location, and historical data on average drive time variances. 

 

By striking the right balance with the Drive Time Inflation setting, you can optimize your delivery operations while still accounting for potential delays and providing a more reliable service to your customers.

 

In situations where you experience a shortage of available drivers or during periods of high demand, the system provides the ability to integrate with third-party delivery services, such as DoorDash and UberEats, for Auto Dispatch. This setting allows you to control how and when these external drivers are automatically utilized for order assignments by the Auto Dispatch system.

 

  • "Do Not Use Third-Party Drivers": With this option selected, Auto Dispatch will only assign orders to your in-house drivers and will not integrate with any third-party delivery services.

 

  • "Use Third-Party Drivers as Backup": Choose this option if you want Auto Dispatch to utilize third-party drivers only when your in-house driver pool is depleted or cannot meet the current order demand. Third-party drivers will be assigned orders as a backup resource.

 

  • "Use Third-Party Drivers Exclusively": Select this option if you want Auto Dispatch to assign all orders to third-party delivery service drivers, effectively outsourcing your entire delivery operation.

 

Note: Regardless of this setting, you can still manually assign orders to third-party drivers from the Dispatch Screen, if needed.

 

By integrating with third-party delivery services for Auto Dispatch, you can access a broader pool of drivers, which can be particularly useful during peak demand periods or when you experience a shortage of available in-house drivers. However, it's important to consider the potential impact on customer experience, as well as the associated costs and fees charged by these services.

 

If you choose to use third-party drivers as a backup or exclusively for Auto Dispatch, the system will automatically handle the order assignment process and communication with the respective delivery services, ensuring seamless integration with your existing operations.

 

Before enabling third-party delivery service integration, ensure that you have established the necessary agreements and partnerships with the desired Restaurants. You can Black List third-party drivers from any Restaurant that you do not want to send them to.

 

If you choose to utilize third-party delivery services through the "Use Third-Party Drivers as Backup" or "Use Third-Party Drivers Exclusively" options, you can select a preferred third-party provider from the list of integrated partners.

 

Having a preferred third-party provider allows Auto Dispatch to prioritize assigning orders to drivers from that specific company when external delivery services are needed.

 

When a preferred third-party provider is selected, Auto Dispatch will attempt to assign orders to drivers from that provider. This can help streamline operations and ensure consistency in the delivery experience for your customers.

 

It's important to regularly review and update your preferred third-party provider selection based on factors such as performance, pricing, and operational needs to ensure optimal integration with your delivery operations.

 

 

 

This setting allows you to define a maximum estimated delivery time threshold, beyond which the system will automatically assign orders to third-party delivery drivers. By leveraging third-party services for longer delivery times, you can ensure timely order fulfillment and maintain a desirable customer experience.

 

For example, if you set the threshold to 40 minutes, the system will assign any orders with an estimated delivery time greater than 40 minutes to third-party delivery drivers.

 

The estimated delivery time is calculated based on factors such as the distance between the restaurant and the consumer, traffic conditions, preparation time, and any additional time inflation settings you have configured.

 

By utilizing third-party drivers for longer delivery routes, you can ensure that orders are delivered within a reasonable timeframe, even for distant locations or during periods of high demand when your in-house driver pool may be stretched thin.

 

However, it's important to note that assigning orders to third-party services may incur additional fees and potentially impact the overall customer experience, as these drivers may not be as familiar with your specific operational processes or customer service standards.

 

It's recommended to carefully evaluate your delivery area, order volumes, and customer expectations to determine an appropriate threshold that balances timely deliveries with the effective utilization of your in-house driver workforce.

 

 

 

 

  • ODR: Order to Driver Ratio

  • ADT: Average Delivery Time ( The Average delivery time from start to finish)

  • AAA: Average Assigned to Arrived(Once a driver is assigned an order how long does it take them to get to the restaurant

  • ACA: Average Confirmed to Arrived (Once an Order is Confirmed by dispatch)

This setting allows the system to dynamically manage delivery quote times and driver availability based on the current ratio of orders to available drivers. When the order volume exceeds the available driver capacity, the system can take proactive measures to ensure timely order fulfillment.

 

When the order-to-driver ratio exceeds the set threshold, the system's behavior will depend on whether you are using static or dynamic quoted delivery times:

 

Static Quoted Delivery Times:

  • The system will automatically add a predetermined amount of time (configurable) to the quoted delivery times for new orders.

  • It will also trigger a request for more drivers, potentially offering incentives or bonuses to encourage drivers to log in and accept orders.

 

Dynamic Quoted Delivery Times:

  • The quoted delivery times will dynamically adjust based on the current order volume and driver availability.

  • The system will still trigger a request for more drivers to log in.

 

By implementing this setting, you can proactively manage customer expectations during periods of high demand, when driver availability may be limited. Adjusting quoted times or requesting more drivers can help ensure that orders are fulfilled within reasonable timeframes, maintaining a positive customer experience.

 

Additionally, offering incentives or bonuses to drivers during high-demand periods can encourage more drivers to become available, increasing your overall delivery capacity and improving order fulfillment efficiency. (Pictured Below)

 

Note: It's important to carefully monitor the order-to-driver ratio and adjust the threshold as needed to align with your operational capabilities and customer service goals.

 

 

 

 

If you have any additional questions or concerns that were not addressed in this instructional manual, please don't hesitate to reach out to one of our team members. We are here to provide you with the support and guidance you need to make the most of our delivery management software.