Geocoding Best Practices for Delivery Management

Geocoding is the process of taking a text-based address and postcode and converting it into geographic coordinates – normally, latitude and longitude (lat/long). 

In delivery management, geocoding allows route planning software to pinpoint the precise drop-off location for each delivery. The route optimisation engine can plan the most cost-efficient routes with these precise delivery locations. 

In this article, we’ll cover why it’s important to use accurate geocodes for delivery and highlight the best tools to get started.  

Why is geocoding important? 

Geocoding allows the driver to pull up at precisely the right spot to make the delivery. If the geocode is “off”, the driver may waste time establishing the correct location in dense urban environments. They may need to drive to a neighbouring street or even walk a significant distance.   

Since geocoding is used to calculate the time and distance between delivery stops, an inaccurate geocode can have a knock-on effect on all routes. This increases costs by adding unnecessary mileage and time to make the delivery. 

Poor geocoding can undermine the customer experience with inaccurate delivery ETAs.   

What causes problems with geocodes? 

Problems with geocodes can be caused by: 

• Human error – for example, mistyping an address at point of sale. 
• Newly built areas and construction sites – the drop-off point may not be addressable, or the address may not yet exist. 
• B2B delivery – for businesses such as restaurants, the drop-off location may not be at the main entrance to the building. 

Best practices for using geocodes 

It is best practice to clean up address data as soon as possible in the order process.  

Using an autofill address API can help to ensure that customers enter a valid address at checkout. The customer can enter a field such as their postcode, then select their address from a pre-validated list.  

The ideal tool will be able to verify addresses and provide auto-complete options for customers to enter their address quickly.  

What makes a good address? 

Most addresses can be broken down into five parts: 

• Street number
• Street name
• City
• County
• Postal Code 

A geocoding engine can score addresses based on whether these fields are provided, and whether they are accurate. For example, the engine might pick up that the street number provided doesn’t exist in the given postcode. 

Mitigating the effect of inaccurate geocodes 

Low geocode scores can flag to route planners that address data is not clean.  

To limit the effect of inaccurate addresses on route optimisation, you might set your route optimiser to only assign orders which have a “good” geocode score. Planners can then review any unassigned orders manually.  

The ideal routing software will allow planners to fix the geocode by editing the address or clicking the correct location on a map. The latter is particularly useful for businesses or building sites where the delivery entrance may not be on the street. 

Autocorrecting geocodes  

If your drivers are using a mobile app, this can be used to report back the actual geolocation where the driver begins and completes a stop. 

When the location is consistently different from the lat/long in the database, route optimisation software can automatically correct the geocode in the system. This reduces manual planning time so that staff can focus on more urgent tasks. 

Consider using a route optimisation tool with Machine Learning that can continuously refine delivery locations based on real GPS location data. 

Getting the most value out of geocoding 

Geocoding is the best way to get precise delivery locations that result in efficient routes and on-time deliveries. 

To get the most value out of geocoding, invest in tools that make the result as accurate as possible: 

• An address autofill solution to minimise human error
• A geocoding engine that cleans up inaccurate address data 
• A route optimisation solution that mitigates the effects of inaccurate geocodes 
• Driver apps that allow you to refine delivery locations based on real data 

Get in touch with Descartes to find out how you can improve delivery accuracy with smart geocoding, route optimisation and mobile tools.