How might we help users make sure drivers are following a planned route?
Problem
By collecting and analyzing feedback from Product Board, I was able to point out that users struggled to check if drivers were following the planned routes they were assigned and if there were any deviations from the main route – which may lead to higher fuel expenses, delayed deliveries – since there was no connection between the Routing and Trips features, having to manually compare a trip and the planned route report (.xls) to check if everything went according to plan.
"I need to see the planned route alongside the current trip so if the driver deviates from the route, I can take immediate action."
– Fleet manager at Guima
Solution
From user feedback and the defined problem, the squad got to a solution: compare a planned route and the assigned driver's trip, allowing the fleet manager to check if all the planned stops were made and make sure that the route was executed as close to the plan as possible.
It also aimed to help users identify unplanned stops and any potential delays.
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Check for unplanned stops and route deviations
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Make sure deliveries are being made on time
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Improve current process of route and trip comparison
Proof of concept
To quickly validate the value of the proposed solution, we developed a lean version of the feature and tested it for a month.
It allowed the users to:
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See all routes planned for a selected date while using the Trips feature
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Visualize the planned route over the executed trip, as well as the planned stops
Some usability aspects (such as overlapping stops or the route selection picker) were compromised in order to deploy the feature faster and collect user feedback sooner.
UI Refinement
The main feedbacks we gathered from the proof of concept were:
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It's hard to select the correct route to compare, having a lot of routes planned on the same day and not being able to customize their names
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Overlapping pins make it complicated to see if there were any stops made that weren't planned
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When planning a route, I get to see its estimated fuel cost, duration and mileage; This information should also be available when comparing routes and trips
Based on that, I worked on the following improvements:
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Assign driver to route during planning and show only those routes on Trips
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Compare estimated and actual trip information (fuel cost, mileage, trip duration)
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Highlight stops made outside a saved location's geofence – often considered unplanned stops
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Map components facelift – trip path and stop pins
Results
The first month after feature launch indicated that users were exporting less planned route reports and saving routes more frequently, while also comparing routes. It is possible to imply that the feature improved the manual process users went through to compare previously planned routes and actual executed trips.
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+102% saved routes
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379 Trip x Route comparison events
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-15% Planned routes report export
(400 MAUs using Routing at the time)