As a kid, I remember my father getting a newspaper delivery every morning, seven days a week. Every time he opened our door at 6:15 AM, that newspaper would loyally be sitting on our doorstep, just waiting to be read.
For newspaper couriers, getting the paper to everyone in the neighborhood isn’t easy. You need to wake up early to deliver newspapers before dawn, in rain or shine, blizzard or blistering heat.
In my father’s days, quick and time-effective newspaper delivery was tough. But today, the old-fashioned charm of newspapers can be combined with modern route planning software to help newspaper couriers deliver as efficiently as possible.
Several factors can slow down newspaper delivery, whether it’s a late delivery truck or an unplowed, snowy road. While these obstacles are often beyond our control, strategically planning your route ahead of time can help you avoid unexpected delays.
Using a route planner program automates the route planning process to ensure that you reach all your destinations on time without covering more distance than necessary. This easily makes the difference between delivering the final paper at 6:00 or 7:00 AM.
Of all the routing software out there, MyRouteOnline is the easiest and most cost-effective. MyRouteOnline lets you plan complex routes with multiple stops, while still being simple and intuitive to use.
Here’s how to use the MyRouteOnline route planner to plan a strategic newspaper delivery route:
First, enter all your addresses into the MyRouteOnline route planning page, where you can import your addresses from a list or enter them in manually.
What’s great about this planning tool is that it doesn’t matter which order you put the addresses in. Unlike Google Maps, MyRouteOnline automatically calculates the best route for all your addresses. That means you can enter the addresses in any order, without having to rack your brain for the ideal route.
Choose your route’s beginning address and final address, and let the route creating software optimize all your stops in between. You can enter up to 500 addresses, so this tool works quite well even with larger routes.
Once in awhile, your newspaper delivery route is going to change. Some customers will be new, while others will end their subscriptions. As customers change, you’ll need to adapt your delivery route accordingly..
It’s easy to make changes with a route calculator, since all your contacts are already saved in the system. You can delete any addresses that are no longer relevant, and add in new customer addresses as you receive them. The planning system will automatically adjust the order of your stops based on these changes, so there’s no need to create a whole new route every time.
You also won’t need to worry about having your list of stops at hand all the time. You can access the planning tool from any device, whether it’s a computer, tablet, or smartphone. Once your route is saved, you can pull it up 24/7, even in the pre-dawn hours before you head out for the deliveries.
While you’re driving, you can navigate the route using the MyRoute App. Its hands-free, step-by-step directions will bring you safely to all of your stops, in the most efficient way possible.
One of the biggest challenges for newspaper couriers is the wear and tear on the vehicles. This, combined with the cost of gas, can be quite expensive. Fortunately, a good optimization tool and route distance calculator can help you save these costs by cutting down on both driving time and fuel.
While using MyRouteOnline won’t allow you to sleep in on those delivery days, you can have peace of mind knowing that you’ll have the most efficient and cost-effective route for delivering to your customers. By generating quick delivery routes, route planning software can make your daily grind a little bit easier—and allow you to work less for the same pay.