GPS Fleet Tracking Small Business: Things to Consider
GPS Fleet Tracking Small Business: Things to Consider
There are a number of things you should take into account when choosing the best GPS fleet tracking for small companies. That’s because there are hundreds of monitoring systems on the market today, and there’s a great deal of industry interest in these monitoring systems. But they’re not all created equal, as you might expect, and you don’t want to end up purchasing one that’s much more powerful than you need.
On the other hand, you don’t want to buy one which is inadequate for managing a larger team of vehicles and integrating them into a single, connected network. That being the case, here are some things you should think about when you’re trying to decide which GPS tracking system is the best fit for your small business. All of them are good in their own way, but not all of them are a good fit for your specific type of business.
What type of business do you operate?
First, you’ll need to classify your company as a small business, a large company, or a corporate entity. The size of your company will have an impact on the kind of monitoring system you purchase. This discussion is primarily geared toward small businesses, so it will be most useful to you if you’re in that category. Secondly, it will be essential to establish the nature of your company, i.e., whether deliveries are the focal point of your company, or are just incidental to the primary focus.
If you have a team of delivery trucks and transporting goods is your primary focus, you’ll need GPS fleet tracking software for small businesses, and that would mean a full-blown, relatively robust system with a good number of features and capabilities, including those that help you comply with current ELD regulations, if your business isn’t exempt. A small organization which might only have to monitor a few pizza delivery vehicles can probably use the smartphones of the drivers, to avoid installation costs, while still providing all the relevant information to someone monitoring vehicle performance.
Fleet Tracking Guide
Need to track your fleet of vehicles but don’t know where to start? If so, click to download our guide to help better understand the type of GPS service that you need.
How large is your fleet?
It will make a big difference if you have only three or four vehicles to monitor, versus having 20, 30, or even more. For a larger team, you’ll want to keep costs down, and you can often arrange for a discount with a monitoring software vendor when you have a larger number of vehicles in your company. If all your drivers are using smartphones for global position monitoring, there won’t be anything in the way of installation costs, but you’ll have to download the app on to each of those units.
For larger vehicles like full-sized delivery trucks, you may want to have the tracking systems hard-wired into the truck’s electrical system, to be compliant with local laws, or to make it fully automatic, with no driver intervention required. The size of your team will be a factor in determining how you approach installation and usage, so keep this in mind.
What data needs to be tracked?
Depending on what is of greatest interest to your company, you might want to track a wide variety of information with regard to a vehicle’s operation. Speed is one commonly tracked area because it can have such an impact on fuel usage, and ultimately the cost of operation. Another is idle time, and this can also have a significant effect on cost because it can burn a great deal of fuel if a vehicle is idling for an excessive amount of time. There are also events that can be monitored, such as starting/stopping the vehicle or opening/closing the doors.
Driver time, location, and arrival time are other issues that can be monitored and transmitted back to a central location, where the manager can evaluate the data. For some companies, it’s important to know that a vehicle is not operated outside certain geographic boundaries, for example, a delivery area. Many GPS systems have geofencing features you can be set up, that allow you to establish boundaries, and alerts that are triggered when a vehicle wanders beyond those established geographic lines.
You might also be interested in specific driver actions like hard braking, rapid acceleration, or phone usage because you are trying to discourage those types of behavior. Many systems will automatically record this data so you can review it once it gets transmitted back to a central location. The kind of data your small company tracks will depend on the goals you have for your system, and what you’re trying to achieve with it.
What is the best GPS tracking system for small business fleets?
We are confident that the best system for small company fleets is Vehicle Track, and this is why we’ve made it our featured product at GPS Technologies. In addition to having the lowest monthly cost on the market, it provides the most crucial information: stop time, start time, locations, mileage, speed, idle time, hard braking, rapid acceleration, and street-level photographic mapping.
When you install Vehicle Track in your fleet’s automobiles, you’ll have much better accountability for your drivers, you’ll have hard evidence of billable hours, you’ll be able to manage your fuel costs much better, your productivity will increase, and turnaround times will be reduced. There are a number of really worthwhile benefits which you’ll get from having this outstanding system installed in all your cars.
Fleet Tracking Guide
Need to track your fleet of vehicles but don’t know where to start? If so, click to download our guide to help better understand the type of GPS service that you need.
Benefits of GPS Technologies systems
GPS Technologies offers tracking options that have relevance and value for almost everyone. If you’re a fleet manager, you’ll love having up-to-the-minute information available about your entire team of vehicles. Our asset tracking software can protect valuable pieces of equipment that you keep on the job site, and which you don’t want to lose.
We also offer portable tracking solutions out in the field, which do not require the use of an external power source, antennas, or power harnesses. Contact us today to discuss your small business vehicle monitoring needs.
Categorised in: GPS Tracking Service
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