DPD Laser: Last mile solutions that go the extra mile bring business home

This is particularly true for businesses and services subject to the requirements of the Financial Intelligence Centre Act (FICA) and the Regulation of Interception of Communications and Provision of Communication- Related Information Act (RICA).

The former affects a range of businesses, including financial institutions, forex trading, gambling, insurers and attorneys, who are subject to a number of ‘know your customer’ requirements, while the latter impacts mobile network operators and data connectivity providers, who also have to know their customers’ particular detail before SIM cards can be activated for prepaid or postpaid use.

It should also apply to other intermediary businesses, such as those that process Natis documents, driver’s licenses, identity documents, and passports.

All these businesses go through several processes and customer touch points before the ‘deal’ is done, with the last step in most journeys being the delivery of an item such as a credit card, legal document, or SIM card.

While they may have some delivery teams, few of these businesses have the appetite to invest in the skills, technology, and person power to have their own logistics and delivery teams, so they outsource the final step of their relationship with their client – the delivery of the sought-after item – to someone else.

That’s why, when the ‘last touch’ of a purchase process is outsourced to a third-party service provider, it is vital that not only an excellent service can be depended on throughout, but it is a trusted one, which protects the customer’s interests and ensures a seamless and efficient last mile experience.

“Corporates that are subject to RICA and FICA requirements during their normal course of business, expect and need their customers’ personal information to be gathered, processed, and handled in a particular way,” says Devan Cairns, managing executive at DPD Laser.

“Choosing a third party that can gather the information, verify it effectively, and manage the data after verification, is an important business decision, as we still see many South Africans reluctant to hand over their personal information to drivers. If this final step goes awry, the entire relationship is off to a poor start, which could not only expose corporates to possible regulatory penalties, but failure to retain that customer in the long term too” he says.

The ideal solution for these corporates is to be able to offer validation at the point of delivery, so that customers can use their long-awaited bank card or SIM immediately, rather than having to wait for their personal information to be verified over time.

“Delivery experts should be trained and equipped with the hardware and software that they need, in order to verify identity and proof of address documents on the spot,” Cairns explains.

“The current delivery process is outdated and very manual, and still requires a lot of manpower,” he adds. “While to many the delivery may seem simple, being able to find the recipient on the first attempt, and to verify or pass on their information digitally, in real-time, is a massive advantage in the activation and verification process.”

Such a system would need to be fully secured against any cyber security threats, along with complying with POPIA and GDPR legislation that protects consumers’ privacy.

This focus on immediate capture and verification, supported by push notifications that inform customers of when their items will be delivered, as well as having the ability to locate the recipient on the first delivery attempt. Being able to offer this service means that DPD Laser achieves an above 85% first-time success rate with the more than 50,000 deliveries it completes in a month that require some sort of personal information to be collected.

“While many businesses are still too relaxed with how they capture, process and manage personal data, DPD Laser has digitized the entire verification process for its customers within the financial, network and retail sectors, amongst many others who require such validations,” Cairns says. “Our in-depth service and attention to detail, in real-time, means that our corporate clients don’t need extra manpower to follow up on their deliveries, and most importantly, they can rest assured that their customers have the best possible last mile experience.

“This builds trust, and opens up a whole new fulfilment experience with DPD Laser, the kind of value add that helps a business grow and outpace its competitors,” he concludes.

For all RICA / FICA enquires: [email protected]

www.dpdlaser.co.za