Misconception about GPS system

1. Why do we need GPS Tracking when we trust our employees?

The main reason for having a GPS tracking system, for example, in fleet management, is more than just monitoring your employees. It’s main focus is to reduce operating costs and improve efficiency to grow your business. It’s been proven for years to reduce the cost of fuel and maintenance costs, increase efficiency in dispatching, routing and communication with your drivers.

2. We will lose the respect of our Employees if we integrate GPS tracking.

GPS tracking eliminates time-consuming paperwork and provides security for both themselves and their cargo. These and many other driver-specific benefits are often overlooked when the decision to purchase GPS tracking solution is being considered. Based on in-field studies, employees saw it as an asset and often learned to depend on it for routing information, roadside assistance and verification of work performed. 3. GPS tracking systems are complicated to install and complicated to use. Most fleet tracking systems are made of the same basic components: a GPS receiver installed within each vehicle, and some kind of software operating on office PCs that organizes and displays the information gathered. Both installation and usage of these systems are actually fairly simple.

4. GPS tracking is unnecessary – I can keep track of my fleet using cell phones.

Though useful as communication tools, cell phones/handhelds cannot provide the kind of information that’s really useful to fleet managers: real-time vehicle location, engine status, history of stops and stop times, and other metrics you need to know, such as mileage, fuel consumption speeding patterns. In fact, cell phones and handhelds have proven to be an inefficient way of managing a mobile workforce because they can so easily be turned off, left at home, dropped/damaged, etc. And when they are functioning correctly, they are usually with a person, so that you end up tracking your people rather than your mobile assets.

5. All GPS tracking systems are essentially the same – it’s the data that’s important, not the provider.

The reality is that most users of GPS tracking services don’t realize the full impact that real-time information can have upon their organization until after they start using the system on a regular basis. This is precisely why your choice of GPS tracking providers is so important: many of them are content to set you up with basic GPS tracking capabilities, but don’t commit to helping you leverage this powerful technology to transform the way you do business in both the short and long term.

6. A GPS tracking system is another product I can buy to help make my business more productive.

This myth uncovers a widely-held misunderstanding about GPS tracking technology. GPS tracking should not be viewed as a product, as if it were an accessory you can purchase for your fleet. Rather, GPS tracking is a service you are, in effect, subscribing to – delivering information you can’t collect yourself, but know would greatly increase the overall productivity and profitability of your business.

7. GPS Tracking Systems are too expensive

Since GPS tracking systems typically require an investment in hardware for each vehicle and in some kind of mapping/reporting application for use in the office. However, these systems have been proven to identify those inefficiencies and practices in the field that are already costing you hundreds, or even thousands of dollars every month – excess overtime, inefficient routing, side trips, excess engine idling, reckless driving, etc. The money you’re paying for these inefficiencies in most cases far exceeds the monthly investment required for a GPS tracking service. So in a very real sense, you’re paying for it already! Most of our customers achieve a return on investment within the first few months of using the system, due to savings in overtime costs, fuel expenditures, lower insurance premiums, reduced vehicle maintenance, and more.

8. GPS tracking is an unproven technology.

This is simply not true. GPS technology itself (the ability to locate and track objects at any time, in real-time, using satellites and wireless communications) has been effectively used for decades. As far as its application to commercial enterprises goes, the effectiveness of GPS fleet management systems in terms of increasing productivity and reducing operational costs has been documented by reputable third-party sources*. Any business that is actually using this technology will vouch for its effectiveness.

9. Our company is so busy, we’d never use a GPS tracking system.

A GPS tracking system makes perfect sense for a busy mobile workforce, since it helps to better manage fleet activities and presents a clear picture of all that is going on in the field at any given time. The busier a mobile operation is, the more critical it is to have accurate information — to ensure that money is not being wasted, work is being done on time and customers are being served effectively. Business managers know that high work volume and tight time frames can lead to problems (and angry customers) if jobs aren’t being effectively scheduled and kept track of. A GPS tracking system is an extremely effective tool to help do that, especially when combined with work order tracking, remote data capture and other mobile field service capabilities.

10. GPS tracking is for big companies only. It doesn’t make sense for a small company.

Any business with multiple vehicles to keep track of – whether it’s 5 or 500 – will benefit from having access to accurate, real-time information from the field. If you depend on your vehicles to get most of your business done, you need to know where they are now, where they’ve been and what they’re doing. GPS systems tend to pay for themselves quickly due to savings in operational costs and improved efficiency, leading to additional jobs completed per day. Businesses that take advantage of this technology usually experience growth, because of the increased revenue and positive word-of-mouth generated by the rapid customer response real-time information affords. Whether you’re managing a handful of service technicians or a fleet of hundreds of delivery trucks, real-time, location-based information will help you to make the most of your field operations and take your business to another level.