COURIER OWNER GUIDE
How to work out which clients make a courier business money
Revenue alone does not tell a courier owner whether a client is good for the operation. A client can generate regular work and still create long waits, difficult routes, repeat delivery attempts, or COD follow-up that consumes time. Compare the work the client creates with the money left after the delivery cost.
Start with delivery-level facts
Review each delivery or route instead of looking only at a monthly total. The useful questions are: what was charged, what delivery cost was created, how long did the work take, and did the stop require an exception? Dispatchly’s approved scope includes margin per delivery, rate cards, COD tracking and customer problem tracking.
Separate the client from the route conditions
A client may look unprofitable because one service area is expensive, or a route may look strong because it combines many nearby stops. Keep both views. Compare the client’s work by area, service type and delivery pattern before changing the price or ending the relationship.
Include failed deliveries and waiting
Unpaid waiting and reattempt work can quietly reduce margin. Record the operational reason and decide whether the rate card reflects it. If the work is valuable but the rule is unclear, change the quoting or exception process before making a conclusion about the client.
Use COD tracking as part of closeout
COD affects visibility and handoff discipline. A client with frequent COD work may still be a good client, but the operation needs a clear way to see what is outstanding and who owns the next step. Treat COD tracking as part of the operating picture, not as a separate spreadsheet that is checked later.
Turn the review into a conversation
When a client’s work creates a recurring problem, bring a simple comparison: the route pattern, the exception type, the delivery cost and the margin per delivery. That gives the owner a practical basis for changing zones, waiting terms, service windows or route expectations.
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