How to Track Delivery Success: The Ultimate Guide to Reducing Chaos

This essential guide breaks down the critical delivery metrics owner drivers must track to move from daily firefighting to strategic control, boosting efficiency and customer loyalty.

Walter Scremin CEO at Ontime

7 October 2025

Several cars vans trucks parked in parking lot for shipping delivery Outside of Logistics Distributions Warehouse

Late pallet, missing carton, an angry client on the phone—if the daily stress of managing your delivery company’s firefighting has worn you out, I get it. I’m Walter Scremin, CEO of Ontime Delivery Solutions, and for over two decades, I’ve helped Australian businesses navigate the massive $73 billion road freight transport industry.

I’ve learned a hard-won truth: mastering your deliveries isn’t about tracking more data; it’s about having a system that prevents chaos from the start. This guide is that system. We’ll connect the painful symptoms you’re feeling to their hidden root causes so you can finally regain control.

Here’s our roadmap to getting there:

Start with a Diagnosis: We’ll look at the vital signs of your delivery health, the key metrics your customers see and feel first.
Look Under the Hood: We’ll dive into your internal engine room to uncover the operational habits that are quietly draining your profits.
Turn Insight into Action: We’ll explore the smart, accessible technology that turns data into repeatable, reliable solutions.
Consider the Strategic Leap: I’ll share my honest perspective on when partnering up is the smartest move for long-term growth.

Let’s turn your delivery business from a source of stress into the reliable income-generating asset it’s meant to be.

Part 1: Diagnose Your Delivery Metrics

Before we can fix anything, we have to be honest about what your customers are *really* experiencing through your delivery metrics. Behind every delivery you do, there’s a real person expecting you to fulfill the promise to provide something at a specific location, at a specific time.

When people stop fulfilling their promises people tend to lose trust and no longer do business with that person. This is what happens when your deliveries are late, or aren’t delivered on the first try. This will cause your customers to lose faith and cost you real business. Thus if you want to quickly see how well you’re keeping your promises to your customers look at the following metrics first.

Metric (The Symptom)	Key Benchmark	Why It Matters (The “So What?”)
On-Time Delivery Rate	90–95%	This is the raw data of trust. A late delivery isn’t just an inconvenience; it’s a broken promise that tells your client they can’t rely on you. If this is under 90% you’ll most likely see customers lose faith in your brand.
First-Attempt Delivery Rate	90–95%	A failed delivery is a snowballing issue which costs your team time. Rescheduling, handling complaints, and processing returns easily multiplies the financial and reputational damage from just the cost of redoing the delivery again.
Customer Satisfaction	77% Average (Aim for 90%+)	This metric exposes your blind spots. A low customer satisfaction score is your earliest warning signal that much bigger problems are brewing. This could be related to team culture, technology, handling practices and more.

Your First Step: Complete A 30-Day Scorecard

Instead of flying blind, let’s get some real clarity. Copy this simple tool into a spreadsheet and commit to tracking these three numbers for the next month.

Total Successful First-Attempt Deliveries: __________
Total Deliveries Requiring a Second Attempt: __________
Total Late Deliveries (by your original ETA): __________

Calculate Your Delivery Miss Score:

(Number of Second Attempts + Number of Late Deliveries) / Total Successful Deliveries.

If this score is above 0.15, it’s a clear sign that your delivery operation is actively eroding your profits and your reputation.

Want To Eliminate Inconsistent Courier Deliveries?

Partner with Ontime Delivery Solutions for reliable Monday-Friday runs, and the support you need to provide successful and consistent deliveries.

Call 1300 778 919.

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Part 2: Finding the Root Cause Of Delivery Chaos

If your customer-facing metrics are flashing warning signs, the problem almost always lies inside your own four walls. This is where we find the culprit. The internal numbers we’re about to discuss are the direct cause of the symptoms we just diagnosed.

“Most businesses focus on the symptoms, such as the late delivery or the customer complaint. The real breakthrough comes when you start obsessing over the root causes. Fix the internal process, and the customer experience fixes itself.”

— Walter Scremin, CEO of Ontime Delivery Solutions

Reroute Rate: The Hidden Killer of Time and Fuel

Let’s be clear: a high reroute rate isn’t a driver problem; it’s a planning problem.

We’ve all seen it: the 12-tonne Pantech sent down a narrow Melbourne laneway it can never access, forcing a stressful 20-minute detour in heavy traffic.

So what? That single reroute doesn’t just burn fuel. It creates a domino effect, making every subsequent delivery on that run late and jeopardising your entire day’s on-time performance all because of one planning error made hours earlier.

So how do you fix it?

Start by tracking reroutes weekly. If you see a pattern, drive the route yourself or, even better, talk to your driver. The fix might be as simple as updating a client’s delivery instructions.

Order Accuracy Rate: The Bedrock of Customer Trust

It’s a simple question: does the pick slip match what’s on the pallet? Getting this wrong triggers a costly and embarrassing chain reaction.

You’re forced to process a return, absorb the shipping costs, and re-dispatch the correct order, all while your reputation takes a hit.

So what? This is so much more than an operational headache. It’s a breach of trust that quietly hands your client a powerful reason to see if your competitor can get it right.

So how do you fix it?

Implement a simple two-person check system in your dispatch process or invest in barcode scanning. It’s a small step that ensures the promise you made online is the reality that arrives at their door.

Part 3: Use Technology To Help You Stay Organised

As of 2025, Statista projects the Australian transportation and logistics market volume to reach approximately US$217 billion by 2030 (around AUD 325 billion at current exchange rates). With costs rising and competition fierce, technology is no longer a luxury; it’s your essential toolkit for protecting your margins and your sanity.

Adopt Route Optimisation Software: The Antidote to Morning Chaos

Manually planning multi-drop runs is like playing a high-stakes guessing game every morning. Intelligent software replaces that gamble with certainty. It analyses thousands of data points traffic, delivery windows, vehicle capacity to calculate the most efficient path in seconds. The result?

Case studies consistently show businesses reducing mileage by up to 20%.

While our proprietary OnTime Earth™ technology is one example, you don’t have to start there. When I was in the early days, I leveraged the advanced multi-stop features in tools like Google Maps for my small fleet, and it was a powerful first step.

Ensure You Have Electronic Proof of Delivery (ePOD)

The days of frantically digging through greasy, messy paper dockets are over. Imagine resolving an “item not received” claim in seconds. That’s the power of ePOD.

By capturing a signature-on-glass, a photo of the goods on the loading dock, and a geostamped timestamp, you have irrefutable evidence. *The mechanism is simple:* it creates an unchangeable digital record.

You won’t be wasting time digging through filing cabinets; you’ll be confidently forwarding a PDF with photo evidence, ending the dispute instantly and protecting your bottom line. If you don’t have this where you’re working I would strongly advise adopting it.

Use Fleet Management Systems

Nothing brings your operation to a screeching halt like the gut-wrenching call that your primary truck has broken down.

Proactive fleet management systems prevent this.

They track pre-start checklists and log regular service intervals, shifting you from reactive repairs to proactive maintenance. *The mechanism is about more than just avoiding breakdowns:* it provides a digital audit trail, ensuring you are compliant with Australia’s rigorous Chain of Responsibility laws.

It’s documented proof that you are running a safe, reliable fleet, protecting you from enormous legal and operational risk. This is especially vital if you’re running a larger operation.

Part 4: Partner for Growth

I’ve seen it hundreds of times, a great delivery business hits a ceiling. The very act of managing an in-house fleet—the capital tied up in depreciating trucks, the best people pulled away to handle logistics becomes the biggest barrier to growth. This is the crossroads where a strategic partnership can become a powerful lever to scale your business and reclaim your focus.

Your Dedicated Delivery Team: An Extension of Your Business, Not a Transaction

Imagine your key client seeing the same familiar, professional driver pull up every morning a driver who knows their warehouse, their processes, and their people. That’s the difference a true partner provides with dedicated drivers assigned permanently to your account. This builds route knowledge and deepens client relationships. That kind of consistency and trust is something ad-hoc courier services simply cannot replicate.

Guaranteed Reliability: Eliminating Your Biggest Headache

Let me ask you a direct question: what’s your plan when your primary 8-tonne Tautliner has an engine issue? For most businesses, the honest answer is chaos. A good partner eliminates that entire category of stress with a reserve fleet and backup drivers ready to go. A two-week delay from a key truck being out of service can mean tens of thousands in lost revenue. The right partnership makes that risk—and the headache that comes with it—disappear.

Customised Solutions: Your Fleet Should Fit Your Business, Not the Other Way Around

With the Australian courier and parcel market set to reach AUD 32.16 billion by 2034, flexibility is key to capturing that growth. A partner gives you access to the specific assets you need, when you need them—from refrigerated vans for a new product line to flat-beds for handling oversized freight—all without the immense capital outlay. If a full fleet-outsourcing model feels like too big a step today, that’s okay. Consider a hybrid option. Outsource a single, challenging run to test the waters. See the benefits for yourself and build trust from there.