Red Star Plc, a leading courier and logistics company in Nigeria is introducing a new solution to make it easier for e-commerce platforms to track and manage “Pay-On-Delivery” transactions for online businesses and e-transactions.
The application, known as “Saddle”, allows instant payment on delivery reconciliation, enable customers monitor and track the movement of ordered products until items are delivered and at the same time, allows e-platforms and partner companies to seamlessly receive notifications when orders are placed.
“The application will enable a transparent solution on all sides of the e-commerce chain; Red Star Express PLC, the E-commerce platform and the end user who ordered the product” said Jayson Oyarekhua, Head, Projects and New Ventures, Red Star Plc.
Explaining how it works, Jayson said a customer (an e-commerce Platform provider) receives an application programme interface (API) to integrate Saddle into their website. Once integration is done, the customer will have visibility to the Saddle logistics management. When an order is made on their platforms, the transaction is sent and logged in Saddle where it becomes available for pick-up and delivery. For delivery, Saddle will be linked to a mobile POS solution which every delivery agent can use to receive payment upon delivery. Payment (cash, card) will be logged into the account of the merchant with proper reconciliation and settlement process in place.
“The app starts with the integration of an e-commerce website. So when an order is ready to be fulfilled, the e-commerce website feeds into saddle and the Logistics partner will be able to see orders that are ready to be picked up. This solution will significantly organize the current e-commerce delivery process by assigning pick-ups to agents within a certain geographical location. For example, when an agent needs to pick up from merchants located in Victoria Island. The algorithm built into it will assign the pick-up info to agents in Victoria Island. So this app puts sanity to an otherwise chaotic system that is currently in place. The MPOS allows the customer the ability to pay on delivery. By integrating MPOS with Saddle, it creates a real time payment notification”.
The customer is able to see when their order has been picked up from the merchant. Then the order is tracked from when it gets on the vehicle until the last mile customer signs that the order has been received. Dates at various touch points progression are visible. Daily, weekly or monthly report can be generated for reconciliation purposes.
