Background

Due to the spread of COVID-19 in 2020, small and medium enterprises (SME) around the world were forced to develop mitigation strategies, managing, adapting, and pivoting to continue operating and remain successful. Given social distancing requirements, for SMEs – particularly in the F&B industry – home delivery became the new go-to business model. Transitioning to this model for many was difficult as food and package delivery firms often charge premium prices, and demand far exceeded supply. To mitigate cost and meet demand, many SMEs turned existing staff into delivery drivers and “pick and pack” workers. HERE Technologies felt there was an opportunity to leverage their location technology to help SMEs adapt to the rapidly changing environments and transition from traditional brick & mortar retail to local delivery merchants. With that, HERE WeGo Deliver was launched - a free and simple-to-use route planning service that optimizes deliveries for maximum efficiency.

Describe the strategy

Amidst the uncertainties brought on by the pandemic, two things quickly became clear: SMEs were in desperate need of a simple-to-use solution to manage increasing delivery demands, and the level of investment and change in consumer behaviour suggested the transition from brick & mortar to local delivery models would be long-term, or even permanent for many SMEs. The HERE team recognised this opportunity to give back, by leveraging HERE’s capabilities and translating our technology - which supports thousands of deliveries per day - into a solution for community users, to support struggling SMEs. Employees worldwide from every department volunteered their time and expertise over six weeks, to develop a turn-key, no-cost solution to help SMEs improve efficiency, reduce stress, and stay ahead of customer demands. Understanding the urgency of the situation and the drive of their employees, HERE’s leadership also directed additional resources to the project to accelerate delivery.

Describe the execution

HERE WeGo Deliver helps managers quickly create and dispatch multi-stop tour plans for drivers by defining their delivery fleet and uploading jobs that need to be completed. Drivers are sent an optimized and prioritized delivery route plan directly to their smartphones. The solution was first refined with a local café owner in Australia to ensure it met market needs. Utilizing this case as an example, through press, blogs, social media, word of mouth and physical collaterals, the benefits of HERE WeGo Deliver were highlighted. Conceived, piloted, and refined within APAC, the results, and benefits to struggling SMEs were clear. The global teams soon decided to deploy similar models across EMEA and the Americas. Available in 11 languages, scalable to meet the demands of any enterprise and compatible with other map and delivery solutions, HERE WeGo Deliver improved efficiency for SME owners worldwide, from one-van businesses to The Salvation Army.

List the results

HERE WeGo Deliver was a success, providing SMEs with the support and efficiencies they needed to transition to a delivery model and continue to operate and meet customer demands despite COVID-19, without having to shut down or retrench employees. “Using HERE WeGo Deliver has helped us provide efficient and safe, no-contact delivery. It also helps us continue to employ our staff during a difficult economic time and assists us in providing an important service to customers in isolation; delivering food helps keep people healthy and happy." - Robert Reid, Owner and Operator, Casual Mondays Café, Sydney Australia. Since May 14th, 2020, HERE WeGo Deliver has facilitated over 82,700 deliveries across 15 countries, including supporting The Salvation Army deliver over 10,000 meals in California to house hound seniors over Thanksgiving and Christmas.