EasyRoutes Product Updates - November 2023

What's new?

✅ New Route Option: Driver Tasks

We've added a new Route Option to assign drivers tasks and reminders of additional steps they must complete before starting a route, completing a delivery, or finishing a route. Whether collecting payment, checking identification, or returning reusable containers, Driver Tasks allows route planners to create custom checklists a driver will need to finish before marking a stop as attempted or delivered.

Driver Tasks can be configured separately for route Start & End locations, and all stops on a route. Just like Proof of Delivery, completed and pending Driver Tasks are accessible for route planners to view in real time, directly from any Route's page.

Driver Tasks can be enabled from the Route Options page before creating a new route. For more information on configuring Driver Tasks on EasyRoutes, check out the support article for this new route option.

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🤖 New Feature: Route Assistant

We've added a new feature that monitors for new orders matching a custom set of filters, and automatically pre-selects them for addition to an existing route. You can enable the Route Assistant from the Add Orders tab on any new or existing route, directly from the Auto-add orders box below the map:

Once enabled, the Route Assistant will place a banner at the top of a route page whenever you load an unstarted route and new orders are available - simply head to the Add Orders tab and they'll be staged on the map ready for you to work with.

For more details on configuring and updating the Route Assistant's functionality and filters, take a look at the support article for this new feature.

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🛠️ Clickable Route Options

Enabled Route Options can now be clicked to jump directly to and highlight that Route Option's configuration panel, bypassing the need to use the "Add/Edit Route Options" to modify any active Route Options on the fly.  

This update applies to the Orders page and Route or Route Group pages to streamline workflows for both new and existing routes.

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📱 EasyRoutes Delivery Driver 1.0.35

The EasyRoutes Delivery Driver mobile app on both iOS and Android has been updated to version 1.0.35, featuring support for the new Driver Tasks feature and a number of usability improvements and UI updates, including:

• Order notes, Stop notes, and Customer notes are now grouped together under the "Delivery Instructions" section of each stop for quicker driver access to all relevant stop information:
  

• Depending whether Address, Lat/Long or ZIP/Postal Code is selected as your Navigation mode, the "Go to..." button now more clearly displays which navigation mode will be used to get directions to a stop.
• Enabling "Include second address line when navigating" from the app's settings menu will include the second address line stored for a stop (if available) when navigating to that stop.
• Improved support for photo Proof of Delivery capture and storage.
• Fix for occasional issue when using Waze to navigate routes on Android.

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Other product updates
(👀 there's some good stuff in here!)

• You can now include Order notes, Stop notes, and/or Customer notes individually when printing a route.
• You can now include the Item vendor variable in printed packing slips.
• Customer Company variables are now displayed to the right of a saved customer's name in the Address Book, and will appear in Address Book search results when applicable.
• You can now include the Start location row when exporting a route.
• Dispatched routes can now be set to expire after 4 weeks (configure from EasyRoutes Settings > Driver settings tab).
• New setting to prioritize the phone number listed under an order's shipping address when sending SMS notifications - particularly useful for orders that are sent as gifts (configure from EasyRoutes Settings > Notifications tab).

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🍽️ New Customer Story: Donovan's Dish to Door

Founded by husband and wife duo Chef TJ & Jill Donovan in 2011, Donovan’s Dish began as a full-service catering provider, supplying tantalizing dishes - including fresh takes on Southern classics and signature dishes like Chef TJ’s Famous Shrimp & Grits or Pimento Cheese Stuffed Chicken - for weddings, corporate events and social gatherings across the greater Raleigh area. After finding success in the catering space, TJ & Jill began cooking up the next phase of Donovan’s Dish: an expanded kitchen space and physical storefront to house a take-out market, allowing Raleigh locals to swing by on a whim, pick up a ready-to-eat dinner and take the night off from cooking. (Continue reading...)