Young vs. Old: A Tale of Two Business Owners and GPS Technology

Not so long ago, there were two business owners, one old and one young. Each had their own courier service, delivering goods around the bustling town of Flumbridge. As competitors in the same region, they were finding it increasingly difficult to win new customers. The two men were very different from one another, but both recognised something must be done…

Over the past few years, the older man grudgingly accepted that in today’s world, technology was probably the answer. He shopped around and after reading the GPS Tracking Buyer’s Guide, and viewing an impressive demo, he decided to go with FleetMatics.

The younger man had grown up taking technology for granted. He bought gadgets that his friends had and things he saw in TV ads. However, he hadn’t given any thought to helping his business with something like GPS tracking. So long as the young man had a phone that told him where the nearest pub was, played his music, took photos, and could slide back into the pockets of his new and ‘hip’ skinny jeans, the young man was satisfied.

One morning, it was announced that a huge retail giant was to open a warehouse in Flumbridge. The area manager called the two business owners to a meeting and announced his proposition. ‘You have one day,’ he said, ‘to each deliver ten parcels. The man who finishes first, and receives the best feedback from my customers, will live the rest of his years a wealthy man. Meet me tomorrow at 5pm and one will surely prevail.’

The following morning the older man strolled to the office as usual. He calmly sat down at his computer and assessed the situation. Opening Google Maps via the Live Fleet feature in his GPS tracking software, amazingly FleetMatics revealed his optimal route. He put the ten jobs into his Garmin tab to calculate the best routes. ‘Bargain on the fuel savings!’ thought the old man, who was still having trouble accepting the outrageous diesel prices. He sent the stops to his drivers and went on with his day, feeling rather smug with all he learnt from his free training.

The young man woke up, and arrived to work late. He spent his morning rushing around, spilling his breakfast over the map that was sprawled out over his desk. He got together his drivers, oh except Steve… ‘Where’s Steve?!’ he exclaimed angrily. The other drivers loaded up their parcels and went on their way.

Still fuming about Steve, the young man had to concede, ‘This wouldn’t have happened if I had that old boy’s flipping fleet tracking system!’ When Steve arrived, he sped off into the distance, making up for lost time. Later, at lunch, the older man received an email from the retail giant, who revealed a surprise 11^th pick-up in West Flumbridge. ‘Not to worry’, the old man chirped. He got out his phone and hit the Find Nearest Vehicle tool on his FleetMatics App. ‘Ah! James is on his way back near there now’ and he scheduled the job. The young man got the email too, and put a call into the office. After a frustrating 20 minutes or so, they worked out that maybe Billy, or possibly Craig… or Doug, were nearest out of the few drivers that answered. The young man’s growing frustrations were becoming increasingly overwhelming.

The sun then set over the famous Flumbridge hill tops, and both men arrived at the retail giant’s headquarters to learn their destiny.

‘My friends, this is an easy decision to make, for one of you has excelled!’ exclaimed the retail giant.

‘Sir, you must enlighten me with your secret,” he said bewildered to the older man. “All deliveries arrived on time, you were able to pick up the surprise package, and if I’m not mistaken, you did it with only half the men!’

Then he turned towards the younger man, ‘You, on the other hand! Your parcels were ALL late; one didn’t even arrive, and you failed to pick up the last delivery!’

The younger man left, dejected. He slumped to the pub and saw a red-faced Steve, caught earlier by the police for speeding… The old man, leaning back in a corner with his pals, couldn’t help but smirk, thinking about the many ways FleetMatics could have prevented all the younger man’s problems.