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DHL Global Forwarding has launched a new online quote and booking platform for air and ocean shipments.
The decision follows other operators already offering online booking, while Australia’s Toll Group last month outsourced its online needs to Kontainers in a three-year deal.
However, DHL GF has opted to develop its own service, DHLi Quote & Book, which chief executive Tim Schwarth claimed would be the market’s “most user-friendly” system.
“With this new service, we continue our digital transformation with the clear aspiration to become the leading global logistics provider,” he said. “During the development, we listened to our customers’ needs and improved upon our prior online tool.
“We added new features, increased coverage and implemented a highly intuitive user interface to achieve a simple and effective customer experience.”
The system allows for quotes and bookings to be made on a 24/7 basis, covering door-to-door shipments, and provides comparisons between the operator’s services.
It is currently available for use in more than 60 countries, and there are expectations it will be expanded.
Toll’s migration to online booking is expected later in the year, and a source told The Loadstar that two more forwarders were set to sign up to the Kontainers platform.
Online booking is seen as one of the core tools for forwarders looking to land SME shippers.
Toll Global Forwarding president Thomas Knudsen said: “The addition [of Kontainers] will allow clients instant quotes and to book shipments at the click of the mouse.”
The Loadstar’s new IT and tech column, The Road Test, will examine DHL’s new offering later this week. See here for the first in the series, on DSV’s Lead Logistics offering.
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