Real-time Shipment Tracking

We are living in a new era of logistics where every package is not just a physical item shipped to the destination but a moving blip in a digital map.

What does this mean? It means that real-time shipment tracking is no longer impossible, but a proven technology that businesses can use.

While you're struggling to manage orders in-house, some businesses realize how effective shipment tracking optimizes customers’ post-purchase experience, leading to increased repeat purchases.

If you are looking for the best practices for shipment tracking, read this article! Below you will find the latest industry insights on what real-time shipment tracking is, common mistakes made in shipment tracking, the ways to achieve efficient shipment tracking, and more.

What is Real-time Shipment Tracking?

Shipment tracking is the process of monitoring the movement of a shipment from the sender all the way to the doorstep of the recipient. The tracking information includes the location, the status, and the estimated delivery date of the shipment.

Real-time shipment tracking delivers instant status updates throughout the package's journey, which is more and more crucial in today’s logistics and eCommerce industries.

Why is Real-time Shipment Tracking a Must?

Real-time shipment tracking is a necessity for all the stakeholders involved especially for eCommerce.

For Shoppers

Nowadays, we prefer to buy everything online, from small day-to-day items to emergency medications.

However, you must meet the situation that your package has been delivered but the online tracking system still shows that the package is in transit. Such an information gap can be fatal, especially if the items in the package are high-value or time-sensitive.

For example, imagine you're waiting for a package of temperature-sensitive medical supplies that need immediate refrigeration upon arrival. A delayed tracking update could mean your package is already sitting unattended at its destination, while everyone thinks it's still safely in transit. The end result is that your long-awaited packages are damaged or stolen by porch thieves instead of securing a signature.

For Merchants

eCommerce is a highly competitive industry. Unless your customers really trust your brand, they are going to switch the moment they find a better deal. According to Straits Research, 75% of customers report experiencing delivery issues when shopping online, which negatively affects the whole shopping experience.

Providing complete shipment visibility has proven to effectively address most delivery issues. By keeping customers informed with real-time shipment tracking updates, merchants can alleviate their concerns about lost or delayed packages, greatly reducing friction with customers.

What’s more, real-time tracking is a prerequisite for you to identify and resolve delivery exceptions in the first place. For example, a minor customs documentation issue can cause days of shipping delays if not identified and resolved quickly. Or, an unnoticed failed delivery attempt could mean a package sits in the warehouse for days instead of being redelivered the next day.

For Shipping Carriers

The importance of real-time tracking for carriers cannot be overstated. A failed delivery is a significant cost to carriers, including redelivery fees, additional fuel consumption, and extended storage time. And a primary reason for these failures is customers' lack of precise delivery time information.

Real-time tracking enables carriers to provide accurate delivery ETAs, allowing recipients to prepare for delivery or reschedule if needed. This significantly reduces failed delivery attempts and improves first-delivery success rates.

At the same time, carriers can dynamically plan and adjust delivery routes to reduce fuel consumption and driver time, maximizing efficiency.

How Does Real-time Shipment Tracking Work?

There are three core technologies that work to get real-time shipment tracking information.

• GPS: Monitor vehicles carrying shipments in real time, thereby providing precise data about package location and estimated delivery time.
• IoT Sensors: In more advanced logistics ecosystems, sensors are attached to shipments that transmit data throughout their journey. Data such as location, temperature, and condition of the package are typically transmitted from these sensors.
• Cloud computing: Offer a centralized and internet-based repository to store data; Collect and process millions of tracking data from anywhere in the world.

Then, it’s the shipment tracking API that allows businesses to embed tracking features directly into their websites or systems. It serves as a bridge, transmitting tracking data from carriers to business platforms.

Businesses have two options for accessing tracking data: making direct API calls to pull real-time information on demand or setting up webhooks to receive automatic updates pushed to their system. With these real-time tracking data, businesses can inform customers about their shipment status and resolve any delivery exceptions at the first opportunity.

How To Achieve Real-time Shipment Tracking?

In this part, we will further introduce how to achieve real-time shipment tracking for all the stakeholders.

For Carriers

Carriers are the providers of shipment tracking data. It can be argued that if carriers are not equipped with the appropriate equipment and technology for shipment tracking, then no other entity can access the data. That's why some small carriers don't provide tracking service, as well as tracking service is also divided into basic and premium, some shipping services only support last-mile tracking rather than end-to-end tracking.

First, carriers should equip key checkpoints throughout the logistics network with appropriate scanning equipment and tracking systems to enable comprehensive shipment tracking. This includes barcode scanners in warehouses and distribution centers, mobile devices for delivery confirmation, and GPS tracking of vehicles. A centralized system collects and processes all of these tracking events, creating a technology infrastructure that enables carriers to capture tracking events from pickup to delivery.

For Logistics Service Providers

Logistics service providers can achieve real-time shipment tracking by integrating carrier APIs into their systems. For international logistics, providers must connect with numerous carriers since last-mile delivery is typically handled by local courier companies. However, integrating multiple carrier APIs individually can be a time-consuming and complex process.

Most carriers set API rate limits and access restrictions based on shipping volume. Additionally, integrating with major carriers requires substantial technical resources and ongoing maintenance to ensure API compliance.

A multi-carrier tracking API provided by TrackingMore can address such a dilemma. This API seamlessly integrates with 1,300+ global carriers, including USPS, UPS, FedEx, DHL, China Post, and Australia Post.

What you need to do is only register a TrackingMore account, obtain your API key, and integrate with a single unified API endpoint—this eliminates the complexity of managing multiple carrier integrations while providing standardized tracking data across all supported carriers.

For Merchants

For merchants, there are several ways to access real-time shipment tracking.

The first way, which is also the simplest, is for Shopify store owners to install order tracking apps from the Shopify App Store. These apps are designed specifically for Shopify order management. They can synchronize orders into the shipment tracking dashboard once a shopper places an order in your store. Then, the tracking information for each order will automatically update in this dashboard.

For other eCommerce platforms, the process is similar. Install the appropriate app or plugin to achieve a seamless shipment tracking experience.

The second way is for merchants with multi-platform online stores. At this point, it's definitely time-consuming and inefficient if you're still managing your orders on each platform individually. You urgently need a centralized dashboard to manage all your orders. This is exactly what most eCommerce merchants looking for—the best shipment tracking software for their business needs.

An excellent shipment tracking software can not only provide accurate and fast shipment tracking capability but also increase your sales as it improves the post-purchase experience for your customers.

The last way is optimal for businesses with high-volume shipments. Integrating a multi-carrier tracking API into your system enables automated real-time tracking at scale and eliminates the need to connect with carriers individually. The API allows you to customize tracking frequency based on shipment priority and set up webhooks for instant status notifications.

For businesses not yet ready for API integration, the CSV bulk upload feature offers a simple alternative to track multiple shipments through the web interface.

For Shoppers

All online shoppers have the question—where is my order?

Actually, tracking your order is very easy.

1. Nowadays, most online stores provide an order panel for consumers to check the current status of their orders. Usually, all you need to do is—log in to your account, click on the “My Orders” option, and then select the order you want to check the status of.
2. If you don't want to log in to any account, you can find the order tracking page provided by the seller or go to the official website of the carrier delivering your parcel which usually provides the tracking function on the homepage.

Enter the tracking number of your parcel, and then click track, you can get the latest status of your order in one click. The tracking number will usually be in the confirmation email sent to you by the seller at the moment of your order.

1. Of course, if you don't need to know the current shipping status of your parcel urgently, you just need to wait for the seller to send you the parcel status notification. Usually, these notifications will be sent to you via SMS or email.

Common Mistakes in Real-time Shipment Tracking

While shipment tracking may seem straightforward, there are some common mistakes easy to make. Read on to learn and solve them smartly!

Relying Solely on Scheduled System Updates

Most tracking systems perform data collection on a scheduled basis, like a clock ticking at regular intervals, such as every 12 hours. At each interval, the system checks for new tracking updates.

However, this scheduled approach has limitations. When there are no updates during a scheduled check, the system must wait for the next scheduled time to check again. And even if a state change occurs immediately after the check, the new information is not captured until the next scheduled check.

This creates a potential time lag between when a change in status actually occurs and when that change appears in the tracking system.

Therefore to avoid this information gap, businesses should take the following steps.

1. Monitor the status of high-priority shipments more frequently.
2. Real-time push notifications.
3. Automated alerts for important status changes.
4. Regular manual checks on time-sensitive deliveries.

Not Using Webhook as a Complementary Solution

Using webhooks for push notifications ensures you receive instant shipment status updates. You can choose the key statuses you want to be notified about, such as In Transit, Delivered, and Exception. It eliminates the need for frequent API polling, reducing server processing time and API call costs.

Setting up a webhook for tracking updates is very simple, just create an endpoint URL on your server and register it with your logistics provider to receive real-time shipment status notifications via POST requests.

Of course, your customers will want to get this first-hand tracking information about their packages as well, so design the email template ahead of time to inform your customers in a friendly way.

Best Practices for Shipment Tracking

Never underestimate what an effective shipment tracking solution can bring to your business. Here are some suggestions for you when tracking your shipments.

1. Embrace Real-time Shipment Tracking Capabilities

Real-time shipment tracking has become increasingly accessible. While standard tracking updates shipment status at fixed checkpoints, real-time tracking provides continuous location data and instant status updates. This enhanced shipment visibility is particularly valuable for high-value products, time-critical deliveries, or temperature-sensitive items.

While real-time tracking costs marginally more than standard options, it’s found that proactive shipment monitoring can minimize delivery exceptions and enhance customer experience.

2. Simplify Multi-carrier Shipment Tracking

It’s outdated that manage shipments across multiple carriers by navigating different tracking systems.

A unified tracking system can streamline the process by consolidating all shipment data into a single dashboard. It can also standardize tracking information by converting different carrier status formats into consistent terminology. For example, whether a carrier uses "out for delivery" or "on the vehicle for final delivery," all statuses appear in a uniform format.

This unified solution streamlines daily operations while providing comprehensive delivery data to optimize your logistics strategy.

3. Offer a Branded Tracking Experience

Shipment tracking itself is a basic function, but branded tracking creates opportunities to generate revenue.

An order tracking page with brand elements, colors, and even product recommendations is an effective channel for increasing brand awareness.

When customers visit your branded tracking page, they not only track their parcel status but also build a stronger connection with your brand.

Your branded tracking page can include helpful resources like return policies, customer service contacts, and answers to common shipping and tracking questions. All of these can show your careful consideration for customers.

4. Keep Customers Informed with Proactive Notifications

If you think providing just an order tracking page is enough for customers to check their packages, you're way off the mark.

Most customers are not as “positive” as you might expect. They will contact your support team when they want to know the status of their packages rather than using the tracking feature themselves.

Proactively informing customers about their package status can not only create an additional touchpoint with them but also demonstrate that you care about their experience, which helps build brand loyalty.

You can enhance their branded tracking experience by adding your brand elements to the notification. Modern shipment tracking software typically includes automated notification features with lots of customizable templates.

Updating customers at key shipment milestones—like order confirmation, dispatch, out for delivery, and successful delivery—helps manage their expectations and reduces post-purchase anxiety.

FAQs on Real-time Shipment Tracking

What is a real-time shipment tracking API?

A real-time shipment tracking API is a tool that allows your website or application to automatically fetch the latest shipment information from carriers. Instead of manually checking carrier websites, the API helps your system receive tracking updates instantly whenever there's a status change.

How does a real-time shipment tracking API work?

The API constantly communicates with carrier systems, sending data requests and receiving immediate responses about shipment status, location, and other tracking information.

Does real-time tracking cost more than normal tracking?

Real-time tracking typically costs slightly more than normal tracking due to the increased data transmission frequency and system resources required.

Does USPS support real-time tracking?

Yes. Also, other renowned carriers like UPS and FedEx, as well as several other global carriers, offer real-time package tracking for their premium shipping services.

What is shipment tracking software?

Shipment tracking software is a digital solution that helps organizations monitor and manage shipments from different carriers. It provides basic features such as real-time tracking updates, centralized shipment data management, and automated customer notifications.

The software typically integrates with different carriers and displays tracking information on a single dashboard, making it easier for organizations to track all shipments and communicate delivery status to customers.

What is the best shipment tracking software?

TrackingMore is the best shipment tracking software trusted by over 10,000 brands like SHEIN, DJI, and Aukey. It provides a robust tracking solution that covers multiple sales channels, making it an excellent choice for eCommerce businesses.