It goes unnoticed, but it is vital for a satisfactory customer experience in a "hot" sector such as ecommerce, which in addition to growing above inflation is presented as the most promising sales channel for what is coming.This is the so-called "last mile", as is known in the jargon of logistics when sending products to the final consumer. This point is so important that, depending on how you face it, it determines not only that you are satisfied, but that you buy again and the company will generate more confidence.It is not a minor issue: according to eMarketer, e-commerce will grow in Latin America to exceed US $ 70,000 million in the coming years. Argentina (which represents 6.3% of that figure) will be the eighth country in the world (second in the region) where online sales will progress more in percentage terms.Following this explosive upturn, a new market was opened: that of picking points, with players such as Packasap and Pickit, which allow the withdrawal of purchases made by Internet in different establishments, service stations, kiosks, bookstores and different types of establishments But new players also emerged for home delivery, the preferred mode by 46% of Argentines.Iván Amas, director of the Logistics Commission of CACE, affirms to iProUP: "The growth of the Food and Beverage category makes the point-to-point immediate delivery model further enhanced." Thus, the arrival of SuperMercado Libre and the greater investment in ecommerce of Coto and other companies in the sector will give greater impetus to these shipments.It's not speed, it's technologyThe digital client changed the perspective of logistics services. The tendency is that the products arrive as soon as possible or, failing that, in a reduced time slot chosen by the buyer, instead of the classic ones of 8-15 or 15-21 that the logistics operators traditionally offered.The key is not to have the fastest vehicles, or a neat schedule organization. Technology, especially the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), is the secret ingredient to improve delivery times."The evolution of ecommerce requires integrating technology that provides a unique view of the customer regardless of where the product is stored or the delivery destination," says Amas of CACE. For the expert, there are seven key aspects to apply innovations:- Prediction, efficiency and precision in package preparation- Integration of logistic data (address) to generate the registration of a shipment- Traceability end to end (GPS)- Real-time communication with the consumer through applications- Interaction between the cargo depot and the logistics operator- Communication between the buyer and the logistics operator for changes in time or address- Route automationThree years ago, the Argentine startup Treggo set out to improve traditional messaging using artificial intelligence. Being a partner of Mercado Envíos Flex, delivery service on the day with a motorcycle or car, its turnover grew 465% year-on-year in December, to $ 48 million."We use routing algorithm technologies developed by us and leveraged on Google Maps to constantly work with data," reveals Matías Lonardi, co-founder of the firm, who conducts an average of 40,000 shipments per month, owns more than 1,000 delivery people and prepares his landing in Mexico.Through traffic information and other details provided by the map system, Lonardi states that the company achieves "more efficient and shorter routes every day. Also, higher delivery density to optimize vehicle use, delay reduction and detection of economically profitable paths to reduce delivery costs. ""We also use AI and machine learning to teach the algorithm that decides routes, number of vehicles by area and type, whether motorcycle, car or van," he reveals.The link between the distributor and the customer is generated through WhastApp Business, so that the consumer can know where his package is. "The messenger's cell phone helps us to geolocate orders," he adds."Big Data also plays an important role in the optimization of delivery routes and process improvements. Through real-time traffic and weather data, the best routes can be calculated and the state and thorough monitoring of the state and of the situation of all shipments to, among other things, detect possible incidents. This represents a significant economic saving for our company and a benefit for the client, "Mauricio Boiko, CEO and co-founder of Welivery, an Argentine startup that explains to iProUP It is beginning its landing in Chile.Among those that were reconverted, Andreani stands out, which participates in Mercado Envíos, a pool of logistics companies for distribution nationwide, between 24 and 72 hours."We arrived at any destination in the country. With the support of technology, we were able to strengthen and optimize our operations: through the incorporation of Augmented Reality in connection with a Ring Scanner, we were able to identify and process the received parcel more quickly," says iProUP Gonzalo Pozzo, commercial manager of the company.The company also added to its last mile strategy the latest innovations in sustainable mobility to increase its value proposition. "We incorporate 100% electric vehicles to mitigate the impact of our operations, reducing noise and without affecting traffic flow in populated areas," Pozzo completes.For its part, Krabpack aims to be a link between traditional logistics operators and digital consumers' requirements. "The challenge is to meet the needs of each particular client, and we believe that the way to do it is by associating with each email and working together in a collaborative way," he tells iProUP Ivón Plaza, Product Lead of the firm.According to the executive, the business model "is based on charging per shipment, which allows the logistics cost to vary, unlike what happens in most competitors, which offer a fixed and need a scale to be competitive."Apps also competeIn addition to logistics companies, food delivery apps expanded their services to companies that sell by e-commerce to take advantage of their distributors.Glovo, for example, offers GlovoBussiness, which, according to the company to iProUP, is not limited to radios as with the distribution of restaurants, but "the order is assigned to the dealer that is available near the pickup point and can make the shipment".Recently, the company added to Cencosud's supermarkets (Disco, Jumbo and Vea) for shipments within its platform, confirming the growing trend of the online purchase of food, beverages, personal hygiene and cleaning.In addition to these stores, its competitor, Rappi, also allows to send Carrefour products and signed an exclusive alliance with Coto. "We have cars and trucks. The big differential is that, in addition to having the same products and promos, they arrive in one hour and not in four to five," Matías Casoy, country manager of Rappi, tells iProUP.In this case, logistics meets another challenge: to get the best products. "We have personal shoppers, they are employees hired by Rappi and identified with an apron and orange cap, which we train weekly," says Casoy.According to the manager, these employees "check with the customer if the avocados are to eat now or in 20 days, if there is stock of the required deodorant, and so on." Once the purchase is finished, it is given to a dealer, who will complete the last mile with his car.Integral lookAccording to Amas, of the CACE, ecommerce logistics improved in the country "not only for achieving a scale that has allowed more development of structures to reduce delivery times, but also because they improved deposits through technology, knowledge and efficiency of processes ".This evolution took place thanks to the use of internal web services to "reduce manual processes susceptible to error". As an example, it indicates the scan "of a common label visible to all the actors to accelerate" the receipt in deposits, the control of stock, the transfer to the operator and its shipment to the consumer"The look is more comprehensive. The focus is on the whole process, which has allowed several players to start having their own automated deposits, such as the one that Mercado Libre installed in the Central Market area," he says."We have developed an exclusive warehouse to offer our customers a storage solution in a warehouse with processes adapted to their product characteristics, with the necessary know-how to guarantee high levels of effectiveness in the processes," says Pozzo, Andreani.Thus, the company plans to bet on the Health segment, due to the constant development of medications for specific patients, "so it requires delivery times and special care during storage and distribution," says the manager."The detection of this trend (personalized medicine) led us to inaugurate in 2018 the CyPE Plant (Channels and Special Products), dedicated to oncological, biomolecular and special products," he completes.The firm also points to drinks, especially wines and beers, since companies in the sector are aiming at direct consumer sales (B2C) through their own marketplaces. "We developed a manual of good practices and specific processes that allow us to bring these products anywhere in the country, in less than 72 hours and with a zero breakage rate," says Pozzo.For its part, Glovo is working in its Fulfillment service, as it is known in the jargon of warehouse and delivery integration that "popularized" in Argentina Mercado Libre with its automated deposit.The company adds that "the objective is to have the 24/7 solution of stock maintenance and preparation of the order with a delivery of less than 25 minutes."For Boikol, moreover, "the urban transport industry is in the process of transformation and the future will focus on its decarbonization. Working with green cargo vehicles is still very complex and expensive, in addition to the few 'green' charging stations in the country, but we all have a social responsibility and innovation must seek a perfect balance between economic growth, the environment and social health. ""One of the trends that will prevail will be ecofriendly shipments, through electric vehicles, which we plan to implement," agrees Lonardi, of Treggo, a company that tested drone deals in low-lying areas two years ago."I do not see drones or robots in Argentina in the short term, by 2025 we could perform some tests. We have to update the regulation, but they could be a solution for deliveries at intermediate points, not the final consumer," says Lonardi.And it reveals that who will be the supplier that will succeed in the future: "Technology will be the differential to meet the demands of customers."