How do I document my delivery routes so a last-mile buyer can run them on day one?

Start with one page per route. List the stops in sequence, the building quirks at each (loading doors, gate codes held by the customer, tight alleys, parking limits) and the points where drivers usually lose time. Note the typical load, the weekday swings and the days when everything arrives late. Keep the language plain, because the person reading it has never met your customers.

Then document the people side. Who is the contact at each major customer, what do they expect when something goes wrong, and which drivers know the difficult stops best? A buyer will want to know that this knowledge sits on paper and not only in one driver’s head. Ask the drivers to read their own route sheets and correct them.

Keep the sheets short enough that a driver will actually open them on a busy morning. Finally, pair the routes with the paperwork a buyer will ask for: the customer contracts or work orders, the scanning and proof-of-delivery process, and a record of missed or damaged parcels. Walk a trusted person through one route using only your pages. Every question they ask shows a gap to fill before a buyer finds it, and every fix makes the handover calmer for your customers too.

Key takeaways

• Write one page per route, in stop order, with access notes and timing.
• Record customer contacts and what each expects when something goes wrong.
• Test the pages by having someone unfamiliar follow one route.