New Automated Appointments 2.0 - Best Practices

Terminals are dealing with changing tariffs, making it harder for PortPro customers to get terminal appointments. They face issues like fake appointment slots, limited or no slots available, demurrage & per diem battles, and other headaches.

Despite these problems, PortPro customers can still secure appointments and operate efficiently with less manual effort.

This guide offers ways to manage and overcome these challenges using our new, overhauled appointment automation system. Please take a few minutes to review and explore if and how to apply some of these best practices for your operation.

Best Practices to Maximize Appointments:

1. Set up more automated templates - Create at least 3+ Templates set to run “on a background basis” automatically. The more you set up, the less manual time is required, and the more your team can focus on more valuable activities.
   
   Paired with our automated tracking updates, PortPro can identify when a container has been discharged, then immediately mark it Available and book a preferred appointment time before you even realize it was grounded. It works while you sleep, on weekends, and when you’re not at your computer. It’s checking for you every 5 to 10 minutes (or less), 24/7.
   
   Run through your pickup and return operations and program the templates to fit your business needs best. You can use custom triggers to support specific customers, such as pre-pulls, pick & runs, or other common scenarios needing minimal intervention.

2. Expand your Day/Time Preferences - Increase the likelihood of securing appointment requests by making your requests more flexible.  Expand your Day Preferences triggers with more days and add more times with your Time Preferences.  We highly recommend enabling all time ranges and days your operation can support.
   
   Note: The system will not book a time/day that is not enabled, even if it is available.
   

3. Add more Priorities & Fallback Times - Let PortPro do the hard work. PortPro will try for your Priority times selected, but if none are available on the first pass, it will grab a Fall Back time.  
   
   First Available Appointments will automatically request user-selected times for the next 7 days. If there are no slots or your request expires, you can easily re-trigger the automation by updating the Pick Up or Return Apt From fields within the load or directly from the dispatch screen.
   
   

Then, if and when a Priority time opens back up, the appointment system will automatically grab the slot and update your appointment.  

You must have the fallback toggle on, which instructs the automation on how long to keep seeking the Priority times based on the time period you select from the drop-down. Increase the value

4. Expand Your Day Preferences - If you have flexibility in your Timing Preferences, consider setting one of your trigger rules to include additional times to secure.
   
   

5. Use your Toggles

   1. Book past Trigger Dates - If your preferred date & times are unavailable, PortPro will automatically grab the first available appointment past the Timing Preferences deadline. If this toggle is off, the system will not book an appointment past the LFD/Per Diem Date, even if it is the first available.  

   2. Auto Reschedule missed appointments - Make sure this toggle is on so that in the event any appointments are missed, PortPro will automatically seek to book the next available time that matches your preference. This helps ensure missed appointments don’t result in lost time or penalties.
      

6. Fight for Per Diem - If you have to fight per diem, PortPro streamlines dispute resolution by arming you with the necessary resources.  Our platform provides an audit trail of screenshots containing the appointment request timestamp and the booking website URL for each load.  
   
   This can be found and accessed within each load by clicking on the Audit tab & clicking on the document Icon. Click the Appointments checkbox on the Audit tab to filter out other audit events.
   
   Tip: KEEP your Appointment Screenshot credentials updated! Make sure no one else is using the credentials and periodically check from time to time that it’s valid within PortPro. Otherwise, no screenshots will be there when you need them.
   
   Empties Available Screenshots - For a record of empty return availability at other locations, you can also obtain screenshots by using your left-hand menu. Click Accounts Receivable → Per Diem Audit to input specific SSLs, size/type, port, and the request time to generate the report
   
   
   
   
   

Need help or guidance?

Reach out to your Customer Success Manager for any help and guidance in adopting these best practices, with additional support from PortPro’s dedicated Appointments Team available as necessary.