By 
Over the past 10 years, trucking company owner operators have found themselves in a technological leapfrog as we all try to learn, understand, and in most cases install ELD technology on our trucks. Technology has slowed our delivery time with mandated ELD and HOS hours of service to the point that it is affecting the bottom line of every small trucking company and freight brokerage in America.
These reasons are the final decision for most of us this year to force us to start focusing on higher paying, less dead lanes. National average diesel fuel prices continue to rise and trucking business owners are faced with strategic planning. Another big blow to small trucking business owners in America today is the shortage of drivers. It’s getting harder and harder to find drivers who just won’t give up or damage their equipment too much. For these significant issues we are facing today, we must be prepared to find alternative measures to place in our business structure to ensure more consistent freight and gain greater exposure to more shippers. This is the job of a true freight broker managing shipping routes. load for your transport company. Today it is imperative that we learn how important a true freight broker is for small trucking business owners to build relationships.
Over the past decade, trucking companies have been faced with many new freight forwarders who don’t keep their promises, typically coming out with a one-load fast freight for a dollar. The influx of freight forwarders has literally sent a trickle effect to the point that shippers and shippers are having a hard time with freight rates due to inconsistency floating around in logistics caused by unprofessional freight forwarders since late from 2008 to now.
For these reasons, carriers today find themselves grappling with issues of trust and general business ethics that freight forwarders have represented. These kinds of assumptions are valid because all of us who own trucks have dealt with dubious freight forwarders. In today’s world of logistics, trucking company owners can still find many excellent professional logistics service providers who are trained and capable of building freight routes.
Overcoming the stigma and trying to understand how the relationship between freight brokers and carriers will never go away, it’s time more owner-operators are open to the idea of truly working with a logistics broker who can understand their trucking company and help to develop freight routes. on behalf of the benefit of his trucking company.
Trucking business owners should realize that the national average for truckloads in the United States today is 70%. This means that you can’t get a lot of freight by going directly to the sender. US shippers are today connecting to EDI systems (electronic distribution interchange technology that allows shippers to connect their supply demands to an online network of logistics options within one host system). Within logistics, we geeks call this fun and exciting, as it allows us to better manage freight routes and see the future forecast within route prices.
Smaller asset companies have a hard time connecting to better loads or recreating lanes they previously lost and keeping trucks on the road with fewer dead miles and higher rates. A true freight brokerage company will help you overcome these hurdles and represent you in more solutions through technology that provides real freight charges that pay.
The main logistics qualities to look for when working with 3pl companies and freight forwarders are:
A true freight broker must provide your company with these services:
• A true freight broker will have an established logistics niche within certain industries. He or she will have the ability to manage your freight needs and be able to forecast with new direct freight loads allowing your team to gain consistency.
• A True Freight Broker Agent will have your trucks within certain geographic areas allowing you to maximize the type of drivers and equipment you have within key markets.
• A True Freight Broker will build your freight lanes in solid consistency with freight connecting you directly to the freight source moving out of your location and back to the freight terminal locations.
• A True Freight Broker is perfect when dispatching your trucks and handling your verification calls for timely delivery. They ensure that the driver has all the necessary information and is available for assistance with the pickup and delivery of assigned cargo.
• A True Freight Broker will assist you with your IFTA and compliance reporting by providing detailed reports on your freight loads for your convenience.
• A True Freight Broker keeps you up to date with safety and maintenance compliance information and any new mandates or laws affecting your trucking company. It is your job to ensure that you are always informed and prepared for compliance with state regulations.
• A True Freight Broker keeps their drivers satisfied with GPS and TMS services with excellent communication skills to assist the driver with freight issues or compliance issues with freight movement.
• A true Freight Broker Agent is a person who does not work alone and has a strong team that supports him to move his transport company forward.
There are many other attributes that alone better describe what I believe a true freight forwarder is and working with one can help any trucking company gain a better solid foundation for the growth and stability of their truck loads. Freight brokers should always keep the carrier first by building more lanes that provide consistent loading and should always represent their business to more shippers with loading options. If both parties work together, these lanes can be created quickly and both benefit from the volume consistency. I personally believe that a small trucking company can become more profitable faster if you work closely with your freight forwarder.
Working with a freight forwarder can be rewarding if both parties focus on the same industry. For this reason, trucking business owners want to choose freight forwarders that focus on the right industry that suits their equipment. Trailers determine the load you haul so trucking company owners do not want to reinvest in new trailers, for this reason it is better to build with what you have and grow within the niche with the right freight broker you are currently working with. in this niche for freight transport services. The old saying of doing a thing well and doing it to the best of your ability is true in this situation. Provide consistency in your trucking company with the same equipment. This allows the freight broker to go further in creating better options for the carrier on behalf of the carrier, and the services the broker can offer the carrier can lead to better results for both teams.
I think in today’s logistics industry, it’s a very smart idea for trucking companies to join forces with other like-minded trucking companies and build volume within the same team. Volume is what gets the attention of the big shippers and lands in good solid pay lanes. This is very difficult to do if the smaller trucking companies are not networking within their freight corridor to partner on good loads.
Some other qualities that a new trucking company might want to compare when working with a freight broker is to find out exact information on how the freight broker will pay you for full truck loads that you deliver for them. Every major freight brokerage will offer payment options with no additional fees. Getting paid on time shouldn’t cost you more money to get paid for your freight delivery services.