When moving your freight, just keep it simple
For shippers, navigating today’s trucking market has never been more challenging. Demand for goods is soaring. Truck capacity is ultra-tight and will continue that way due to an acute shortage of commercial truck drivers. Spot-market rates have spiked, and are now being followed by double-digit increases in contract rates. In addition, properly vetting the available carriers--a process known as on-boarding--can be complex and time-consuming.
When building a freight strategy, put information technology first
It has long been said that the information about a shipment is just as important as the shipment itself. Technology plays a central role in everything. From planning the load, to booking the driver and truck, to monitoring the shipment’s status all the way to the end customer, to spotting and correcting unexpected problems (known in the trade as exceptions), and to tracing the source of persistent service issues, it is impossible to succeed in the 21st century freight business without robust information technology tools.
Boom or bust: why dynamic RFPs are better for shippers and carriers
As the last year has shown, the time gap between cycles of boom and bust in the freight market has narrowed. This reality has led shippers to find new strategies to stay current with market conditions to more effectively buy transportation services at the best possible rates. During 2020 and 2021, shippers had to pivot from traditional request for proposal (RFP) processes. Many have found success with a dynamic RFP that enables them to work more closely with a limited number of preferred carriers to obtain lower rates on a consistent basis.