Beyond Financing: How Freight Factors Retain Customers with a Free TMS
Sharks are circling a trucking industry oversaturated with capacity. At the end of September, FMCSA records show 92,000 (36%) more authorized trucking firms than in February 2020.
Small fleets are taking on water from low rates and rising costs. Ninety-five percent of trucking firms have ten or fewer trucks. Many rely on transportation factoring services for a lifeline during difficult times. Yet, to stand out in this ultra-competitive $90 billion market, freight factors must offer more than invoice purchasing.
Successful companies grow and retain customers by providing value-added services and technology. This article explores a unique opportunity for freight factors to help customers reduce costs, increase revenue, and accelerate cash flow with a free, best-in-class transportation management system (TMS).
A Comprehensive Technology Solution
The Load Connex TMS platform is available for factors using the Load Connex fuel program for carriers.
Load Connex does not charge fees for using the TMS platform or participating in the fuel rebate program. Instead, it keeps a small commission per gallon on carriers’ fuel purchases, covering the costs and creating a win-win scenario for all parties.
Freight factors can keep a configurable amount of fuel rebates to generate additional revenue. Meanwhile, customers of factors can access instant discounts typically reserved for large fleets.
Key Technological Advantages
Factors can present the white-label Load Connex TMS to customers as a proprietary solution. At the same time, fleet customers can integrate the platform into their operations and customize it with their branding.
When carriers use the TMS, factoring companies gain more visibility into their operations to validate and secure financial transactions. The platform integrates with carrier ELDs using real-time, secure APIs. Carriers share their API key (an alpha-numeric code) to get the data flowing with Load Connex.
By gaining visibility of customers’ equipment, factors can eliminate funding risks for fuel advances and invoices by proactively tracking and validating movements from pickup to delivery. As importantly, carriers gain a powerful solution for managing their entire order-to-cash lifecycle on loads.
The platform’s advanced, easy-to-use features streamline back-office functions with:
- Fuel card controls: Fleets can set gallon and dollar limits, generate virtual cards, and use fuel price mapping in the TMS to plan cost-saving purchases along their routes. Real-time transaction notifications and fraud prevention mechanisms help carriers reduce fuel costs and improve financial controls.
- Dispatch and Tracking: The Load Connex TMS shows real-time vehicle locations, delivery statuses, and predictive ETAs. Fleets can receive text alerts for detention events and when delivery times are at risk. They gain operational visibility to make proactive decisions that save time, reduce expenses, and boost customer service. An optional Load Connex mobile application for drivers allows carriers to track vehicles with or without electronic logging devices.
- Document Management: Load Connex digitizes proof-of-delivery and other processes. Drivers can upload document images instantly via smartphone. The system creates a secure, centralized repository of photos and provides automatic notifications to accelerate invoicing.
This approach transforms a time-consuming, error-prone process into a streamlined, efficient workflow, allowing drivers and back-office staff to focus on core business activities.
- Accounting Integration: The TMS seamlessly integrates with QuickBooks, automatically transferring data and reducing manual entry. Carriers gain access to sophisticated financial analytics typically unavailable to small trucking businesses.
- Fraud Prevention: The platform ensures load legitimacy through real-time load tracking, ELD integrations, and comprehensive load data collection. TMS will incorporate AI-powered document analysis in the future versions, which will flag suspicious loads submitted for funding. This system will alert the factor if the submitting carrier did not actually haul the load, providing an additional layer of fraud prevention and protection.
Future-Focused Innovation
Load Connex continues to expand its offerings for freight factors and their customers with upcoming features like tire and parts discounts, road service support, parking assistance, and load matching. This commitment to continuous improvement positions the platform at the cutting edge of transportation technology, ensuring that carriers always have access to the most advanced tools available.
Load Connex is helping freight factors stand out, helping them grow and retain more customers in an industry defined by thin margins and complexity. The TMS platform helps small trucking fleets compete with larger firms by digitizing their operations and keeping them at the forefront of technology innovation.
Freight factors that invest in their carriers' success with technology support transform their relationship from a transactional one into a strategic partnership. For small fleets, having technology partnerships with factors that use Load Connex adds value that keeps them returning.
Ready to Transform Your Freight Factoring?
Discover how Load Connex can add value to your business, whether you're a factoring company looking to provide cutting-edge technology or a motor carrier seeking to level up with digital advancements.
Contact us today to explore our technology suite and schedule a personalized demo. Your competitive edge is just a call or click away.
Read next
View all articles
The Tech Shield: How to Protect Factoring from Modern Freight Fraud
Fueling Success: How the Load Connex API Turbocharges Your Factoring Platform
