Before we go into our discussion on freight brokers in the digital age I want to touch on our LTL services. I am a LTL freight broker that utilizes logistics planning services to help shippers move their commodity by providing reasonable and reliable carriers. Our network of LTL carriers will allow you to streamline your southeastern LTL loads. Please leave a comment or email me at ray.mcdonald@insurelogistic.com for more info. With that out of the way let’s get into the good stuff!
My aim is to provide logistics managers, warehouse managers, shipping and receiving leads or any logistics professional responsible for the shipments of commodity some insight on how your freight broker should utilizing the digital age!
Without further due here are my top 3 services your freight broker should be implementing in the Digital Age!
Number 3: Your Freight Broker should provide multiple avenues of communications.
- During crunch time sometimes you many not have time to discuss details of your loads over the phone. From a time perspective it maybe more efficient to send load details in the email.
- In this day and age it seems like the preferred method to communicate is via text. If you have to contact your freight broker, communication via text message allows you to relay the information quickly.
- While securing information about load details there will be time getting on the phone will be necessary. Here are some additional avenues of communications your broker should provide. Text messages, Instant Messengers, emails, phones, fax, telegraph. (kidding)
Number 2: Your Freight Broker should be implementing digital contracts that can be signed electronically.
- Sending pages and pages of contract information via fax machine can be a nuisance. We don’t have time to sit and wait for a fax machine only to see that some texts are blurry or the dreadful offline messages we seem to always get when faxing.
- Creating digital contracts streamlines the process of connecting loads to carriers because you do not have to wait on the paper work. Links of the digital contracts will be in your email at the click of a button.
- Digital contracts gives you the ability to review the contracts on multiple options such as tablet, cell phone and computers
Number 1: Your Freight Broker should have access to cloud based software that streamline operations for shippers.
- Your broker should have access to cloud based software that pulls in real time Intel on rates, rate history for going lanes, available trucks, and the MPG for a specific region and or trucks.
- Having a transportation management software streamlines the process of retrieving requested carriers and customers, equipment inventory, rates quotes, documents and a slew of other important material used to arrange the transportation of goods.
- If your broker is shuffling through pages and pages of documents as you are talking to him this is a sure sign they’re behind in time.
Luckily at Insure Logistics we offer the above services and more! Our goal is to focus more on getting the loads secured and efficiently arrange the transportation of the commodity. Please leave a comment or email me at ray.mcdonald@insurelogistic.com if you have any questions.
