The successful freight broker’s guide to load tracking

It’s suggested that 87% of Shippers want to work with freight partners who provide freight visibility. Makes sense, right? I mean successful freight transactions don’t appear in a vacuum (not even when you’re brokering vacuums).

Here’s how to power up your load tracking game:

Five reasons Load Tracking is a game changer

1. Automated check calls. Save up to 20 minutes per load by not picking up the phone and distracting your drivers to find out where they are.
2. Quick mobile document sharing. Your carrier just snaps a picture of the BOL (or other requested docs) and sends with a single click. You get paid. Your carriers get paid. It’s a win-win.
3. It’s free for carriers. Once drivers download the Load Tracking app, accepting a load tracking request is as simple as clicking the SMS link.
4. Protect your carriers in the event of a detention. Carriers needlessly held over? Prevent costly fines for your partners by providing proof of location. Automatic geofencing locates trucks to within a 2-mile radius.
5. Better partnerships. When you show you’re protecting the best interests of your freight partners, you get the deals that make you more money.

So how can you make the most of load tracking to get the best rates on your loads?

Best practice tips for Load Tracking success

• Make use of the Notes section. The Notes section can be used to relay any important information to the driver. It’s a free text box, so click in the box and type your message.
• Use full physical street addresses. To ensure the automated arrival and departure calls are completed, enter in the full physical street address for both in the Origin section, as well as local pickup date and time.
• Change tracking times manually. Note that by default, tracking will start 6 hours prior to scheduled pickup time. This can be adjusted based on your needs.
• Set your geofence radius. What is geofencing? Using the location of the phone, geofencing triggers a ping to let you know your truck’s either leaving or arriving at the destination.
• Request required docs. The driver will be notified that a document is required for an event. You have the option to require documents for a given check call, and indicate which document is required. If you have any documents you want to send to the driver, such as a BOL or rate con, you can do so by clicking the blue Add File button at the bottom in the Uploaded Files section.
• Need to make edits? After submitting your request, if you need to make any edits to this track request or send additional docs at a later time, you will have the option to edit on the Track Details section.

To recap: Load Tracking is convenient, protects your drivers, and ensures your shippers know exactly where those loads are. You offer the heightened transparent experience and you get the deals. And when it comes to brokering, doesn’t every deal count?