In an ideal world, carriers, shippers and freight brokers would all
be working well together making sure that all are fairly compensated for
the roles they play in moving freight across the country. Unfortunately
that’s not what happens, and there are a variety of reasons.
FACT: Shippers, Freight Brokers and Carriers are
needed to ship freight from point A to point B. There are many who would
argue that only Shippers and Carriers are needed, however, many others
strongly believe that customers and carriers would not have the
immediate resources nor the manpower to keep things operating
efficiently if not for honest and knowledgeable freight brokers:
- 75% of the loads are moved by brokers.
In either case, it is essential that Carriers and Freight Brokers
have a complete understanding of Trucking Logistics in order to be able
to operate efficiently and ethically. If not, they could be setting
themselves up for either vulnerability, blame, suspicion, deception, or
even failure.
- Below are what we believe are the major causes for either the limited success of Owner Operators or possible failure:
1) A lack of understanding of the Trucking Industry and Logistics (for both Carrier and Broker)
2) Lack of business skills to make educated decisions, thus compromising their ability to maximize profits.
3) Unethical business tactics by either shipper, carrier or broker.
For this article we will be addressing categories 1 and 2. As far as
#3, one reason people operate an unethical business is due to the lack
lack of business understanding, thus resulting in desperation, deceit
and sometimes even fraud, but for now, I will leave that topic for
others to discuss.
Carriers - It is the responsibility of the carriers
to understand the synergy among brokers, shippers, and carriers.
Carriers must understand their own business model as well as industry
logistics itself, not just “avoiding” cheap freight, but understanding
what constitutes a load as being classified as “cheap freight.” They
must understand how to choose a broker who is honest, ethical, and will
work for them. A Brokerage is basically a carriers sales force, by
keeping them loaded vs. having to constantly seek loads on a regular
basis, while they also are providing reliable service for their
customer, the shipper.
Brokers - A good Broker does their homework and are
professionals asking carriers what they need. They understand their
lanes, their equipment, and become partners with them towards the same
goal which is moving freight and focusing on a successful business
relationship. Brokers need to focus on carrier shipper relationships and
fine tune their industry knowledge and skills, negotiating fair deals
for all involved in the transactions. Brokers and agents do not “take
money away from carriers.” They provide a service for their shipping
customers and the carriers involved in the logistics of the transaction.
Shippers – Lets face it, shippers are in business to
make money and their goal is to move freight at the lowest possible
price. It’s not their job to make sure the carrier is making a profit,
that’s the carriers responsibility. It’s also
not their
responsibility to make sure that the broker is treating the carrier
fairly, that’s the broker and carriers job. Another thing to keep in
mind is that the role of a good
Freight Broker is NOT to find the shipper the
cheapest
possible carrier to move their freight but rather to establish a
relationship with a reliable carrier and to get the shippers to pay what
the haul is actually worth.
- With all this being said, what are the Solutions to:
1) Increasing Owner Operator profits and Success
2) Ensuring Freight Brokers and Agents maintain successful and profitable Customer Relationships for all those involved.
Going back to the early part of this article, stating the major
causes for either limited success for Owner Operators or worse than
that, failure, we confirm that the following 2 reasons are most
responsible for this outcome.
1) A lack of understanding of the Trucking Industry and Logistics
2) The need for additional business skills, creating the
ability to make better and more informed decisions, thus maximizing
profits.
In order for Owner Operators to successfully run their business they
must understand their business and the Logistics of the trucking
industry. Many professional drivers seem to “blame” another segment of
the industry for their inability to be successful. Too many believe that
just having “years of experience” within trucking, will be sufficient
when making the leap as a highly profitable Business Owner. For some it
is enough, and they do well. For others it is not. And even for those
who are already highly successful, additional education has been able to
take them to the next level.
After researching and then speaking extensively with
Jeff Roach of Brooke Transportation Training, we believe their Program is among the most complete, informative, and of the Highest Quality of Training available.
Eighty Percent of their Schools’ students are Carriers and Owner Operators. Mr.
Roaches’ passion for the trucking industry, includes his positive
vision to see the success of others, evident in his statements to us:
“I have been fortunate to meet drivers who attend my
career school for freight brokers and agents. …I can honestly say the
driver does all the work and gets the least amount of respect. I want
every small carrier out there considering this business to know the
truth.” Jeff Roach- Brooke Transportation Training
“My students are not anti broker – they are anti crooked people.”
A quote Mr Roach lives by from Zig Zigler:
“You can have everything in life you want, if you will just help enough other people get what they want.”
For those of who would like to ensure your success and maximize
profitability as an Owner Operator by extending your knowledge and
abilities, we highly recommend
Brooke Transportation Training.
Course Benefits for all segments of the Transportation Industry
- Heighten your knowledge and thus your success as an owner operator
by understanding in detail all aspects the Transportation Industry; Even
if you are already successful, it will take you to the next level.
- Choosing the right Freight Broker
- Know what loads to accept and those to turn down.
- Learn how to add a Freight brokerage to your trucking company
- Become a Freight Broker or Freight Agent
- Freight Brokers and Agent who would like to have an expanded
understanding of the Freight Brokering industry and ultimately increase
sales.
Partial List of Student Benefits
- Choosing an ethical and legitimate broker
- Becoming an ethical and legitimate broker
- Becoming the kind of Carrier or Broker who is sought after
- Understanding the trucking industry logistics in DETAIL:
rating, dispatch, claims management, billing, AP, AR, Collections,Sales, Marketing, Legal, Staffing, MAP 21,
- Trends effecting the industry- where it is today and where it’s going?
Understanding current origin and destination rates
Become educated about the market including the cargo, demand and availability
Thank you,
Ask the trucker.com for including m
e in this insightful article.
Moving forward,
Jeff Roach 214-206-1169
www.transportationtraining.comtransportationtraining.com
BLOOMINGTON,
IN -- While business conditions in Canada are shaky, the situation in
the U.S. for the trucking industry is the best so far this year,
according to the freight transportation forecasting firm 