In Trucker Tools’ new blog series “Level Up Your Trucking Business,” you’ll receive insights on how you can use the Trucker Tools app and free carrier platform to reduce your expenses, maximize your revenue and position yourself for future growth. In this first blog in the series, you’ll learn about the expenses associated with load boards, with are probably greater than you think. You’ll discover how digital freight matching works and why it delivers better results than load boards. If you’re looking for ways to reduce your expenses, increase your profits and grow your business, read on.
The Latest on Load Boards: Higher Fees, Same
Value
Several of the biggest load boards recently have increased their monthly fees without increasing their value or service offerings. If you’re an owner operator or small trucking company, any time that your monthly expenses increase is a reason for concern. Every expense impacts your profit margins. This is especially true when you’re not receiving more goods or services in return for an increase in monthly expenses. Of course, load boards cost you more than the monthly fee you pay to access the information on the load boards. Some load boards charge fees on each transaction you complete through the load board, which is another expense for you.
The Hidden Cost of Load Boards
What might be the biggest cost of load boards, however, is the time lost when you use load boards. Unlike many apps and other technologies we use today, load boards aren’t real-time. This is a big problem for you because it means you may be looking at loads that have already been taken by another trucker or carrier. Have you ever seen a load on a load board, sent the broker a message or called the broker, and found out that the load isn’t available? If you’ve used load boards, you probably have had that experience. The time you lose chasing down old or phantom loads is lost revenue. You can’t get that time back and your productivity has taken a hit.
Find Loads Quickly with Trucker Tools
Instead of absorbing the rising costs of load board subscriptions, consider using the Trucker Tools driver app if you’re a driver or our free carrier platform if you’re a trucking company. With both the driver app and carrier platform, you can search for broker and 3PL loads in seconds and in real-time. Unlike load boards, the loads you see in Trucker Tools’ driver app and carrier platform are pulled directly from the software platforms used by brokers and 3PLs in real-time. If a load is booked with another driver or carrier, it’s instantly and automatically pulled from the Trucker Tools driver app and carrier platform and is no longer viewable. With Trucker Tools, you’re never wasting time looking at loads that have already been taken by another trucking company or driver.
When you search for loads with the Trucker Tools driver app or our free software platform for trucking companies, you can search by broker name, type of freight, lane(s) and date. It’s easy to find exactly what you’re looking for quickly. You don’t have to call the broker or 3PL to confirm the information that you see becauseit’s pulled directly from the broker/3PL’s transportation management system.
Unlike load boards, accessing loads through the Trucker Tools driver app and our carrier platform is free. You don’t have to pay monthly fees or transaction fees to view loads or to book loads with Trucker Tools. Note: you do need to have an established relationship with a broker or 3PL to view their loads.
For more tips on reducing your costs, read Carriers: The Importance of Understanding Your Monthly Operating Costs.
To download the Trucker Tools driver app, visit https://www.truckertools.com/carriers/.
