If you have been working in transportation for any length of time, you already know that relationships are everything in this industry. While some may see technology and relationship-building as two opposing forces, technology and relationship-building actually can go hand-in-hand. It’s the reason why we’ve designed Trucker Tools’ real-time visibility platform to integrate with the most popular software platforms used by shippers and the most popular ELDs used by carriers. When you can provide your shipper and carrier partners with the information and flexibility they need, it can’t help but strengthen your relationships with both.
Read on to learn more about how Trucker Tools’ load tracking and ELD integrations strengthen relationships with shippers and carriers.
Stay Ahead of Service Delays with Digital Updates Every Five to 15 Minutes
Trucker Tools’ load tracking platform leverages the GPS technology in the driver’s smart phone and Trucker Tools’ free driver app to provide you with real-time location updates every five to 15 minutes. You can view these location updates in your transportation management system because Trucker Tools’ load tracking platform integrates with the most popular TMSs in use today. Most brokers and 3PLs who use our load tracking system achieve higher carrier compliance rates than they do with single function load tracking apps because the Trucker Tools app does more than track broker loads. It also provides drivers with real-time information on weigh scales, the cheapest fuel, rest areas, truck stops, parking and more.
With the real-time updates provided by Trucker Tools’ load tracking, you can stay ahead of service delays and provide a higher level of service to your customers. When you see in your TMS that a load is behind schedule or that a driver is being detained at a pickup location, you can take action immediately to address the delay. If you track loads with check calls, it can take some time before you know that the shipment is delayed, as you must rely on the driver or carrier dispatcher to answer your call in order to find out where the freight is. Using Trucker Tools’ load tracking can reduce or eliminate check calls, which increases operational efficiency.
Automatically Share Load Tracking Data with Shippers via Trucker Tools’ Integration with FourKites, MacroPoint, 10/4 and Project44
Trucker Tools’ load tracking platform also integrates with the software platforms used by many shippers, including FourKites, MacroPoint, 10/4 and Project44. The integration between these shipper software platforms and Trucker Tools’ load tracking allows you to automatically share load tracking data with shippers in real time. Having the ability to share visibility data with your customers in real-time has several benefits. First, it takes your shipper service to a new level. Most shippers greatly appreciate knowing instantly whether or not a shipment is going to arrive on time. Shippers don’t have to wait for your team to call the driver or dispatcher, wait for a call back for a location update and then wait for you to call them to notify them of the delay.
Another benefit of the integration is that is simplifies your internal workflows. If you’re not using a real-time visibility platform that integrates with your shipper’s software, then your team may have to manually enter location updates in a shipper’s web-based portal or use several different apps to satisfy different shippers’ visibility requirements.
“My team has benefited the most from being able to have all of our different customers and their platforms and requirements in one place,” reports Omar Singh, founder and CEO of Surge Transportation which uses Trucker Tools’ load tracking platform. “It’s seamless for us, so that’s helped us continue to provide excellent service to our customers and also essentially is keeping our personnel levels manageable because it’s so efficient to use.”
Give Carriers Another Load Tracking Option with Trucker Tools’ ELD Integrations
Trucker Tools’ real-time visibility platform also integrates with many of the ELDs used by drivers and carriers. Our current ELD integration partners include Azuga Fleet, EROAD, FlexFleet, Gorilla Safety, GPS Insight, GPSTab, ISAAC Instruments, J.J. Keller & Associates, LionEight, M2M In Motion, Omnitracs, Project44, Rand McNally, ThinAir Telematics, Trimble Transportation and TruckX.
Trucker Tools’ ELD integrations give you another option to offer carriers and drivers if they’re unable or unwilling to use the Trucker Tools driver app for load tracking purposes. With an ELD integration, our real-time load tracking platform pulls location data from the driver’s ELD instead of using the trucker’s smart phone and our free driver app. That means that you can view ELD-based load tracking information right in your TMS as you would with a load tracked with the app.
If you don’t see a carrier’s ELD on our ELD integration partner list, don’t worry. Setting up an ELD integration is easy. Simply click on the button titled “Set Up ELD Tracking” within Trucker Tools’ real-time visibility platform to request ELD-based load tracking. Once you do, our ELD integration team will contact the carrier to get their MC number and work with the ELD manufacturer to complete the integration. It typically only takes our support team one to three days to complete an ELD integration if the carrier provides the necessary information.
If you’re interested in raising your profit margins, be sure to read Don’t Leave Money on the Table: How Inefficiency Is Secretly Hurting Your Freight Broker Business. Schedule a free demo of Trucker Tools’ real-time visibility platform, digital freight matching and Book It Now®.
