A freight broker company has many purposes and fills many roles. Additionally, each purpose provides some kind of benefit. Whether it’s saving money, providing much-needed expertise, or increasing capacity. Shippers should always get some benefit out of the freight broker they partnered with. A freight brokerage has 3 purposes, deliver freight, improve supply chain operations, and provide options to their partnered shippers.
A freight brokerage is an entity that brings together a shipper and a qualified carrier. Freight brokerage companies typically have partnered with thousands, or tens of thousands, of carriers. When a shipper comes to them with freight that needs to be moved they can look through their system to find the best match.
Brokers provide value by saving shippers time and money while providing excellent service. The shipper could forgo the broker and just call around trucking companies themselves but there are some major downsides of that. First, is the time investment that goes into making all these calls and negotiating on price. Second, they have no way of knowing how good the carrier is. There are nearly a million trucking companies operating in the U.S. finding the best one for you can be a bit of a challenge. Third, without proper technology and expertise, the best option is not going to be found.
It is because of these pains that freight broker companies are able to operate and have a purpose. As mentioned before, there are 3 main purposes that broker companies have.
Delivering freight is pretty much the main thing that a freight brokerage HAS to do. Without this purpose, they would really just be consultants. However, a freight brokerage needs to do more than make sure a load gets picked up and delivered. They need to make sure the quality exceeds expectations, costs stay low, and that the whole process makes shipping simple for the shipping company.
The second purpose of a freight broker company is to improve the supply chain and shipping operations for the shipper company. Just them taking over the shipping should provide some level of improvements, but most companies can go above and beyond. After some time, the broker should be able to find areas of improvement and suggest ways that the shipping could be done better.
The third, and final, purpose is to provide options. Shipping never goes 100% according to plan which is why options are so important. These options are offered through having a large and trusted carrier base, having processes set up to allow for flexibility, and expertise in shipping.
This is important for the carrier because it allows them to really make sure that they are getting the best available option. Additionally, it lets them know that the broker is reliable and can provide a great service with little to no notice.
At Becker Logistics, we fulfill these purposes each and every day. It is our goal to make shipping simple for all of our partners. We aim to bring our expertise to our customers so that they get the best shipping possible. If you would like to see if Becker Logistics is the freight broker company for you reach out here. Additionally, you can request a quote and get started today.
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