When to move trucking assets: blue versus red Lane Scores
What goes into moving trucking assets? That’s a loaded question for shippers, freight brokers, carriers and 3PLs. Capacity, rates, demand, Mother Nature, politics, compliance regulations, fuel costs, accessorials, peak season flurries of activities, and countless other factors affect market conditions. As reported by Transport Topics, “the latest government reports show an economy continuing to struggle […]
Using Critical Freight Events Data
FreightWaves SONAR offers a Critical Events Center that provides key information before, during and after a critical event. For example, in the last 10 days it proved invaluable to many as Hurricane Laura approached the Gulf Coast, devastated parts of Louisiana and Texas and then left destruction as it moved inland and became a tropical […]
ITG– A major non-asset based freight broker, chooses FreightWaves SONAR to stay relevant and offer market-indicative rates
View the Full Case Study ITG, an established non-asset freight broker with a strong focus in the full container drayage market, has reaped significant rewards using FreightWaves SONAR’s data and insights. Prior to implementing use of SONAR, ITG had worked primarily with freight forwarders and applied limited data. However, the biggest allure for ITG in […]
Effective freight brokering: how 3PLS, brokers, and forwarders use applied freight data to save
A successful freight brokering business relies on access to the most relevant data and identifying the most lucrative shipping mode, loads, and movements. According to a past FreightWaves article, “Over the past few years, large digital freight brokerages (DFBs) backed by venture capital have emerged in the global transportation and logistics industry. Although in North […]
Content marketing strategies for freight brokers and carriers
Generating inbound leads and filling the sales funnel is the most important strategy for all companies to drive predictable revenue year after year. Content marketing is central to this strategy. Creating content marketing strategies that drive sales is difficult for most companies. One issue is the time and resources it takes to develop content. Another […]
SONAR Indices & Insights: Understand freight demand in major trade lanes with the Freightos Baltic Daily Index (FBXD)
The SONAR team has another “SONAR Indices & Insights.” Each week, you’ll learn about another index found within SONAR, the freight forecasting platform from FreightWaves. This week we’ll focus on the Freightos Baltic Daily Index (FBXD) and how it allows SONAR subscribers to understand freight demand in major trade lanes. What is the Freightos Baltic […]
Kingsgate Logistics Uses FreightWaves SONAR to Automate Workflows, Improve Service Levels, & Grow Business
View the Full Case Study Kingsgate Logistics is a non-asset based, third-party logistics provider (3PL) that offers a full scope of logistics services facilitated by leading-edge technology and provides truckload, less-than-truckload (LTL), expedited, intermodal and international shipping. Ohio-based Kingsgate Logistics’ formula to be a successful 3PL is “one part near-term and two parts long-term.” The […]
Shipping mode and data: How to use data to determine the best mode for your freight move
Shipping mode and freight optimization remain a sought-after powerhouse of all modern supply chains. Optimization and its correlating digital transformation propagate double-digit opportunities for ROI growth. But it remains elusive and out of reach for companies that lack comprehensive and granular data. For example, according to Supply Chain 24/7, “simply put, mode optimization means putting […]
Improving freight shipments: How a Lane Score benefits shippers, carriers, brokers and 3PLs
An innovative way to deploy the value-intense insights of FreightWaves SONAR’s Lane Signal to understand freight shipments is the Headhaul Lane Score. Unlike SONAR’s Lane Signal, which provides origin and destination data, Lane Score uses that information to create an instant view score that can help front-line staff and managers make urgent decisions and strategic […]
When to choose intermodal to move freight
While freight mode optimization remains a top priority for companies, there’s an option that’s often overlooked – cross-carrier or intermodal shipping. This mode is often used interchangeably with multimodal, but it’s entirely different. As explained by TradeLens, this cross-carrier form of “transportation is defined as freight movement via more than one mode of transportation. Goods […]
Carrier sales: 5 tips for negotiating with carriers
Have you ever received a counter-offer from a carrier in the process of carrier sales negotiations that made you drop your cup of coffee? Or have you ever lowballed an opening offer and heard only the dial tone as the answer? Negotiating is an integral part of all of our lives. We are all constantly […]
Freight Optimization: Choosing mode is more than a rate…it’s about performance
The ability to unlock freight optimization and gain meaningful insights to monitor, measure and improve supply chain management is more critical than ever. And according to a recent survey of logistics professionals, reported by Supply Chain 24/7, “A combined 61% of research participants indicated that improving forecast accuracy is either ‘important’ or ‘extremely important’ for […]
SONAR Indices & Insights: What is the Truckstop.com Volume Index & the Rates Per Mile?
The SONAR team is ready with another “SONAR Indices & Insights.” Each week, you’ll learn about another index found within SONAR, the freight forecasting platform from FreightWaves. This week we’ll focus on the “Truckstop.com Volume” index and take a look at the Trucktop.com Rates Per Mile. In the above image, you’ll see dry van spot […]
Freight mode optimization: why freight forecasting aids in optimizing mode choice
Freight forecasting allows shippers, brokers, 3PLs, and carriers to manage workflows better and reduce total landed costs. However, many freight management parties continue to rely on an antiquated set of rules to make freight mode and routing choices. As further explained by Supply Chain 24/7, “Do you have a policy in place where all shipments […]
Freight Sales: Five methods for freight brokers to prospect
Prospecting and full sales funnels are the lifeblood of all businesses. Freight brokerages are certainly no exception to this law of business in their freight sales approach. Prospecting is one of the key attributes of the best freight brokers for good reason. Having a full sales funnel is one of the keys to control your […]
Mini freight bids: what are the opportunities and challenges of a mini-bid to know
As market volatility continues, both shippers and carriers face massive uncertainty regarding capacity, spot rates and freight guarantees. As reported by Bob Jarvis of Logistics Viewpoints, “The biggest constant in transportation today is change. It is forcing companies to rethink how they plan, optimize, execute and collaborate with trading partners. The effort to move closer […]
SONAR Indices & Insights: What is Tender Market Share?
It’s another week and the SONAR team is ready with another “SONAR Indices & Insights.” Each week, you’ll learn about another index found within SONAR, the freight forecasting platform from FreightWaves. This week we’ll focus on the “Tender Market Share” index. In the image above of the Outbound Tender Market Share (OTMS), it shows that […]
When do shippers move to spot freight rates & how that mirrors a mini-bid strategy
Recall that all freight is bought and paid for on the spot market. And in that respect, all freight, including freight under a long-term, annual contract, takes this into account. Spot freight rates are those assigned to shipments with a high-priority delivery need. But still, errors in planning may lead to unnecessary spending. Failure to […]
Freight Broker Business: 5 Tips for Improving Your Brokerage P&L Sheet
Operating a freight broker business in a competitive industry takes grit, perseverance and love of the grind to keep the lights on and the phones ringing. It also takes quite a bit of strategy to manage and grow the profit and loss sheet (P&L). It’s not all about growth at any cost for most in […]
How contract freight and spot freight analysis guides mini-bids
Spot freight rates are higher. Contract freight rates are lower. Contracted capacity is severely limited. Contracted capacity in each lane is the most competitive it’s ever been. Contracted capacity and tender rejections are at record highs. Spot rates are still climbing. Now, contract rates are climbing in tandem. And the election is putting more pressure […]
