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Category : Freight Broker Agent

Why Joining a Company With an Internal Brokerage Could Cost You Your Business

In the right circumstances, becoming a freight agent can be a fantastic career choice, filled with opportunities to focus on bringing in first-time clients, building relationships, and exceeding the expectations of shippers and carriers. The freedom, pay, and level of control can be enticing. However, in the wrong situation, joining a freight brokerage can be a debilitating decision.

One of the riskiest moves for a freight agent is stepping into an organization that runs its own internal brokerage. As an agent, you shouldn’t have to compete within your company to keep the business you’ve already secured.

The professional relationships you’ve developed are a huge part of your success — both now and for many years to come. You may lose some of those relationships through natural attrition, but that healthy fear of competition should stem from external agents, not from people within your company. Freight agents who are forced to compete with an internal brokerage spend too much time looking over their shoulders.

Burning Out From Unnecessary Competition

The constant struggle to drum up new business is as American as apple pie, but it’s not always necessary. While a certain level of competition is good for keeping you sharp, undue competition — the type that’s common with internal brokerages — burns salespeople out far too quickly.

Within a brokerage, each independent freight agent should be able to plan his or her business development strategy based on the tools at hand, without fear of being blindsided by salespeople who supposedly are on their own team. Natural growth unfolds as a result of healthy competition — not because of stressful, excessive pressure from an internal brokerage.

At Freight Tec, we sign a non-compete, non-disclosure agreement every time we partner with a freight agent. Read over the document here.

Lack of Freedom and Support

Many experienced freight agents are recognizing there’s a balance between too little freedom and too little support. The sweet spot is where independent freight agents thrive.

With a company like Freight Tec,  these talented independent agents have the autonomy to use their time-tested processes to close deals, enjoy the fair gross profit commission split they deserve, and have the back-office support that’s so difficult to obtain outside an established company. Benefits such as paid-for technology platforms and exhaustive back-office administrative help are game-changers for many agents.

Leave Internal Brokerages Behind

The presence of internal brokerages is a thorn in the side of many excellent freight agents. If you’re interested in leaving internal brokerages behind, explore the benefits of becoming an independent  freight agent by emailing your questions to info@freight-tec.com. Or, learn more about the perks of the independent freight agent lifestyle in our infographic.

20 Apr 2018 Continue Reading

3 Surprising Ways to Improve Your Bottom Line As a Freight Agent

For freight agents, there is strong, vast potential to grow a client base and make a lot of money. Of course, like in any industry, there are challenges that must be overcome.

Many of today’s freight brokers and agents feel pressured to stay up to date with the latest software — the type of industry-specific platforms that quickly are becoming “table stakes.” They also struggle to keep up with the escalating number of back-office administrative tasks necessary to run a successful freight business. What’s more, freight agents feel the burden of ages-old issues such as exorbitant overhead expenses.

Luckily, there are ways to improve your bottom line as a freight agent, including:

28 Mar 2018 Continue Reading

The Pros and Cons of Starting a Freight Brokerage Company

Before entering any industry, gathering as much information as possible is vital. Of course, fact-finding alone isn’t enough. In a highly competitive industry such as freight transportation, stacking up the potential benefits against the likely drawbacks is a key way to determine whether the rewards are worth the risk.

When it comes to opening up a freight brokerage, there are some really powerful pros and cons to consider.

19 Feb 2018 Continue Reading

Does Your Freight Brokerage Do These Three Things?

 

Whether you work for a freight brokerage or operate your own, it’s important to now and again take stock of what’s working and what’s not. There are some key questions to ask yourself about the industry and your brokerage.

Most of these questions are about common freight broker frustrations such as tedious, tiresome administrative tasks that take time away from actual sales activities. For brokerage owners, it’s important to think about the status of ongoing operating costs and risks. For agents, it’s worth asking, “Am I being supported by my company? Am I being enabled to thrive?”

If you’re being honest about your future in the shipping industry, think about whether your freight brokerage does these three things:

13 Feb 2018 Continue Reading

How to Expand Your Customer Relationships as a Freight Agent

For a freight agent, having loyal, high-volume shipping customers is a must. But securing MANY of these reliable customers really is a key indicator of long-term success and low stress.

A lot of agents are good at maintaining strong relationships with existing customers, but how about finding new ones? With the combination of diligence, talent, and skill, you can forge new bonds on a regular basis. Here are several tips for how to expand your customer relationships as a freight agent:

9 Jan 2018 Continue Reading

3 Benefits of Working with a Freight Broker That Offers Cutting-Edge Technology

When choosing a freight broker to work with, access to technology might not be the first factor that comes to mind. Your questions likely center on issues such as credit, industry compliance, insurance, reputation, and communication skills.

Here’s the irony: Each of these issues for freight brokers can be better managed and made easier through technology. When used intelligently, cutting-edge freight broker technology frees up agents to do their work with more efficiency and passion than ever before.

11 Dec 2017 Continue Reading

How to Find a Brokerage that Will Help Serve the Needs of Your Clients

In a highly competitive industry such as freight, independent freight agents are always looking for an edge. In particular, they want to find a brokerage that can help them serve the needs of their clients, or shippers.

There aren’t any magic pills that solve the challenges that agents face, but there certainly are small but powerful tools and support that can make a big difference.

7 Dec 2017 Continue Reading

3 Common Mistakes Made By Freight Broker Agents

For freight broker agents, attention to detail is one of the easiest, most impactful actions to take — especially attention to proactive efforts. Conversely, there are many problems that agents should actively avoid.

Striving to avoid industry-specific pitfalls is one of the best learning experiences associated with the world of freight. Here are three common mistakes made by freight broker agents:

9 Aug 2017 Continue Reading

How Freight Brokers Can Best Build Meaningful Client Relationships

Even with emerging software, technologies and digital marketing tools taking their industry by storm, top freight brokers are only as successful as the client relationships they can build and maintain.

The freight industry, like so many other industries, revolves around loyalty, trust, reputation and standing out. Developing strong bonds with carries and shippers is vital.

28 Jul 2017 Continue Reading