Using Technology To Make Your Trucking Business More Profitable
In years past, the independent trucker had to work hard to find loads going places and hope they could make them connect to save fuel and make better money. With the new technology that exists in today's world, the modern truck driver can leverage the web to make life easier and streamline their business.
Independent Drivers and Loads
Most truck drivers that are genuinely independent use a freight broker to find loads around the country. A good broker can find work for you and keep you heading the direction you want to go. If you are headed home, they will try and work loads into your schedule to keep your going that direction without having to deadhead (run without a load) and burn fuel for no profit. Working with a single broker used to be common, but today it can hold you back and leave you sitting around waiting for work.
Load Board Services
Like everything, there is an app for that. There are load board services that are now available online through apps that allow you to find more loads and not sit around waiting for work. The digital load board apps will enable you to search for work on your phone, tablet, or laptop, finding a job from where you currently are to somewhere you want to be, like closer to home. Using these services allows you to work with multiple brokers and find loads quickly, reducing the time your truck is sitting. You can search for jobs by location, load price, and pickup times to find the right load for you.
Additional Benefits
Many of the load board apps offer additional services for professional drivers as well. Things like fuel prices, truck stop locations, weight scale locations, truck wash locations, navigation, and even branded stops that allow you to stop at the truck stop you prefer. All of the information is available within the app and can help you log more miles and make more money but with the convenience of managing many of your daily needs in one location.
Working With the Broker
If you find a broker you like to work with through one of these apps, you may be able to work with them directly as well. Many brokers work with drivers to find them work as well as posting jobs on the load boards. For them, it is about moving the freight so finding reliable drivers though load boards are just one tool, direct relationships can be profitable as well.
Contact a company, like My Virtual Fleet, for more help.