Truck drivers are the backbone of the domestic transportation industry moving long haul cross country freight and local freight 7 days a week. Along with domestic freight, much of the international freight from cargo ships is moved via trucks further inland. The majority of cross border Mexican freight and Canadian freight is also moved by truck.
Without them, the stores we rely on for food, medical supplies, and everyday essentials wouldn’t have stocked shelves. There are over 3.5 Million truck drivers currently in the USA. This has become more visible than ever throughout the COVID19 pandemic.
Capacity shortages come and as, and when capacity is at a premium, trucking companies and drivers can be more selective about which shippers they choose to do business with. It’s important for shippers and logistics companies to work as hard as they can to foster a great relationship with drivers and carriers they work with. In the long run, these relationships can be important both sides as shippers will have access to capacity when the trucking market tightens and truck drivers will work with customers that appreciate what they do and try to help them get it done efficiently.
Let’s take a look at a few ways shippers can build their relationships with trucking companies and drivers.
1.Communication
Unexpected situations will happen, but when they do communicate this quickly and opening to your driver or dispatcher. Many times this is a delay in loading, resulting in a driver having to wait longer than expected at a facility.
2.Quick Payment
Drivers have a lot of expenses they face on a daily basis that they pay upfront as they operate across the country. Helping your drivers and carriers by promptly paying them goes a long way to ensure that you are building a healthy relationship. Particularly for shippers that try to put their payment terms out to the 60-90 day range, this creates a major lag in expenses vs income for your carrier partners.
3.Basic Amenities
Drivers need to be taken care of when they are at your facilities. While we aren’t asking for a “driver Starbucks”, simple facilities such as parking, restrooms, basic snacks such as energy bars and bottles of water should be made available to your drivers. Make sure all your staff knows the importance of the drivers that provide service to your facility and encourage them to be friendly and treat drivers with respect.
4. Technology
Technology solutions in the logistics industry now provide a myriad of options that can boost the efficiency of your loading dock operation and reduce wasted time for drivers. Modern TMS systems and visibility systems give you the ability to quickly communicate with teams based on where a driver is and make quick adjustments if delays occur both on the loading dock side or if the driver gets stuck in traffic. Warehouse management systems also can drastically boost efficiency by letting you track inventory turn more accurately and make better planning decisions for your supply chain. A major component of improved efficiency is the use of data analytics to track your shipments from start to finish. This gives you a clear picture of where your supply chain issues are occurring and what can be improved upon.
5. Don’t Make them Wait
Detention is a cause of frustration for everyone involved, but do everything you can to minimize and continually review loading dock and warehousing processes to ensure that you are constantly trying to optimize your loading operation. Another potential efficiency boost for larger shippers is to utilize drop trailers which greatly increase the amount of time a driver can spend on the road vs waiting at your location. Drop trailers are a fleet of trailers that are assigned to your location by the carrier or sometimes owned by the shipper themselves, and instead of a driver waiting to load and unload, the driver simply drops one trailer and hooks up to a new trailer. This disconnects the loading process from the driver’s time.
6. Be a Team player
Running a supply chain is a team endeavor, and make sure that you treat the operation as a long-term partnership between your own firm and that of your supply chain partners such as suppliers, warehousing providers, carriers, and drivers. The freight market will always be cyclical, so when capacity is loose and rates are, don’t take advantage of carriers you’ve worked with and built a relationship with for years. This destroys trust between your organizations and you can bet than when rates and capacity tighten, your carriers won’t be there to “help you out” when you need it most. Making sure your freight contracts are fair also goes a long way to ensuring you are building a lasting relationship.
The freight market, particularly the spot market is one of the more pure supply-demand plays in the economy. Right now, as of the spring of 2020, shippers in most lanes have a clear advantage with rates and negotiations, as there are simply more trucks than loads available, but give it a few years, and no doubt the opposite will be true.
The most successful businesses in the world focus on extreme long term decision making that are backed by hard data and analysis. Your supply chain is an incredibly important aspect of your business and it’s an overall success so make sure that you are putting effort into building long-term relationships with your truck drivers and carriers. Want to know more about how to be a shipper of choice? Send us a message below!
About Zmodal
Zmodal is a digital logistics provider, with easy access to North American trucking and intermodal rail service options all through our easy to use dashboard. Search routes, pricing, and book a load within minutes, all while featuring data analytics, digital document management, and full shipment visibility.
