For me it’s always been about nurturing relationships, and trust. I am never my customer’s cheapest option, but they know me, they like me, they trust me. They know if they send me a load, it’s getting covered and there will be no issues. I may not win every load, but often I am awarded the tougher lanes to cover. My customers have customers they need to answer to. Therefore they can’t always afford to go with the cheapest option. That and just hammering the phones to continue to keep my pipe full.

This was brilliant, thank you for sharing your insights! Definitely helpful

My favorite part of working in this industry is its dynamic. I could live to be 160 years old and I’ll still be learning something new. There’s so many niches and so many types of freight one can specialize in, it’s incredible. I’m drawn to this industry because I love to problem solve. My least favorite part are the bad actors, the fraud, etc that creates a bad taste in the mouth of shippers. It creates distrust between brokers and new carriers. Or if a legitimate carrier updates their contact info or address, red flags instantly. At first it was nerve-racking for me to invest trust in newer carriers.

@John Sindahl Same! Anyone who says they’ve “seen it all” are merely trying to sell some sort of tech or consulting. I will forever be a student of this industry and it’s humbling to say the least.

I’m also newish to this industry but I think AI will only aid brokerages rather than replace. The next leap forward for freight - in my sci-fi opinion - will be brokering rockets transporting materials on and off planet. The first company to successfully figure out how to mine asteroids and transport it back to Earth will be the first multi-trillion dollar company.

At the very least, c411. But looking at their COI to see who they are insured under is another common vetting tool.