Threat of Convoy & Uber Freight

Regardless of what they're trying, I'm finding more and better paying loads through them than brokers or the Uber app. Picked one up today that's over $3 per mile on 600 miles and got another one Friday for $4.75 per mile on 260 miles. Same shipper on both loads and they are one of the "select load" shippers. They can do whatever they want as long as I keep getting loads from them.

 

I use them too, maybe without such luck lately but I definitely have to bid, especially on loads that are 300 miles when they offer $680 for them. I had only 1 load cancelled by them so far, out of ... maybe 70 in the last 2 years, so that program is most likely of no consequence for me, thus no excitement.

Another program they introduced lately was Premium Customer Service, which means that when you meet their statistical thresholds they will take a better care of you. For instance, you can get paid up to 24 hours of detention vs their regular 5 or they will respond to your issues much faster or you will have an opportunity to change your bid to the second best bidder before the load is finally given to him.
That is a strange program, to put it mildly. When you are on a load with problems, I think everybody should be given an equal amount of attention. After all, that concerns not only a carrier but also their customer. Also, paying someone else more for detention at the same facility is a dubious incentive too. I mean, if I know that they pay me up to 5 hours and pay you up to 24 hours at a shipper somewhere, then what if I get pissed by that and bail after 5 hours. You don't pay, I don't sit. I believe that detention is deserved by everyone on equal terms universally.
Enough of that critique. I think that they are way better from UBER in human to human interactions such as responsiveness to problems and rate negotiations...at least you can call them and find out more about a load, try to negotiate the rate behind the app...etc. Uber will not do it, unless they post a load on a regular load board and give a direct number to an individual agent in charge of the account.

 

I was notified last week that I was now on the Premium Customer Service plan. I think this and the cancellation guarantee pay are ways to get the shipper to get the job done better than they have been doing. I noticed the 2 loads I've hauled for that shipper since the plan went into effect have been loaded very quickly as have the deliveries.

 

I like them both, and it’s nice now that Convoy is showing shipper and receiver names and addresses. If Uber would allow bidding, to me the apps would be neck and neck.

 

Uber, losing billions, freezes engineering hires

 

Not that I like Uber, but they’re not talking about Uber Freight LLC brokerage company.

“Uber is freezing hiring for software engineers and product managers across its US and Canadian workforce, the company acknowledged to Bloomberg on Friday. The shift was reported by Yahoo earlier in the day. The freeze does not apply to Uber's autonomous vehicle and freight-shipping divisions.”

Uber, losing billions, freezes engineering hires

SAFER Web - Company Snapshot UBER FREIGHT LLC

 

They've been skating on VC the whole time, a below market rate Uber ride is really funded by both VC's and the individual driver who works for less than the IRS mileage allowance, effectively like an O/O who runs for 80 cents/mile and eventually runs out of capital.

Those resources are drying up as both segments come to their senses.

The freight brokerage is a way to do the same kind of thing, take money for putting operations together without owning anything but software. Which requires engineers to make, fix, and update.

Updated: Revenue and losses climb at Uber Freight - FreightWaves

 

Uber Freight is making trucking more efficient and could help Uber turn a profit