How to find loads?

I've been seeing it in the comment sections on the load boards as well. Call up (sometimes they'll have it posted too) and it's well below the market average. I think what they REALLY mean is that it's good money for THEM if I/we accept their lowball offer.

 

Agreed. Once a person feels like they've been screwed it's all downhill from there. I try to look at it like a pizza. As long as everyone gets the amount of slices they need then we're all good and everyone can be happy. The problem is when people get greedy. Then the ill feelings begin to develop. Granted, I wouldn't want to leave an absurd amount of money on the table but as long as I get what makes me happy it's all good.

 

Hey, you're honest. That's an admiral quality in a sales person that's becoming less frequent. You more than likely have very loyal clients. Too many today go for the dishonest hard sell because they're more interested in maximizing commission than doing what's right for their clients. Personally I'd rather make a little less and have good regular clients than be constantly looking for new ones to rip off.

 

A really successful individual freight agent rarely has more than 1-3 customers. Larger companies need the services of freight brokers and they tend to buy your time in wholesale quantities in exchange for your taking thinner margins. These brokers you guys see making tons of money on every load are the losers who haven't figured out what the game is even about yet. Or they took absurdly risky or work intensive freight that necessitates bigger margins. I definitely think that any agent doing overdimensional is an idiot if they aren't averaging 20% margins... The number of details they can screw up to lose money combined with the tiny carrier base combined with the size of potential claims add up to a world where a 20% gross margin just isn't all that great. Similarly if you're doing high value reefer stuff you absolutely need massive margins so that you can live with losing a 145k load of exempt freight because someone went on a bender and the truck was 3 days late.

 

It really doesn't, though. I sit next to the guy.

 

The cheesy line that bombs over and over again. So much fun. I had a coworker at the first brokerage I worked at who was SO BAD at making cold calls it caused me real irritation. I was counting down the days till he ran out of rope.

 

Does he also approach women in bars and ask what their sign is?

 

Given his general lack of success in that arena, I wouldn't be surprised.

 

You aren't kidding about low-balliing new authoritys. CHR loves newbies, most are broke and will haul dirt cheap.

I loaded beside a guy with a new authority last week. We both got the load from CHR.

Him: Alabama to Texas - 620 miles. $1100

Me: Alabama to Mississippi - 221 miles $1500.

He didn't believe me until I broke out the rate confirmation. He said, I haul for them all the time, no way they will pay those kind of rates.

 

I get lots of lowball rates too. I try not to tell them anything until after we talk price so they don't use it against me in the negotiating phase. It's tough though once you're already set up because the cat's out of the bag at that point.