Let’s make it simple. Let’s play a role game. Your name is Mr. Freight Forwarder.
Let’s suppose you want to take some cargo from point A to point B. We know your business’ core is international transportation. You might already have an idea of how the Industry works, its divisions and members but let’s make it from the start, since it will be helpful to understand further details that will give you a better overall comprehension of it.
First of all, it’s important for to mention that freight transportation industry is not a one-part business. This means there are several participants in the whole logistics chain. Some of them you may already know, some other may be new to you; let’s talk about the main two and describe each one of them to dig a little bit further.
If you start from basics, you’ll find our first character: carriers. These guys are known for taking your cargo in trucks. So, we can say their core business is transportation itself, picking up loads, moving and delivering them. They are commonly the owners of the transportation equipment needed in every case.
On a second position, we would find another participant: 3PLs. Defined as Third Party Logistics, they have become an important part of the chain. These are companies that offer a specialized service on freight transportation and logistics. They are not the owners of any truck or equipment, but they have in-depth understanding of the industry dynamics and offer solutions to your needs through connections they have established with carrier companies.
Therefore, to make it clear, when you decide to partner with a 3PL, you’re hiring experience. They will save you time and money by minimizing expensive mistakes you can make. As they have a large network of carriers, they will know better than any other which of them are trustworthy and for which specific needs (location, warehousing, etc.), adding up customer service that cares about your requests.
Now, let’s suppose you already picked a company to ship with. That’s great! You’re one step closer to having your load taken to its destination. Some days after, your cargo finally arrives and you get a call from the company notifying you about some extra charges that were applied to the invoice and end up raising what you thought would be the final price.
So, Mr. Freight Forwarder, before you can say you’re still confused about why costs increased and you blame it on the company, we’re here to hand you a helpful tool that will give you a better understanding of this industry, how it works and why yours is not a one-in-a-million case. Here’s your GO-TO guide on Inland Transportation!