Shipping is a highly competitive industry. You have to always be on top of your game to do well. Finding shippers or long-term clients is one of the most challenging aspects of running a successful shipping company. Establishing and constantly growing your customer base is crucial to running a successful shipping business. ArdentX, a transportation and logistics company, provides tips on how to find freight shippers for your business. You can also contact them if you’re looking for transport services. They provide complete transportation solutions for shippers.
Tips for Finding Freight Shippers
Finding new clients for your transportation business requires time and research. You cannot just dive in without a plan. Fortunately, the strategies below can help you find new clients and expand your transportation and logistics business:
Cold Calling
Cold calling is a great way to connect with shippers. Though getting a positive response for every call may be challenging, it can be more effective than emails, which are easy to ignore or forget. Cold calling will allow you to establish contact and get all the information you need about your potential new client. However, you should be prepared with what to say to get the client’s attention during the call. Research the company you are calling and understand their shipping requirements before calling them. Briefly describe your business goals and how you can help them.
Warm Calling
Warm calling is another way to contact potential shippers and may be more effective than cold calling. However, this method will require a bit more research to succeed. You will need some information about the shippers in your area and the services they require before contacting them in warm calling. You can buy a detailed database of distributors and manufacturers in the locations that you want to target. This list should include company details like the number of employees, types of products they ship, revenue, contact names with job titles, email addresses, and phone numbers. While warm calling may require more effort than cold calling, it can help you establish a working relationship efficiently with potential shippers.
Referrals
Referrals are a great way to contact new customers. Most of the time, your best leads will likely come from your existing customers. If they are happy with your services, they will refer you to potential clients. Speak to your existing customers and check if they know anyone looking for freight brokers. Any referral from a satisfied client to a prospective customer will also become like an endorsement of your services, giving you a high chance of success.
Prospect Similar Businesses
This method can be highly effective if you ship specific types of freight. You can google businesses by industry or freight type and create a potential client list to reach out to. Since you focus on particular types of freight and would have ample experience, your knowledge and expertise in the area can set you apart from other companies when you speak to these businesses.
Shipper Lists and Call Leads
Industry resources like shipper lists and call leads can help you identify potential clients and grow your business. Many online lists provide a wide range of information about manufacturing, shipping, and distribution companies. Some websites give you the companies’ business type, location, product catalog, and contact information. Shipper lists will help you narrow your client search based on business requirements. For instance, if you provide shipping for a particular type of freight or location, you can search through the list to find potential clients who deal with that freight type or need shipping only to that location.
Loyalty Programs
A loyalty program can help you in two ways. First, it will incentivize your existing clients to continue doing business with you. Second, it will generate a buzz within the freight industry and help you grow your brand.
You can offer a sign-up bonus for a new client, a discount for the first few orders or after they reach a specific number of transactions, or a cash bonus for referrals as a part of your loyalty program.
Now that you know the different ways to find potential shippers, you can decide which to use. Depending on your time, you can either choose one or two of these methods that you feel will be most effective or try all of them to find potential freight shippers. The tactics you use can also depend on the types of freight you ship, the industries you are targeting, and the amount of freight you can handle.
