exceptional service over time,” concluded the Robinson study.
One of the most important tenets for shippers is to be
truthful about the traffic they tender. During the procurement process, shippers may make their freight look better
than it really is, Robinson said. But if carriers discover that the
freight isn’t available at the right times or is difficult to handle,
they may decide to accept someone else’s freight instead. If the
primary carrier doesn’t take the freight, the shipper could find
himself in a tough spot. As he goes down the service guide in
search of providers, he may find the rate and service options
becoming increasingly less attractive, the study concluded.
On the other hand, if the shipper doesn’t disclose the attractive qualities of the freight, the carrier may “assume the worst”
and price capacity at less-than-optimal rates, Robinson said.
Be consistent. Gough Grubbs, senior vice president, distri-bution/logistics for national retail chain Stage Stores Inc.,
advises shippers to try to spread their loads over an entire
month, rather than compress them into a one-week period
at the end of the month. This rewards a shipper’s core carriers—the ones offering the best price-service matrix—by
allowing them to better plan their schedules and thus carry
more loads, Grubbs says.
“Carriers favor consistency in their customers,” Grubbs
says. “When capacity is tight, [carriers] will take care of the
‘steady’ load customers before the erratic load orders.” He
adds that shipper consistency can result in better rates
because carriers prefer a steady revenue flow to higher-
priced but less-predictable freight.
TRUCKLOAD FREIGHT transportationreport
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