Remember how we used to book a flight in 1997?
You called 411 to get a phone number for each airline, called each one, waited for a booking agent, reviewed all your options, wrote them all down on paper, and finally made a decisiona��which you immediately worried was the wrong choice. Some time later, you got a paper ticket in the mail which, of course, you sometimes misplaced.
Twenty years later, that process seems unthinkable. Ita��s not just that we have a better way of communicating with airlines. The entire infrastructure for selling, booking, and a�?fulfillinga�? tickets has changed. The system is clearly superior for everyone involved, including the airlines.
We face a similar opportunity in the logistics industry. We may be 15 years behind innovation in passenger air travel, but the good news is that we can learn from all their lessons and best practices. Here at CoLoadX wea��re embracing technology and leading the effort to deliver such solutions to freight forwarders. A�Herea��s why:
A�Manual rate shopping is preventing your growth.
You know that your business is about more than price; if that was the only consideration, everybody would be doing business with the biggest forwarders only. Your core value proposition to your client lies elsewhere. Spending time and money on searching for the lowest rate diverts money and time from the high value services you provide, or could create, or the sales & marketing that you really need to spend on.
A�You have no idea what youa��re missing.
When you actively shop for rates, youa��re only doing it with 3-4 vendors with whom you have a relationship. Meanwhile, there are about 5,000 other vendors in the market whom youa��re not shopping with, many of whom are highly qualified and trustworthy. A�Therea��s not enough time to manage these options, and even if you had the resources to spare, emails and phone calls just cana��t provide the true market visibility you need.
Learn from Amazona��Not the Sears Catalog
Freight forwarders are not e-commerce retail shoppers, but we are a�?buyersa�? nonetheless, and we can learn a lot from masters like Amazon. It takes 30 seconds or less to make a purchase on a mobile device from an online retailer. How long does it take you to just get a rate, never mind make a booking, transmit documentation instructions and do all the necessary compliance work for a single shipment? You cana��t control many of those things, but you can realize internal speed and efficiency by changing the way in which you manage your own procurement process. Why call and email around for prices, when it can all be automated for you?
In an e-commerce world, therea��s no way to be competitive by using manual processes. A�Start today by speeding up whatever you can. A�Unlock the value of your business by moving your best people off rate shopping and into higher value solutions. Let technology do the shopping for you.
To learn more about how CoLoadX is helping freight forwarders understand and take advantage of the benefits of e-commerce, read more on our blog here.