Over time, freight brokers learn what works and what does not. But it takes time – and usually a long time. Meanwhile, many prospects (and opportunities) have been lost in the learning process.  Below are some ways that can help freight brokers new to the industry save on time and effort and propel them quicker towards success.  As for the more seasoned freight broker, these tips can serve as a refresher to help improve their game…and overall results!

1.  EVERY DAY, obtain THREE new business contacts (and call them):  FACT – As with most any industry, you will lose business for one reason or another. These new contacts will help to replace business that you will eventually lose or business that will never get off the ground (like the dreaded 1-shipment only customer). Some customers will not have any loads for 6 months or a year and then recontact you.  Others will fall through for other reasons, so it’s important that you continually seek and pursue new prospects.

2.  Do your research BEFORE you make the call: Cold calling people without doing any research tells them you did not consider the call important enough.  The key here is to understand that it is not about you – it is all about them. Make sure the conversation is about them, not you.  Use sales intelligence to turn a cold call into a warm call.  Sales Intelligence refers to technologies and practices for collection of information to help sales people keep up to date with clients and prospects.  Use Google and other search engines to gather relevant information (i.e. articles featuring the company and/or executives, recent awards or recognitions, and company locations).

CLICK HERE TO VIEW OUR WEBINAR ON HOW FREIGHT BROKERS CAN USE SALES INTELLIGENCE FOR PROSPECTING

To get information on your prospect’s company, begin by calling their sales department.  Salespeople are great individuals to talk to when you want to know everything about a company and where it’s going.  You can gain a great deal of knowledge from salespeople, so use that opportunity to ask them questions about what they do and how they do it.  Ask them what lanes they ship, or what states they operate in.

3.  Build a relationship:  Establish rapport with your contact and foster a connection.  It’s no secret – people are more likely to buy from a friend than from someone they view as a salesperson.  This can be difficult to achieve at first when making cold calls.  One way freight brokers can establish rapport is to start the conversation based on the lane they are running or the weight they are moving.  This is great information to use to help make that initial connection with prospects.  You will naturally learn how to build rapport as you learn the ins and outs of their business and the individual him or herself.  Try to think of the process as being on a football team: you start as a freshman and build your skills through training and practice.

4.  Expect resistance from prospects:  You WILL hear excuses such as “business is slow” or “we don’t have any loads that need to be moved.” But don’t give up!  Persistence is key. Remember to ALWAYS follow up with your prospects/customers.

5.  Take ACTION and follow through:  You’ll build proficiency through ACTION.  The process will get easier and you will get better at connecting, but you have to put in the time and effort.

6.  Stay FOCUSED: Keeping your focus is crucial.  Stay focused on the three p’s: the people, the process, and the product.  When you focus on the three most important aspects of business, you WILL have a successful freight broker business and/or be a successful freight broker agent for years to come!