9 Strategies To Build A Freight Broker Book Of Business
For any aspiring or established freight broker, the ‘book of business’ isn’t just a collection of clients; it’s the foundation for steady loads, reliable profits, and scaling your business.
But how do you build this vital asset, especially when the market feels saturated or the path forward unclear?
To help you out, we’ve put together nine of the most effective strategies for building a freight broker book of business. We also cover why this is so important and some of the common mistakes to avoid.
The Foundations Of A Freight Broker Book Of Business
At its most basic level, a book of business is a set of recurring shipper accounts paired with a carrier network. It allows freight brokers to move loads reliably and profitably.
However, it’s not just a collection of shippers and carriers. It also includes:
- The specific lanes and regions you’ve built volume in.
- The types of freight you understand (e.g. reefer, flatbed, dry van).
- The performance data you’ve collected (on-time percentages, margins, volumes).
A book of business is crucial for any successful freight broker business as it gives you:
- A competitive advantage in negotiations.
- Predictability in revenue.
- Freedom in how you grow your freight brokerage business.
9 Top Strategies For Building A Freight Broker Book Of Business
Now that you understand what a book of business is and why it’s important, let’s discuss the nine top strategies you can use to build your own.
1. Niche down
When you start a new business or begin working for an established firm, it’s tempting to try to be everything to everyone. Yet, this isn’t a good strategy.
Instead, it’s best to focus on a freight broker niche and build your book out from there. This means specializing in a specific type of freight, industry, or location. If you do this, you’ll:
- Build stronger relationships with shippers who value expertise.
- Be able to quote more accurately and profitably.
- Gain market knowledge faster.
- Get better rates and more loyalty from carriers who trust you.
For example, let’s say you decide to specialize in flatbed steel loads from Pittsburgh to the Carolinas. After a few months, you’ll know every steel mill, dock schedule, and carrier that can secure a load with tarps at 6 am.
As a result, your book will be full of reliable shippers and carriers who trust you to deliver in your niche. After a while, you can expand into other niches, but niching down early gives you a solid foundation.
2. Prospect smart
Once you’ve chosen a niche, it’s time to start prospecting. This means identifying, contacting, and qualifying potential shipper clients who may need freight moved.
Many freight brokers fail to successfully prospect new clients because of a lack of consistency and an inefficient system. So, here’s how to build a repeatable process:
- Use industry directories like DAT to find shippers by commodity.
- Follow competitors’ loads on load boards, then backtrack to find the shippers.
- Target trade associations in your niche, like the TIA.
- Create 3 to 5 prospecting campaigns each month focused on a single region or commodity.
To build a book of business packed with valuable information, you need to prospect every day. Here’s an example of what that might look like:
- 20 new cold calls
- 10 follow-ups
- 5 new LinkedIn messages
- Review 5 lost quotes or past contacts
3. Identify pain points
So, you’ve identified potential shippers for your book of business. Now what? Well, you need to convert these leads into long-term clients.
The key to doing this is understanding their logistics pain points. Of course, researching their niche is a good place to start. However, you can also ask your prospects directly. For example, you might ask:
- “How often are you dealing with missed pickups?”
- “What’s your biggest challenge right now with freight?”
- “Do you have seasonal surges in specific lanes?”
Then, tell the shipper exactly how you can resolve a specific pain point. Pitch a single load to them as a low-risk test so you can prove your reliability. Make sure you nail that first load and communicate proactively throughout. This is a surefire way to add plenty of new customers to your book.
4. Focus on building trust
The most valuable currency for any freight broker business is trust. Logistics managers are under huge pressure as missed deliveries can mean line shutdowns, customer complaints, and even job risk. As a result, they need to know they can trust you to deliver.
Some of the best ways to build trust include:
- Owning your mistakes and providing clear solutions.
- Communicating early and often, especially if something goes wrong.
- Remembering small details about your clients, like business goals and even birthdays.
- Following up after each load to ask how you could improve your service.
For example, here’s a scenario that’s a good example of a broker building trust:
The broker starts sending weekly performance recaps to their top five shippers. This includes details like on-time percentage, average transit times, and feedback from carriers.
Within six months, those shippers start giving the broker priority lanes. Why? Because they fully trust the broker and treat them as an extension of their own logistics team.
5. Establish solid carrier relationships
We’ve discussed how to add shippers to your book of business, but establishing a carrier network is just as important.
You can only fulfill your commitments to your shippers if you have a reliable truck and driver ready to pick up and deliver on time. These are some of the ways you can vet and build lasting relationships with carriers:
- Vet them for safety scores, insurance, communication, and equipment.
- Ask them about their preferred lanes, and feed them consistent freight.
- Always pay them on time.
- Keep in touch even when you don’t have loads for them.
In your book, you should create carrier profiles with notes on feedback from past loads, driver preferences, and key contacts. Then, use this information to match them with the right freight.
6. Use tools and tech to scale efficiently
As your book expands, you can’t solely rely on spreadsheets to keep on top of everything. Rather, invest in the right tools to save time, reduce errors, and help you scale. The most important tools for a freight broker include:
- Load boards like Truckstop to help with spot market coverage.
- CRM tools like HubSpot to track every lead, quote, and follow-up.
- TMS platforms, such as AscendTMS, to streamline operations.
- Freight forecasting tools like FreightWaves SONAR to help you price accurately.
You’ll also need to create workflows that support the growth of your freight brokerage business, such as:
- Monthly performance recaps.
- Weekly pipeline reviews.
- Quarterly account deep-dives.
7. Utilize customer feedback
One of the most effective ways to build your freight broker book of business is to gather feedback from your shippers. Once you’ve moved a customer’s freight, ask them things like:
- “What could I do better?”
- “What’s something small I can do to make your life easier?”
- “How do you define a great freight broker?”
You can then use the feedback to improve your communication habits and build SOPs for major accounts. Plus, it should help you identify upsell opportunities like mode shifts and warehousing.
8. Stay consistent
Consistency is vital in any industry, and freight brokerage is no different. Remember, you won’t build a great book in three months.
At the start, you’ll probably hear “no” more than “yes”. This is normal, so don’t let it discourage you. If a shipper rejects you, move on to the next and keep going until you secure a load.
Every successful freight broker builds habits that help them expand their book. These often include:
- Daily outbound outreach.
- Monthly account health checks.
- Quarterly book audits.
Focus on goals you can control, like calls, quotes, and follow-ups, rather than obsessing over outcomes. If you stay consistent, one shipper will become five, and one lane will become a network.
9. Make the most of social proof
One of the main things potential shippers look for before doing business with you is positive feedback from existing customers. This means that social proof can be a very powerful tool for building your freight broker book of business. You can make the most of social proof by:
- Asking shippers for short written or video testimonials.
- Adding them to your sales materials, emails, and website.
- Using them in cold outreach. For example: “Here’s what one of our past clients said after we handled their freight”.
Over time, social proof helps you improve your reputation and shorten your sales cycles.
Mistakes To Avoid When You Build Your Freight Broker Book Of Business
There are a number of mistakes that both new and experienced freight brokers make when building a book of business. To help you avoid them, let’s look at the four most common ones and what you should do instead.
- Over-reliance on a single customer: If you lose this customer, your income completely disappears. Instead, aim for account diversity by region, industry, and load type.
- Poor communication habits: Remember, good communication is the key to building trust. Late updates, unclear emails, or ghosting carriers will cost you business, fast.
- Undervaluing your service: Winning freight by undercutting the market isn’t a sustainable model for any freight brokerage business. Compete on expertise, reliability, and added value.
- Avoiding awkward conversations: If there are issues or mistakes, don’t sugarcoat them. Shippers and carriers always prefer to be told the truth so that problems can be solved quickly.
Learn How To Build Your Book Of Business With 90-Day Freight Broker
Whether you’re starting your own freight broker business or joining an established firm, training is the best way to learn how to build a book of business.
While it isn’t mandatory for brokers, training gives you a competitive advantage, making you a more appealing prospect to both shippers and carriers.
The 90-Day Freight Broker Course is the most comprehensive online training resource available. For just $890, you get access to 100 hours of course modules, including:
- Identifying shipper niches.
- Negotiating rates.
- Researching and vetting carriers.
- Using load boards.
- Tracking and tracing.
- Cash flow management.
We’re certain you’ll love the course, but if you’re not satisfied, we’ll give you a full 30-day refund.
Ready to become a freight broker and start building your own book of business? Discover 90-Day Freight Broker now!
FAQs
1. Can I build a book of business as a part-time freight broker?
Yes, but it will be a much slower process. To build strong relationships, you need to be available and responsive. Naturally, both of these are limited when you only work part-time hours.
2. Should I focus on finding shippers or carriers first?
You should always prioritize shippers, as, without freight, you have nothing to move. However, as soon as you start booking loads, you need to put carriers in place to transport them.
3. Can I build a freight broker book of business without cold calling?
You don’t need to use cold calling to build a book of business, but it’s the fastest way to gain traction. Ideally, you should combine cold calling with other types of outreach, like:
- Cold email
- LinkedIn networking
- Referrals
- In-person visits
Final Thoughts
Building your freight broker book of business takes time, focus, and consistency. The most important strategies include niching down, smart prospecting, and earning the trust of your shippers and carriers.
If you get these strategies right, you’ll build a successful freight broker business, and your book will steadily expand.
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